RWSE Day 11: South of THE CIRCLE!

“It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.” ~~ Sir Edmund Hillary ~~ (from the Daily Program)

We woke up to Plan A. But soon we were following Plan B. It wouldn’t be an expedition if we didn’t have such changes!

Usually, it’s Mother Nature that forces plans to change. This time it was the time … specifically, the timing of noon.

Remember how we are staying on ship’s time — which is the same as Argentina — in this remote region? Well, that’s all fine and dandy. Unless you want to get a meridian reading with a sextant at noon … and noon on the ship is not really noon but 2:00p. And 10:00a on the ship is really noon! Thus, some of the planned activities had to be shifted around … no biggie.

Why was this sextant reading so important? Because we were counting down to latitude 66º 33’ 49.4” South … the Antarctic Circle. In fact, the crossing of that imaginary line was announced with a toot of the ship’s horn precisely at 12:13p … which, of course, was really 2:13p off the ship. (Have I confused you enough yet?)

The highly-anticipated heli-ops dry run was a full-dress rehearsal.

Meaning that we had to wear all mandatory gear and carry whatever we plan to take with us when we actually take to the air … and practice all of the pre- and post-flight steps — go to the ‘gate’ when called; check-in for the flight; have the auto-inflation devices in the life vest deactivated; get ID number checked off on the tracking board; receive ear defenders; follow the escort out to the helipad … pretending to soak boots in the disinfectant wash along the way; follow the hand signals of the heli ops team to approach, get on, and get off the helicopter … twice because we have two different types of choppers on board; follow the escort back to the check-in area … pretending again to soak boots in the disinfectant wash; return ear defenders; get ID number checked off the tracking board; have the automatic inflation devices in the life vest reactivated.

Yes … lots of steps to go through … but safety first. I am happy to say that everything went off without a hitch … probably because so many of us have flown off Ortelius on previous expeditions.

Of course there were workshops and presentations throughout the day to also keep us entertained — Phil delivered a presentation on his ‘safe return doubtful’ kind of snowmobile journey on the Peninsula when he was working for the British Antarctic Survey … the isolation depicted by his amazing photos was quite something else; EL Sara talked about the “Pinnipeds of the Southern Ocean” … in which she went through the different species that call this part of the world home … and the adaptations that allow them to live in the harsh climate often associated with these southern latitudes.

The Daily Recap brought the good news that we are continuing to make good time toward Neuschwabenland … and Mother Nature will be cooperating for at least another day. EL Sara’s announcement that she expects that we’ll be in sight of the continent tomorrow afternoon was greeted by cheers and a ripple of excitement.

Sara also answered the question of Antarctic visitor trends. Suffice to say that the numbers have grown in leaps and bounds, with a new category added to the already tracked cruise-only and landed visits … deep field visits, such as those arriving by plane to the South Pole. The stats for the current 2024-2025 season are not out yet, but it is estimated to be in the 150K range. (Curious about the trends, I had checked out the stats myself before we left home, so I am sharing my own photo in this footprint.)

Tonight’s wrap up was an auction to benefit the South Georgia Heritage Trust. A good chunk of money was raised, and several passengers walked away with some very nice things, including the navigation chart of our voyage, which will be given to her once our expedition is concluded.

Oh, and there is going to be a treasure hunt starting tomorrow … Luce, one of the dive guides, announced it at recap. The hunt will test our knowledge of Shackleton’s TransAntarctic expedition. A fun and educational activity with puzzles and riddles to solve using clues we have to solve by interviewing staff and crew.Read more