Day 14: The White Continent…Neko Harbour, Antarctica and Cuverville Island

An unforgettable 5:00 a.m. sunrise

The Minerva anchored in picturesque Neko Harbor

Jerry poses with a bergie bit on shore

Gentoo penguin at the top of a rock overseeing the beautiful harbor

Jerry, Jan, Fran and Chuck set foot on the Antarctic Peninsula

A sunlit poolside BBQ, as we steam through Errera Channel

A Gentoo rookery on Cuverville Island

Mother Gentoo feeding her young chicks

Leopard seal basking on the sunshine on a small iceberg

Beautiful icebergs were everywhere our cameras pointed

Zodiacs whisked us around the lovely harbor

Bergie bits and growlers are bobbing in the water while the mountains and icebergs stand still; the sun begins to drench the snow-covered peaks and glaciers passing by our ship. Dark brown slate-looking blotches on the mountains are the only land contrasting with the white we see everywhere. The water is still a navy tinged steel gray. As the higher peaks turn bright white tinted with pink, we are reminded of just how very small our Mt. Rainier actually is. On the Antarctic Peninsula, we are surrounded by the serenity and majesty of His creation as it must have been before humans and animals ever existed. Although the quiet waters are teeming with whales and krill, nothing can be seen moving on the surface of water or land except the sun rising in the sky as it highlights the tops of the peaks; working its way down the mountainsides. The sky is pale – a baby blue. Our ship slips through the quiet waters. A few cotton candy clouds and a solitary cormorant suddenly appear as we continue our journey. “Morning has broken…God’s re-creation of a new day.”

The above is Jan’s reaction to this morning. Jerry’s photos show a glimpse of what we saw, truly touched by our Maker’s hand. You will probably not be able to sense the magnitude of it from the photos and the write-up; however, we wanted to share a bit of how it impacted us. Soon it was time for Discovery Group (red dots) to be first off our ship in the “real” Antarctica. We‘ve been in the “biological” Antarctica for several days, but today we were finally going so set foot on the actual “physical” continent.

On the shore in Neko Harbour, we found more Gentoo penguins, several slumbering glaciers, and a wonderful hike up a snow-drenched hill. The weather was perfect, and the only problem was keeping our footing while inching our way back down the hillside to the beach due to the steepness and the softened snowy ice where sun had melted it). Several people actually landed on their bottoms. Thankfully, no one was hurt. It was also rather difficult deciding which way to point and shoot our cameras…the scenery was so magnificent that it took our breath away.

Back onboard, we downed a delicious poolside barbeque, and were able to continue enjoying the breathtaking scenery (and taking photographs).

At 4:15, we received the ship’s call for our last port of this cruise: Cuverville Island, with “An arduous mile hike with an 815 foot incline up a steep, snowy slope for those wanting a real challenge”. We opted for choice B: a leisurely beach walk and more penguins. These, too, were Gentoos. We managed to capture them from just about every angle, with the pristine bay in the background. We also chose to return to the ship earlier with a zodiac taking us on a scenic up-close tour of many icebergs. They were even more impressive than from a distance…with two bonuses: 1) We saw two sleeping leopard seals sleeping on two of the smaller ice masses. They are indeed ominous creatures, looking more like sea serpents than the small, furry, playful seals we have seen so often. In fact, as one of the leopard seals began to stir, and appeared to be headed back into the water, our zodiac driver made a quick exit of the area. Leopard seals are not to be treated lightly.

The second bonus, was a visit to another zodiac in which sat Nigel (the Regent Representative), Lech (the ship’s Hotel Director), and several others...with filled champagne glasses ready to toast the Antarctic, and our last stop on this 14-day long expedition. It was a fitting end to this fabulous experience.

That evening, while we were eating dinner the ship stopped on several occasions, allowing us to rush to the outside decks with cameras in hand, as humpback whales treated us to shows of deep water dives, side slaps, and even a small bubble netting routine (Jerry appears to have the only shot! See above). The Antarctic continues to be so amazingly breathtaking!

Today, we are beginning a two-day crossing of Drake Passage, the most menacing body of water on the planet Earth. As we are preparing this blog entry, however, the seas are calm royal blue, and the sky is cloudless. We have been blessed throughout this journey.

P.S – After these two sea days, we return to Buenos Aires and then off to Iguacu Falls before returning home. We hope to post at least two more times to our blog, with photos of those incredible Falls and, perhaps, something special from our Drake Passage crossing.