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Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4
  • Lorna Spaas
  • Paul Spaas

Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

More penguins, seals and whales to be seen, as well as beautiful landscapes that photographs cannot do justice. Read more
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  • Trip start
    December 6, 2024
    Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Ushuaia. A New Cruise Begins.

    December 6, 2024 in Argentina ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C

    It is a turnaround day today. Paul and I had to pack and move to another cabin because the new Staff Captain came today. Paul is going back to doing ice pilot work but also helping out with overseeing a new staff member, so his shifts will not be too bad. He is doing midday to 4 pm, then 8 pm to midnight.

    Paul was unfortunately involved in meetings, so I had to move our stuff. We are in a guest cabin on deck 5, so I was up and down, moving things bit by bit as not everything went into the suitcases. Anything on hangers I took, still hanging, and put them straight into the walk-in wardrobe.

    In between it all, the ice pilot came and told me that I was in his cabin - he was also moving. I found paperwork to show that Paul and I were assigned to 500. He forgot what his room number was! He found a steward who advised he was in 504. All sorted, and I continued moving.

    After Paul finished his meetings, we went into town for a walk and a bit of fresh air.

    This cruise is a charter cruise for a group of Taiwanese people. It will be interesting to see how things go!    Read more

  • Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Half Moon Island Walk

    December 8, 2024 in Antarctica ⋅ ☁️ 0 °C

    We have had 1.5 sea days, crossing the Drake Passage from Ushuaia. Paul got his hair cut this morning, so he looks half decent again.

    It has been a beautiful day at Half Moon Island. Clear blue, sunny skies. We couldn't have wished for better weather. And it was better here than the last 2 cruises when it was windy, snowy, and not really nice.

    Unfortunately Paul could not come ashore with me so I went on my own for a walk. I got a bit hot walking and ended up unzipping my parka and jacket to let some fresh cool air in and to cool me down.

    The snow has melted quite a bit here, compared to when we first saw it on the first cruise. It makes a difference to how the landscape looks, but it is still beautiful. There are 2 different types of penguins on the island: Gentoo and the Chinstrap penguins, It was sweet to see them in their own respective colonies. Across the island there were fur seals sleeping in the sun and melting snow.

    When I got back to the landing area, staff said that they had seen a leopard seal. They are formidable creatures and I hoped that the 2 penguins on the beach wouldn't go into the water otherwise they would end up as the leopard seal's dinner!    Read more

  • Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Joinville Island & Hope Bay

    December 9, 2024, South Atlantic Ocean ⋅ ☁️ -2 °C

    This morning we did a sea ice landing off Joinville Island, not far from the Antarctic Peninsula. The ice was nice and hard, with only a scattering of snow on top. There were lots of Adele penguins around!

    This afternoon a zodiac cruise was organised in Hope Bay and we could see Base Esperanza in the distance.    Read more

  • Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Harry Island Zodiac Cruise

    December 10, 2024 in Antarctica ⋅ ☁️ 0 °C

    This morning's expedition landing didn't go ahead. There was lots of ice and fog during the night so the ship had to sail at a slower pace so we were behind schedule. Instead, we sailed straight towards Harry Island for the planned zodiac cruise in the afternoon.

    During the cruise we saw a Chinstrap penguin and lots of Gentoo penguins swimming. A whale was spotted by the ship's photographer but it dived before we got there and didn't come up again.

    On our way back we saw a leopard seal resting on a bergy bit. He was a really ugly brute. I felt sorry for the penguins because one or two might be its next meal!    Read more

  • Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Flandres Bay

    December 12, 2024 in Antarctica ⋅ ☁️ 1 °C

    It was an exciting morning but I’m glad I went out despite the overcast day.

    I took a zodiac cruise into Flandres Bay (yes, the spelling is correct), to see the glacier. The ship couldn’t get in closer because of the amount of icebergs in the bay, so it was quite a bit of a ride to the glacier face. We got to about 400m of the glacier face, but no closer per law.

    As we headed back to the ship, the steering mechanism stopped working. We had power but it was no good without steering. The expedition leader, Dom, got on the radio for help from a nearby zodiac (we tend to go out in pairs for safety and are never too far from each other). It came alongside, a line was thrown and our bow was tied to the other zodiac which gave us a tow.

    Eventually three other zodiacs came, one at a time, and tied up alongside to take some guests. Four guests went into the first two zodiacs and four guests in the third zodiac. I remained with the other three guests. The last two lots of guests got lucky because the other zodiacs were in the process of heading to the glacier face, and had an extended cruise instead of going back to the ship.

    As we arrived at the ship, an empty zodiac came alongside our stricken vessel and ferried the rest of us to the ship while the towing zodiac let go of the towing rope so that it could take its guests to the ship. Eventually the stricken zodiac was towed alongside the ship and hoisted back up on deck for fixing. Everyone was happy and laughing so it was a good thing.

    This afternoon we did the polar plunge off the ship. The weather still wasn’t great and the ship had to manoeuvre a bit, occasionally, to try to keep leeward of the wind in order to protect the landing zone side of the ship a bit for the jumpers. Nevertheless, when it was my turn for the plunge, the zodiac tied to the ship was bouncing quite a bit so I was advised not to do a somersault. I managed to do a quick dive though, getting my balance as the zodiac settled before the next swell. As usual, I felt absolutely fantastic!

    I feel blessed to be here and am so grateful to be alive!    Read more

  • Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Paradise Bay Zodiac Cruise

    December 13, 2024 in Antarctica ⋅ 🌫 -1 °C

    It was not a particularly nice morning - it began to snow a bit when I went out in the zodiac cruise in Paradise Bay.

    We headed towards Brown Station, a reconstruction of a former Argentinian research station which was burnt down in 1984 by the station's doctor (another website says it was a physicist) who didn't want to stay over winter there. It was rebuilt but abandoned in 2000 but been operated sporadically again in the summer since 2007.

    There was another expedition ship in the area and its guests were doing landings at the base, and heading up a hill for walks but we were only doing zodiac cruises around and about the area.

    According to the earlier morning group's zodiac cruise, a whale had been spotted in the bay, but we didn't see it. There was a large colony of blue eyed shags (cormorants) on a cliff face and it is nesting season for them.

    We are heading towards Neko Harbour now for this afternoon's expedition landing.    Read more

  • Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Neko Harbour Walk

    December 13, 2024 in Antarctica ⋅ 🌫 -3 °C

    Our arrival in Neko Harbour was delayed because we were late leaving Paradise Bay, and also there was a lot of ice in the area.

    I went off the ship for a bit of a walk up to the crest of the hill. We couldn't go too high because there was quite a bit of fog. Nesting season for the penguins is in full swing now with lots of stone nests built.

    Soon after I got back to the ship, the ship's engines started up and the ship started moving in a hurry. Paul darted to the balcony as he sensed something was up. A section of the nearby glacier had calved and the ship had to turn hard to starboard so that her stern was towards the glacier in order to minimise the impact of the resulting swell from the ice that calved off the glacier. The swells caused some quite big waves shoreside and guests near the shoreline moved to higher ground. Zodiac transfers from ship to land and back were stopped until the waves and swells had dissipated. Everyone was safe and well.

    In the evening Paul and I went to the Dining Room for dinner – a treat for us because usually the process takes quite a long time. And, as it was the Chef’s special tonight, there were 6 courses involved but fortunately they were small servings. We went early and there were not many guests eating so we got served quite quickly. By the time we had the main course, the dining room was filling up. Fortunately Paul made it to the Bridge in time for his 8pm shift.

    The ship is now sailing back towards Ushuaia and we should be there by the evening of the 15th December or on the morning of 16th December. After that, a new cruise will start.    Read more

  • Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Heading to Ushuaia

    December 15, 2024, South Atlantic Ocean ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    Yesterday there is quite a bit of motion of the ocean. I don't feel sick, but the motion just seems to mess with my head. So I found it better to stay horizontal and rest.

    Later this morning, things improved and the seas were calmer. We are now in the Beagle Channel, heading towards Ushuaia. The pilot boat is nearby, ready to bring the pilot on board.Read more

  • Ushuaia, Antarctica, Ushuaia 4

    Arrival in Ushuaia

    January 4 in Argentina ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    We made good progress overnight, and by morning, we were in calmer waters and shelter of nearby islands.

    We arrived in Ushuaia earlier than scheduled and had to wait for an empty berth. It was around 19:30 when we finally docked. Just ahead of us is a lovely tall mast sailing boat, the Bark Europa.

    Guests have gone ashore to explore or have dinner. We will disembark tomorrow.    Read more

    Trip end
    December 15, 2024
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