Whales, whales & more whales
Feb 16 2015 Paradise Harbour: 64o53'S/062o53'W
Feb 16 2015 Wilhelmina Bay: 64o34'S/062o13'W
Feb 16 2015 Ronge Island: 64o42'S/062o38'W
On the way to Paradise Harbour
Late yesterday afternoon I sat down in the lounge for a cup of tea. Suddenly Annie announced from the Bridge that we had a pod of 10-15 Orca in front of our bow. The whole room rose as one and raced to cabins to grab weather-proof gear and cameras.
What a sight!! I went up to Deck 7 that allows you to move from one side of the ship to the other fairly easily. The Captain had slowed the ship (it turns out that he loves taking photos too!) and was gradually turning it so that we could see and take photos.
We followed them for about 45 minutes (207 photos), just watching them glide through the water, blowing but not apparently hunting. There was a young Humpback close by – perhaps they were going to hunt that? But he seemed to head away from them once we were there.
A glorious end to the day.
Paradise Bay
Today we zodiac cruised around Paradise Bay - a beautiful little inlet surrounded by mountains & glaciers. The water was clear and glassy. A Leopard seal proved to be uninterested in us, although we did manage to see his very large head looming out of the water from time to time.
Then a Humpback whale showed itself. Our driver, Fabrice, cut the motor. We could hear the silence interspersed with blows from the whale blows as it quietly fed. This is the Antarctic that I love!
Two yachts were anchored in the Bay, the Australis and Icebird. Both carry passengers across the Drake Passage – that would be a trip that would be more than interesting at times! Strangely Icebird had a red motorbike tied to the railing on its bow – we’re still trying to work out why.
On the way back to the ship we had the opportunity to stand on the Antarctic continent. For many passengers, this was the first time, and some trekked to the top of the hill above Argentina’s Almirante Brown station. I happened to meet the commander of the station, a young woman – had a brief chat about the research they do on geology and oceanography, and then it was back to the ship.
Wilhelmina Bay
The afternoon was filled with whales! As we sailed from Paradise Bay to Wilhelmina Bay we again came across pods of Orca. The Captain slowed the ship and gently circled the pods. It was another amazing view of these great animals, with some good photos from the 200+ taken. The joy of digital photography is being able to take many photos on continuous shoot – the difficult part is editing them!
Once we’d anchored at Wilhelmina, we took zodiacs out towards the main Gerlach Strait – Humpbacks had been spotted.
Sure enough there they were – bodies gracefully gliding through the water and the occasional fluke as they dived deep beneath the surface. The slightly “bouncy” waves made photography very challenging – photos are not quite as crisp as I’d like, but the memories will be retained!
Tonight is camping night – despite looking forward to this before I came, I decided against spending a night on the ice. Instead I’m enjoying a quiet evening on the ship with the other passengers. No regrets at all.
Tomorrow is our last day on the Antarctic Peninsula. We have two excursions planned – Cuverville Island and Neko Harbour. I’m looking forward to landing at both and enjoying my last moments with the Gentoo penguins.
Then tomorrow evening we make our way towards the Drake Passage – let’s hope the weather stays reasonably kind for our 36 hour crossing on Wednesday/Thursday.