26 December 2010

We started this morning with an early 8:15 landing at Neko Harbour in Andvord Bay. This was to be our second and final continental landing. The snow was hard and compact which made the ascent to the overlook easier than previous landings. No slow going with boots sinking deep into the snow. There is a small gentoo penguin rookery at the bottom of the hill at the landing point. On the shore I found an interesting rock with a milky stripe around the center and tiny stalactites and two holes eroded through like caverns. At a certain angle it looked like a monstrous alien face. I threw it back amongst the other rock and took note of its location.

Our group waited at the foot of the hill while Danny, the geologist, made sure the path was safe to hike. At the top was a tiny rock outcropping with a skua resting. The view of the bay was gorgeous. The sun caused everything to sparkle and glitter. There were several small avalanches but nothing like the major slides we were warned to be wary of and on the look for. Once the skua flew off everyone made their way over to the ledge to take pics of themselves with the white ice shelf as a background. Inspired by the Israelis and their flag I brought my copy of the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence and took a picture holding them. We also took two group photos using Danny’s camera.

View of Andvord Bay

This German girl is very excited

The Israeli delegation

After an hour I headed back down. I wanted to snag that rock before anyone came around. On shore I sat down next to the rock I had espied earlier and secretly and swiftly stashed it in my coat pocket. No one saw, no one asked questions, and I tucked it away safely in my suitcase.

I watched a bit of 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her then napped until lunch time. After lunch I napped until the announcement for the zodiac cruise came over the loudspeaker. Yesterday we were told to sign up for one of two groups and one of the groups would go on the cruise first while the other waited behind. The group I had signed up under, seals, went second while the other group, penguins, went first. I washed the sleep out of my eyes, finished the movie, and got dressed in my Antarctic gear.

We cruised around Foyn Harbor taking in the large icebergs, snow formations, and whaling ship and factory remains. There was one island where several wooden rowboats had been run ashore and were covered with snow. The largest wreck was the iron factory ship Governoren. Half of the ship was aground on a few rocks while the rest was hidden beneath the water. The Norwegians were forced to abandon it after it caught on fire. We circled around the rusted ruins stopping to peer in the portholes to view the ancient Norse whaling harpoon tips.

We then paused to watch a small avalanche before we headed off to view more icebergs. There were three crabeater seals resting on a large iceberg. As our boats approached the seals took notice and began playing our cameras, scratching themselves and wiggling around on the ice.

The other two zodiacs

Crabeater seals

Bak on the ship there was no recap before dinner as three whales playing in the water just waters from the ship captured everyones attention. We followed them for about an hour, everyone running from bow to stern as the whales moved about in the seas. This went on until dinner was served.

Two whales

The usual four course salad, soup, entree, and desert was for dinner with an exceptionally dry slab of turkey breast for the entree. But there was an announcement from Sebastian: after dinner we would do a third continental landing at Portal Harbor.

This was to be our absolute final continental landing and it was beautiful. The water and air were calm and the sky was not so gray but the sun was able to make the land glow. There were no penguins on this landing, just a quick hike to the top of a low hill for a spectacular view of the surrounding bay. Large icebergs floated silently in the sea and snowy mountains surrounded the horizon. There were several snowball fights on top of the hill. Following the lead of the small French boy Hugo who was making a snowman, I constructed a snow penguin that ended up looking more like a duck. One couple from Germany made a snowman and decked it with their hat and glasses. Tomas asked to take a picture with me because he liked my beard. At the landing site the rocks were perfect geometrical cubes as if they were carved by man and not natural. It was exhilarating to be on the continent of Antarctica again and I was sad to know it would be my last time.

The zodiac boats which took us from ship to shore

Perfect geometrical cubes (sort of)

Hugo making a snowman

Snowball fight

On the ship before the recap we had a champagne toast from Alan Krauss for his daughter Elsa because it was her twenty-first birthday and to the international friendships we had all formed.  Happy Birthday was sung to Elsa in English, French, Spanish, German, Hebrew, Korean, Chinese, and Italian. Tomorrow we will land on Deception Island if conditions permit. There is a hot spring and we will get to bathe in the water. Deception Island is a submerged volcano and we will be sailing in to the caldera.

Inside the ship's lounge

At the recap Sebastian also addressed rumors that the ship had struck a whale. What happened is as soon as we headed to the mess hall for dinner a whale decided to jump right in front of the ship. The ship was able to steer out of its way and narrowly avoid a collision.