• Remote Weddell Sea Explorer
    Woke up to snow on deck — heading south through the Scotia Sea.
    Woke up to snow on deck — heading south through the Scotia Sea.I was taking a photo of the snow ... can't help it if that tabular iceberg photo-bombed it 🤣Woke up to snow on deck — heading south through the Scotia Sea."Admiral, there be whales here!" ... Trekkies will well remember this quote.

    RWSE Day 8: Snow & Whales

    February 18, South Atlantic Ocean ⋅ 🌬 32 °F

    “Mystery creates wonder, and wonder is the basis of man’s desire to understand …” ~~ Neil Armstrong ~~ (from the Daily Program)

    We are continuing south through the Scotia Sea.

    We’ve been rockin’ and rollin’ since leaving Gold Harbour yesterday for open waters. I expect these conditions will continue pretty much until we reach the continent and get into the ice.

    The sky was bright when we woke up; the sun was out. There was just enough snow to frost the decks. The blue sky gave us hope for the day ahead. No such luck. By the time we were finished with breakfast, the sky was downright dull.

    Big icebergs are on the horizon. There will be more … and they will be much closer. So I am keeping a promise I made to myself … I am limiting my iceberg photos on this trip until then. Same with whales. I captured the blows of a couple of fin whales in the distance this morning, and the dorsal fin of one of them. But only because I was already out on deck taking memory-shots of the snow with my iPhone. We’ve had so many wonderful, close-up experiences with these giants of the oceans … I am not going to add a whole bunch of blows to that inventory. Better to just watch them and enjoy the fact that the whales seem to be everywhere around us.

    Time to head up to the lounge for a special presentation about the South Sandwich Islands.    Read more