Antarctica – The Last Frontier Part 5

During this part of our Antarctic journey with Peter and Alice we visit Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world. Located in a wide bay on the southern coast of the island of Tierra del Fuego, the city is bounded on the north by the Martial mountain range and on the south by the Beagle Channel.

Ushuaia (Isla Grande - Tierra del Fuego), Argentina

Pronunced - ooo-shoo-AYE-ah, the capital city's name comes from the Yahgan Indians (canoe people) meaning “a bay of penetration westward”. Tierra Del Fuego is an island meaning Land of Fire. The Andes Mountains run north – south while the city runs east-west. Chile is Ushuaia’s neighbor on the other side of the Andes Mountains. Ushuaia has the distinction of being called “Fin del Mundo” (end of the world), since this is where the Pan American highway route that begins in Alaska ends.

We took a scenic mountain bus tour of the Olivia River Valley through Carbajal Valley and climbed the Alvear Range to Garibaldi Pass. At this point we had a beautiful view of Hidden Valley Lake.

Our tour guide was ecstatic about the weather we were having during our visit. She kept on apologizing for commenting so often that it is such a beautiful sunny day with ideal temperature. The scenery was breathtaking with snow capped mountains surrounding us everywhere.

That evening when we sailed away from Ushuaia, the Beagle Channel was as smooth as glass with no wind and only soft ripples in the water. The stillness was similar to an experience we had looking over the Grand Canyon. In the background were smoky glistening mountains. As we were sitting in the Crown Grill Steakhouse having dinner, we slowly passed by huge waterfalls cascading down the huge glaciers. The views were spectacular!

Punta Arenas (Sandy Point), Chile

The city of Punta Arenas lies atop rolling hills, overlooking the Strait of Magellan. Today it remains a prosperous town due to the richness of natural resources. It is also the gateway to Chilean Patagonia with its maze of fjords, and rivers and mountains to the north. To the south lies the great frozen mass of Antarctica.

We took a city highlight tour which included a visit to the open air exhibition at the Patagonia Museum. This certainly was a different type of museum. There was very old farm equipment staged all around in an open area. In one of buildings you saw the equipment and setup used to shear sheep. Wool was really big back then, but now New Zealand and Australia dominate the wool market. Another building housed a few antique cars (Fords) including the containers of gasoline used to fuel the cars. Yet another building housed a very old dentist's office complete with his chair and equipment. Chile produces oil but does not have sufficient oil or refining capacity to make them exempt from importing additional oil. Another building was comprised of rooms seen in a typical house. The ceilings were not that high and the furniture used during that period was not elaborate nor were there many pieces. The biggest stand alone building had numerous rooms where you could look at a typical theater with movie equipment and theater seats. One room was a fully equipped dental office. The pharmacy had cabinets to the ceiling filled with the various potions of the day.

Our next stop was at the Maggiorino Borgatello Museum housed in a 19th century mansion. There is a lot of natural history to absorb. We can say that we have come away from this cruise with a better appreciation of nature with all of its differences.

We stopped at the Pioneer Cemetery with its many beautifully manicured cypress trees. Near the entrance was a mausoleum for the Grimaldi family. Prince Albert of Monaco stopped here to pay his respects to his family before he started his Antarctica expedition. Who knew this family of Monaco had roots in Chile? This cemetery is certainly different than Recoleta Cemetery in Buenos Aries where Evita Peron is buried. The Pioneer cemetery is segregated by nationality. Both cemeteries have mausoleums with magnificent architecture.

Instead of returning directly to the ship we had the bus driver drop us off in the center of town, since it was just a short walk back to the ship. We walked through the craft fair in the park. Many tourists were gathered around the Magellan Statue with the unknown Indian. The toe of the Indian is very shiny, since many people kiss his toe. The theory is that if you kiss the toe you will have a safe passage on your next sea journey. Imagine all of those germs?

Next: Montevideo, Uruguay

Antarctica – The Last Frontier Part 4

Moving right along with our Antarctic exploration dream, we follow our authors and photographers, Alice and Peter leisurely cruising through straits, islands, archipelagos and peninsulas.

Cruising the Antarctica Peninsula - February 9, 2010

During the night our ship continued southwest through the Bransfield Strait headed toward Anvers Island. Early in the morning we entered one of the main attractions of Antarctica, the Gerlache Strait. As the ship leisurely cruises along, we felt as if we were ice bound by the mountains on both sides. Our ship slowly maneuvered between the islands of the Trinity Peninsula on the port side and the land mass with high mountains of Palmer Archipelago on the starboard side. We saw what we thought was pink snow. This seasonal phenomenon really was algae that live on the snow. The spray from the sea combined with the nutrients (or more mildly put “poop”) from the penguin colonies enable the algae to grow. The color of the algae can be pink, red or green. After lunch we passed Wiencke Island as we entered the Bismarck Strait to make a right turn into Neumayer Channel. Over the loud speakers came the voice of Capt Perrin advising us to “hold on”. Winds of 80 knots (66.7 miles per hour) were coming across the bow as we started our turn. The ship listed to the port side, then the starboard, and then the port side again. Passenger safety is always the captain’s main concern. The decision was made to skip the Newmayer Channel and exit the Gerlache Strait the same way we had just traveled. The port side views were different than the ones we saw in the morning. We saw Wiencke Island, the peaks of Mt Francais on Anvers Island, and Lion Island.

In the Neumayer Channel we would have seen deep cut fjords with a glacier that is 8 miles long and 2 miles wide flowing along the Allardyce Range. The mountains rise straight up from the water appearing like sea cliffs. The channel is shaped like an “S”. Since the channel is so narrow, there are times where there appears to be no visible exit.

Look carefully at the photo below and you can see the MS Bremen in the middle of the photograph cruising in the bay close to the shoreline. (Click the picture itself for a better view. Click on your back arrow to resume.) In order to appreciate the height of the surroundings, take note of the size of ship in relationship to the mountains and glaciers.

February 10, 2010 - Deception Island

At 7am the weather was cloudy as we viewed the mouth of Deception Island. This island is ring shaped with an internal crater that is almost 8 miles in diameter. Smaller ships are able to enter the mouth of this natural harbor (Whalers Bay) to explore this collapsed volcano filled with water. Deception Island is considered one of the largest crater islands in the world. The volcanic rock has huge iron deposits on the rocks that provide a colorful array in the sunlight. In 1969 the British and Chilean research stations were destroyed by a volcanic eruption.

The beaches and waters of the island are home to Weddell and crab eating seals, as well as Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins. On the towering brown cliff of Bailey Head thousands of Chinstrap penguins nest as far as 600 feet up the side of the mountain. It is a long walk for them to reach the beach for food, but the ice is thinner higher on the side of the mountain enabling chicks to hatch sooner than on the beach. This timing could mean life or death for a chick. The white dots on the black shore are penguins.

Large amounts of “bergs” are blown here by northern winds. We enjoyed the varieties of icebergs that the seas presented to us. Each iceberg has its own “DNA.” Like snowflakes, no two icebergs are identical. The blue striation of color throughout the iceberg is a beautiful sight. Like glaciers, light reflects differently through the iceberg. If the weight of snow forced oxygen to be released they become bluer. You can tell the age of a berg by its color. The young ones are always bright white while the dark blue ones are very old. The largest of the bergs is an Ice Land that could be the size of a small city of several thousand square miles. Our ship dwarfed some of these tall icebergs. As the size of the iceberg decreases over time they turn into Tabular Icebergs (100 to 150 feet high) with flat tops. Pieces break off the Tabular Icebergs to form Bergy Bits in various shapes and sizes with jagged edges and spiraling columns formed by the winds and waves. Tomorrow our journey of viewing natural formations of land and ice is coming to an end as we enter the Drake Passage to circumnavigate Cape Horn.

February 11, 2010 - Cape Horn Cruising

During the night we headed North-North West through the turbulent waters of Drake Passage. We can say we passed over the Antarctic Convergence or Polar Front. This is a shifting liquid boundary where cold dense water is moving north toward warmer water from the Atlantic and Pacific. We sailed from the Atlantic Ocean into the Pacific Ocean and then back into the Atlantic again.

When we arrived in close proximity to Cape Horn the weather was clear but the seas were rough with huge waves. The Chilean pilot, who is required to guide us as we circumnavigate around Cape Horn Island, was unable to travel the 9 miles in his small boat to join our team on the bridge. Who knew that this southern most tip of South America is really an island that is part of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile? Today 1400 feet above sea level there is a Chilean military outpost that controls all of the traffic in the area.

When Sir Francis Drake circumnavigated the world in 1578 he reported the existence of a wide open ocean south of the Straits of Magellan. On January 29, 1616 two Dutch navigators, Jakob Le Maire and Willem Schouten sailed the Eendracht through “Cape Hoorn”, the southern most tip of South America. This island is part of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile. The island was named after Hoorn, Holland where Schouten was born. At that time it was very important to discover another route to the East Indies, since the East India Company’s charter did not allow any other Dutch trading company to use the Straits of Magellan or Africa’s Cape of Good Hope to reach the East Indies.

In 1848 gold was discovered at Sutter's Mill, California. Cape Horn became the passageway from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast. By 1869 the transcontinental railroad became the safer and quicker means to cross North America than the dangerous prairie. In 1914 the opening of the Panama Canal caused traffic around Cape Horn to decline even further.

Many lives have been lost in these waters due to 65 foot waves, gale storms that occur 200 days per year with 130 days per year of heavy clouds. The temperature most of the year is cold. Today the seas were rough, but the weather was clear. With our binoculars we could see the chapel and lighthouse sitting on top of the brown cliffs of granite. We could also see the cast aluminum monument with a cut-out representing an albatross in flight. This monument was erected in 1992 as a memorial for all the sailors who have perished undertaking the treacherous voyage rounding the Cape. As one approaches the Cape Horn Memorial he can read the incription and understand the significance of the albatross.

The Cape Horn Memorial Inscription reads:

I, the albatross that awaits at the end of the world...I am the forgotten soul of the sailors lost, rounding Cape Horn from all the seas of the world. But die they did not in the fierce waves, for today towards eternity, in my wings they soar, in the last crevice of the Antarctic winds.

Next: Ushuaia (Isla Grande Tierra del Fuego), Argentina

Antarctica – The Last Frontier (Part 3)

In this third episode we continue on with the dream of visiting Antarctica just to see what it was really like? Let’s follow the article’s authors and photographers, Peter and Alice through the excitement of cruising to, in and through Antarctica. We thank Peter and Alice for their friendship, their encouragement and their preparation of this series.

Cruising the Antarctica Peninsula

On February 7, 2010 (day 6 of our voyage) we started 4 days of scenic cruising. There are many places to see in Antarctica south of 66 degrees, but due to the size of our ship, insurance liability determined how far south we could go. We achieved 64.59.1 degrees. It was comforting to know the bridge was being well manned with 2 additional ice captains. You certainly want these experienced eyes and knowledge plotting the best course and rate of speed. Icebergs are not stationary, they travel quickly in this water and only 20% of them is visible above the surface of the water. Weather conditions change rapidly, especially winds that cause even a big ship (109,000 tons) like ours to drift.

Describable only with superlatives, Antarctica (derived from the Greek “antarktikos” meaning opposite to the Arctic) is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent with the highest average elevation of all the continents. Antarctica is about the size of the United States with 98% of its area covered by ice. Only the coast has precipitation while the interior might be considered the largest desert in the world. Did you know the Andes Mountains extend underwater from South America and are attached to Antarctica?

Every day one vista was even more beautiful than the last. We had both of our cameras just clicking away. With digital cameras it is easy to end up with more than 2,000 pictures. The hard task begins when you get home and have to make the decision when to press the delete button. We will try to pick just a few pictures to share with you.

This is one voyage where it pays to spend the extra money for a balcony. The first morning we bundled up and headed outside to the upper deck to enjoy the views. If you were standing on the top deck you are 100 feet above the sea. There were speakers in various locations but, with passengers talking and the wind and air blowing around us, it was difficult to hear what was being said. The temperature was tolerable, but after a while we decided to make full use of our balcony. We had the door open so we could hear the commentary on the TV and when we felt chilly we could go back inside.

The morning was foggy as we started cruising past Elephant Island that is located in the eastern group of South Shetland Islands. The 24 mile long non-volcanic island received this name since when you look at navigation charts its shape resembles the head of an elephant. It is also the first place where elephant seals were sighted. The eastern edge ends in rocky cliffs and glaciers that are nearly 300 feet high. There are several bays and areas of land that are backed by 650 ft black cliffs. This island is home to 2 Brazilian research stations that are inhabited in the summer from January to March. On this island are colonies of Gentoo, Chinstrap and Macaroni penguins. If you look along the shore there are many Cape and Storm Petrel birds feeding. In the afternoon as the fog started to lift, we continued South Westerly through the Bransfield Straight. From our balcony we were able to view a broad glacier north of Mount Elder.

Endurance Glacier drains southeast to the south coast of Elephant Island. It is the main discharge glacier on the island. The Captain rotated the ship 360 degrees so that no one would miss the spectacular views. This is the spot where, on April 15, 1916, Sir Ernest Shackleton

landed or rather should I say was stranded with his party of 22 castaways after losing their expedition ship – the Endurance. The men used two upturned lifeboats to settle in for the winter while Shackleton with 5 others sailed off in the third lifeboat to get help. Shackleton returned four months later on August 30th with a borrowed 150 ton Chilean naval tender to rescue his crew. Just 18 miles away is Gibb Island. This island is off the tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. Its dimensions are 10 miles long by 4 miles wide with the highest point measuring 1500 feet. Total darkness in this area of the world occurs around midnight and ends around 2:30am. Due to the extended amount of daylight hours we were able easily see the beautiful sights of the island.

February 8, 2010 – During the night, we sailed through the Bransfield Strait toward our next destination, the Antarctic Sound and the Argentine research station Esperanza. This station is unique because it also houses families of the scientific personnel. A school is provided for the children. When we started our Antarctic journey we did not know there are numerous nations with research stations in Antarctica. The Antarctic Treaty was signed on December 1, 1959 by twelve nations, but not until June 23, 1961 was it ratified by all the parties. This treaty has 14 Articles outlining the rules that permit a successful co-existence in the Antarctic. There have been 28 additional signatory nations added. This Treaty does not permit military activity, mineral mining or nuclear testing. It limits national programs to scientific research for all land and ice shelves south of 60 degrees. According to the Treaty only ships with a passenger capacity of 500 or less can land visitors ashore. They agreed to have free exchange of information and scientists between countries. It also gives each nation the right to inspect the operations of other countries. If you are a full “Consultative Party nation” like the United States, you agree to maintain a year round station on the continent.

After we entered Antarctic Sound, the winds suddenly kicked up to 50 knots (41.6 miles per hour) with fog settling into the region. The Captain decided to back out into Admiralty Bay, since the strong winds were causing the ship to drift sideway.

There was a lot of ice being pushed around by the winds. We held our position for a while to see if the weather cleared. Unfortunately, the weather did not change and we did not see Esperanza as we set sail for our next destination.

In the afternoon we continued sailing in the calmer waters of Admiralty Bay as it started to lightly snow. The captain parked our ship as we heard commentary about the Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station on King George Island. This station built in 1977 is primarily engaged in marine biology, but oceanography, seismology, magnetism and ecology studies are also performed. Colonies of Adelies, Chinstrap and Gentoo penguins provide data used to monitor the impact of climate changes on the colony due to consumption variations and amount of krill (their main food source) consumed.

Currently there are 31 people at this station with 50% being women. We were so excited when as we watched the Zodiac boat being loaded on shore. Two Bulgarian research scientists were going home and our big vessel was their means of transport to Punta Arenas, Chile. What a difference it must be for the occupants to be on board such a huge ship. As the Zodiac was being loaded with fresh fruit, vegetables and other supplies, we listened on our TV to the live interview from the bridge with the researchers. The last food delivery was a year ago. On this station there is a doctor who handles psychological issues such as being in an isolated environment. The research personnel are able to stay in touch with family via Skype that operates 24/7. Satellite phone calls are limited to 5 minutes each per month, since they are so expensive. Dental visits are handled by passing Navy ships or at a nearby fellow research station. On King George Island there are 11 research bases along the shore operated by 10 different nations. Tomas, the main spokesman of the group, has been employed by the Dept of Antarctic Biology for the past 12 years. This is his sixth assignment at Arctowski. He described how today (February 8) was a typical summer day. Prior to November the area was covered in snow and surrounded by solid ice. There is a small basketball court they use for fun and recreation. There are BBQs with visitors from the Brazilian station on the other side of the island. It takes about 30 to 40 minutes by boat. They all agreed how exciting it was to finally have the first female cook at the station.

As we continued our journey down Admiralty Bay, the weather was good. We could clearly see the glaciers including the cracks with our binoculars. Whales and birds were out and about doing their thing.

Next - CRUISING THE ANTARCTIC PENNINSULA - February 9, 2010

ANTARCTICA - THE LAST FRONTIER (Part 2)

Continuing with the dream of visiting Antarctica just to see what it was really like? We now look at the second installment of our series about the excitement of cruising to, in and through Antarctica. The article was written and photographed by our good friends, Peter and Alice who have favored us with their cruise business. We thank Peter and Alice for their friendship, their encouragement and their preparation of this series.

Visiting Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands

The Falkland Islands are a United Kingdom Overseas Territory by choice. Supreme authority is vested in Her Majesty The Queen and exercised by a Governor on her behalf, with the advice and assistance of the Executive Council and Legislative Assembly.

After we left Buenos Aires the seas became a bit rough and choppy. Captain Perrin had to slow the ship down to reduce the amount of rocking; therefore, we arrived in Stanley approximately 3 hours later than scheduled. Stanley’s port requires tendering which is about 2 ½ miles out and takes 20-30 minutes. The whole process took a lot longer than normal. Three early morning tours were cancelled including ours.

The main street (Ross Road) in town is along the harbor and you can easily walk around town shopping and sightseeing. There are five different species of breeding penguins on the Falkland Islands. Gentoo and Rockhopper Penguins are two species of these penguins. A shuttle to see Gentoo penguins at Gypsy Cove is available at the pier ($20 round trip per person).

The Falkland Islands (300 nautical miles off Argentina coast) are approximately 200 islands covering 4,700 sq miles (a little smaller than Connecticut). It rains or lightly snows 250 days a year with an average temperature of 60 degrees. Gales occur frequently and they say it is rare to have calm sunny days. The weather can be quite unpredictable. Within a 20 minute period you can experience all 4 seasons. Fortunately for us – we didn’t since we had a beautiful sunny afternoon with a mild breeze.

Stanley became the capital in 1845 and, being British, the currency is the Pound Sterling but they cheerfully take US dollars or credit cards. It is a very small town (the largest of the Falklands) with about 2,100 residents out of a total population of 3,000. Our ship had 2,556 passengers. Also in port was the Norwegian Sun with about 1,000 people. The population of this small town more than doubled with these two ships in port. The shopkeepers were very friendly and happy to see us.

With the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914, the Falklands no longer served as a major shipping channel. Previously, many sailing ships (mostly traders and whalers) rounding Cape Horn succumbed to the fierce winds and waves of the South Atlantic. Ships stopped at the Falklands for provisions, water, coal or repairs. The Falklands were also supported by sheep farming. Currently there are 500,000 sheep. With a major decline in wool exports (they still export fine expensive Merino wool), farmers are now subsidized about $40 million per year by revenues generated by the fishing industry. It is yet to be determined what will happen to this area’s unexplored oil and gas deposits.

Argentine Special Forces invaded the island on April 2, 1982. Even today, landmines still exist on the island, but not in Stanley. The Argentineans were met with stiff resistance from the Royal Marines. Battles took place in the air, on the sea (the Argentinean cruiser General Belgrano was lost with most hands), and on land in the Northern part of the island, The Queen Mary was anchored off shore acting as a troop and supply vessel. With tremendous loss of life (900 people), a British Task Force liberated the island on June 14, 1982 after 74 days of occupation. The loss of this war caused the collapse of the Argentine military dictatorship and resulted in the restoration of constitutional democracy in Argentina. Only recently was the ban lifted to permit citizens of Argentina to visit the Falklands. Passengers were advised as a courtesy not to wear clothing with an Argentinean logo ashore. We visited the 1982 War Memorial honoring the British Forces lost in this war.

On our walk through town we visited Christ Church Cathedral (built in 1892) to view its beautiful stained windows. Adjacent to the church is Whale Bone Arch built in 1933 to commemorate the centenary of British rule. It is made out of 4 converging whale ribs. The four lower jawbones are from blue whales caught in the South Shetland Islands.

We walked past the lovely gardens at the terraced Jubilee House (named to celebrate Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee). Along our walk there were many 150 year old brightly painted wooden pioneer cottages with carefully planned colorful gardens. The roofs are made of corrugated iron since slate was too expensive.

Next - CRUISING THE ANTARCTIC PENNINSULA