The Far Side of Antarctica Continued
At sea: December 16, 2007
We were making excellent speed through 5/10ths ice, accompanied by Snow Petrels that appeared to be fascinated by the foreign object floating on their ocean.
How a penguin works was the subject of Akos' presentation, followed by another Russian language lesson conducted by Kara. Some inveterate photographers clung to the rail with cameras glued to their eyes. Minke whales had been spotted from time to time, but scooted away before an alert could be sounded. Their patience was rewarded. They shared their photographs with the rest of us in the bar.
The day came to a close with a popcorn and a movie. Happy Feet proved to be an inspired choice, as we were heading toward some Emperor Penguin rookeries.
At sea: December 17, 2007
Brunch on the bow seemed like a good idea, when Jonas announced it last evening. But when I went to the bow to inspect the condition of things this morning, the wind was vicious and the snow was falling(?) horizontally. This was a special brunch, because the Expedition Team was cooking and serving.
David had been assigned the task of taping menus to the tables. This proved to be a rather serious exercise due to the force of the wind and the fact that David only had two hands. However he managed to accomplish the task by using one knee to hold down the other menus while he wrestled with the tape. Soon each table had a menu in place.
The Captain had turned the ship so that the bow was in the lee, but by the time Lars and I arrived the ship had managed to swing sufficiently to put the bow back into the path of the strong winds. Everyone had a great sense of humor. We all laughed at each other trying to hold down our plates, while trying to put a fork full of food in our mouths.
Captain Viktor, always vigilant, had the shipped turned again, so we were out of the wind. Without the wind we could sit and talk and actually keep our food on our plates and our drinks in our glasses.
Danielle, our assistant Expedition Leader, announced to everyone that she was cooking the sausages with love. We all believed her. The food was excellent, the location unbelievable! It was a very special moment on a very special voyage.
The documentary scheduled was delayed, because we sighted a Ross Seal, seldom scene in its natural habitat, because it lives so far south. The ship slowed, turned then came to a stop so we could observe the seal on the port side. The seal lifted its head, moved slowly, and looked right into the camera lenses waiting for the moment.
Bob explained the implications of the Antarctic Treaty. It is quite amazing to think that so many countries signed the treaty when so many of them had conflicting land claims or were in direct disagreement.
Ice Jam sang before the Black and White dinner. A prize was to be awarded for the best "costume." My black pants and white shirt were not in the running. We had some incredible outfits. It was great to see the thought that went into the costumes. A bottle of champagne was awarded to the three best costumes. The Expedition Team were disqualified from the competition. Nonetheless they had invested considerable energy in their costumes too!
At sea: December 18, 2007
I woke up at 4AM this morning and found we were parked in the ice. We had open water behind us, but the bow was in 10/10ths ice with huge ridges and obvious patches of multi-year ice. Adelie and Emperor Penguins were coming to the ship to check us out. It was really interesting to see the difference in behavior between these two species.
The Emperors stood a way off, usually in groups of 6 to 8 birds. They would just stand regally and watch us, nodding to each other and eventually flopping on their bellies to continue their travels to the open water.
Adelie Penguins, on the other hand, were in groups of 8 to 10 birds. They would come right up to the ship, and then totally circumnavigate to see what this was. There was a lot of flipper waving. They appeared to be far more interested in who we were than trying to reach open water. They stayed with us for a much longer period and seemed totally unafraid of this huge implant in the ice.
Jonas suggested that we move to Deck 3 at the stern to watch the penguins jumping in and out of the water. It was so apparent that the two species of penguins are different. The Emperors jumped out of the water and landed on their bellies, whereas the Adelie Penguins leaped out and landed on their feet.
All of that was before breakfast!
The Captain deftly removed the ship from the ice to allow us to continue toward the Australian sector. We looked forward to Emperor Penguin rookeries, two Australian research stations and viewing the Scullin and Murray Monoliths.