Booth Island, Port Charcot

Paul was awake this morning when we were woken up by announcements overriding the ‘silent’ switch that is in the cabin. There was a change in plan. Lemaire Channel was full of ice and it wasn’t possible to go through it to Petermann Island.

So ‘Plan B’ came into force. We were near Port Charcot, Booth Island, so it was the best option for the morning to do a landing. Paul was quite wide awake and decided to get up with me and head ashore.

It was overcast but not windy, so it was pleasant although cold. We took a walk up to a cairn, dedicated to the French explorer, Jean-Baptiste Charcot. It’s comprised of a wooden column and a plaque inscribed with the names of the first French Antarctic expedition led by Jean-Baptiste E. A. Charcot.

Due to quite a walk involved, about a 3 km round trip, Paul and I decided to go up to the cairn first and then seen the penguins afterwards, but by the time we got near the penguin colonies, it was time to head back to the ship so we didn’t go there, however we did see some penguins on our way down, in small groups.

Three types of penguins can be found on the island: Gentoo, Chinstrap and Adelie penguins. We did see small groups of penguins as we walked up to the monument and back down to the ship. They are so sweet.

On the way back to the ship, our zodiac driver decided to give us a quick tour to see some penguins near the shoreline, on the island, before heading back to the ship. There were a few penguins wanting to go into the water but were hesitant. As we sailed back to the ship, we saw groups of penguins porpoising to where their friends were on the rocks, and it was interesting to see some of them shooting out of the water onto the rocks!Read more