Headed Down The Beagle Channel
Headed Down The Beagle Channel
By Blog.Admin
Tuesday 24 February, 9.30am
We arrived back in Ushuaia from our unscheduled adventure early on the morning of the 22nd. After replenishing our stores, taking on a new group of excited passengers, completing the mandatory lifeboat drill and clearing customs we threw the liens and headed back down the Beagle Channel around 6pm.
The days are getting shorter quickly. The golden hour for photographers in the Beagle Channel is now closer to 7 or 8 pm compared to 10 or 11 pm in mid January. We were treated to some vibrant rainbows and gorgeous scenery on our way out to sea. We knew it would not last. The weather charts indicated we were in for a rough crossing. We are now staggering around the decks like drunks. It is highly amusing if not a little dangerous at times to watch each other sway ungracefully from one side of a room to another. At times we list like the ship in a bid to fight the immense forces the ocean imparts on our 100m long home.
Usually the rolling quickly lulls me into a deep dreamless sleep. Not so last night. I lay awake for hours trying to find a comfortable position. Every so often I would get out of bed and glimpse out of my porthole. My cabin lies a little above sea level. It is great fun to stare out of the porthole in a heavy swell. Sometimes I am lifted high above the waves, at times I am below sea level and the port hole is filled with a heaving mass of blue brine. At night the ship’s lights illuminate the sea. Wind scours the tops of waves sending flurries of white water streaming into the darkness. I smile knowing there is a few inches of solid steel between me and the merciless open ocean.
When I awoke this morning the swell had not abated. New challenges confronted me. Taking a shower involves bracing oneself against a wall and hanging on to a handle. You dry yourself with a single hand. After a while you get the hang of things and know that between swells there are a few precious seconds when the ship is almost upright and you can hurry about your business until once again you are swept to one side by the motion and gravitational forces. For the most part it is highly amusing and all part of the adventure.
I am very much looking forward to this final adventure of the season. My favourite place on the planet is South Georgia. I’ve been fortunate to travel to approximately 50 different countries and many remote wild regions on the planet and South Georgia is the winner for me. Our journey will take us from Ushuaia across the Drake to the South Shetlands and on through Antarctic Sound to the Weddell Sea or Eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula to Snow Hill Island, Paulet Island, Brown Bluff and on to South Georgia via the South Orkneys. In South Georgia we will visit massive King Penguin colonies and the remains of the whaling stations amongst other things. Following South Georgia we will make for the Falkland Islands which are home to gorgeous beaches and abundant wildlife, then finally, sadly another Antarctic season will come to a close. The sea ice and freezing temperatures will reclaim the continent for eight long months.
David Sinclair
Thanks Carol. All on board are having a great time. The scene at Gold Harbour yesterday was mind-blowing. I'm sure Bobbi and David will come back with some great stories and pictures.
Cheers
David
I have enjoyed your blog so much. My daughter and son in law are on this voyage with you and she sent the URL to me today. What an experience! You do such a wonderful job of describing the adventure. My daughter is Bobbi Ault and husband David Ault from Illinois in the USA.
Keep up the good work.
Carol Best