Sinker Rock

The wake up call was this morning at 07:15 for the breakfast at 07:30. When I woke up around 06:30 we were already moving which meant that the ones camping are already back. I went for breakfast and Julia joined soon afterwards. There we had a conversation with the doctor on board about the more or less popular Polar Plunge 🏊‍♂️ He said that we should be fine but he wouldn't recommend it to other/older passengers because of the heart attack risk 😬 Again we made two groups but the weather condition wasn't good enough to go on the zodiac tour. So the other group went on shore at the Damoy Station and we had about 2 hours on board which we spent writing a few postcards, drinking tea and reading books in the library.
When it was finally our time we were excited for the Gentoo Penguin colony and the Polar Plunge. And already on the way in the zodiac we saw the penguins and their highways leading up a hill. First we visited the little hut which was used as a waiting room for the "airport", a 400 metre skiway marked along the spine of the glacier. It had been recently renovated as part of the United Kingdom Antarctic Heritage Trust. It has a few beds, kitchen and a heater. Not a lot when it could take up to a month until the next flight arrives 😬 We spent two hours there in the middle of the penguin colony. Watching these cute, curious and clumsy little fellas is so entertaining, the time passed super quickly. Unfortunately the Polar Plunge needed to be cancelled because there was too much brushed ice on the plunge site near the dock.

So we returned to the ship, had lunch, relaxed a little bit and then got a short lecture from the women living in the Port Lockroy Station. Another former British site being managed by the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust and the Southernmost post office in the world ☺️ The little rock the station is standing on is completely overrun by the lovely little Gentoo Penguins 🐧A little piece of paradise besides the cold weather and smell 😁 We put the postcards in the box and then checked out the little souvenir shop. Right across the little bay is Juglar Point, a big rock formation and Gentoo Penguin breeding area. Also there are whale bones scattered all around from the early history as a whaling station. We spent almost two hours there watching the penguins living their daily life. Due to some very late snow in the season, the breeding circle is a month behind schedule which means we were able to see a lot of chicks 😍 It is amazing to see them so close, the interaction between them and also with us. Often they waddle up and look at you curiously. A general rule in the Antarctica is that the penguins always have the right of way 🐧😁
When we came back to the ship we had a shower and then relaxed in the lounge. From there you could see penguins bouncing through the water near our ship. They always go out fish hunting in groups because it's safer. Well, now that we have found the penguins, do we have to delete this app then? 😁

In the evening we had a pretty good dinner, reviewed the pictures we took and went to bed soon afterwards. In the daily recap they shared the itinerary for the next day which includes crossing the Antarctic circle in the late morning 🤩 The route we're taking to Crystal Sound and Detaille Island is leading back almost into the open ocean, so after dinner the sea started getting a bit more rough. So we were rocked into our sleep again by the ship movement.Read more