RWSE Day 24: Dallying in the Pack Ice

“It was a first-rate tragedy, but tragedy was not our business.” ~~ Apsley Cherry-Garrard … on the fate of Captain Robert Scott ~~ (from the Daily Program)

A bit of color at sunrise! But that color did not last long. It was one of those days where overcast skies dominated. The wind was strong … EL Sara reported 35-40 knots when she made her morning announcement. And Ortelius pretty much danced on 3-5m swells that the bridge described as “choppy!”

Still cruising within the generally accepted boundaries of the Weddell Sea pack ice, we would be dallying in the area to avoid the ‘purple monster’ to our north … wreaking havoc in the South Shetlands. By contrast, we had it ‘easy’.

The ice was looser … the floes were moving fast … some with seals taking a ride on them. Initially, loading the zodiacs was a breeze and those passengers quickly went off on their bumpy ride. Challenging times awaited the rest of us as floes of all sizes closed in along Ortelius … one after another.

The gangway was lowered between floes, but had to be pulled back up to avoid damage when another floe began approaching. The zodiac that was loading had to move away until the all clear was sounded. Drivers waiting their turn to load ‘played bumper cars’ with the smaller floes in an attempt to re-direct them. At other times, they revved their motors to get out of the way of a floe. Rinse and repeat, It took a while for the rest of us to get away for our ice cruise, but we made it.

Once again, we were with Allan. We felt safe in his care. He made sure we understood this would be a bumpy ride and that there was a good chance of spray as we got underway. He also warned us that we could well be recalled to the ship early if conditions continued to worsen.

First up, we came across a couple of fur seals … one sleeping peacefully; the other one not so pleased with the presence of zodiacs nearby. We didn’t stay long as we did not want to further stress out the animal. Ice sculptures were all around us … remnants of icebergs that had been unable to withstand the changes wrought by Mother Nature.

Allan took refuge from the winds by getting us into the lee of some of the larger pieces of ice, but photography was challenging.

At one point, we were heartened by short-lived patches of blue in the sky. The sun wasn’t able to break through the clouds … except briefly. Nonetheless, those few minutes brightened the ice, adding to our pleasure in the icescape.

As we were being entertained by the birds using the winds to stay aloft, we spotted a lone black-browed albatross … which prompted Allan to add to the ambiance of the moment by reciting a couple of lines from Coleridge’s “Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner.”

With the wind increasing to 45 knots, the zodiacs were recalled to the ship. Delivered safely to the expedition staff on the vessel, we were greeted with hot chocolate, topped with mounds of whipped cream … spiking with rum optional. A welcome back that was greatly appreciated by one and all.

This was our shortest zodiac outing of the expedition … just about an hour long. But there was plenty to keep us entertained from the ship’s decks while we waited for the zodiacs to be brought aboard — ice sculptures floating by; pintado petrels, fulmars, and other birds on the wing or resting on the surface of the Weddell Sea; seals rafting by on ice floes; huge splashes from waves crashing onto icebergs … one on which two penguins were seeking relief from the rough elements.

As Ortelius started weaving its way through the ice, we went inside to warm up … and see what was on the agenda for on-ship activities for the rest of the day.Leggi altro