Iguazu Falls, Argentina

Iguazu Falls from our hotel room

Note the catwalk just below the falls

One of thousands of birds we saw

Jan wasn't happy to see this 4-foot long lizard

Coati

Toucan

Bossetti Waterfalls

Looking down into Devil's Throat

A tour boat at the bottom of falls

As wet as we had ever been

Iguazu Falls was a fitting end to our adventure with the Great White Continent: Antarctica. Located mostly in the Argentine province of Misiones, the falls can also be accessed from Brazil and Paraguay. The Brazilians claim they do not have much of the falls in their country, but they have the better views. We heard from many others that they were correct. Our views from Argentina were spectacular though, and we are unsure how they could have been improved.

With Iguazu Falls, we were introduced to an entirely different experience from Antarctica. There was thick green jungle instead of a treeless landscape. There was 100 degree heat instead of 32 degree cold. There was color instead of black and white. There was relatively flat terrain instead of mountains. There were thundering waterfalls instead of silent icebergs. There were people instead of penguins.

Our three day post cruise package, from Regent Seven Seas Cruises, included an overnight stay at the Argentina’s Sheraton Spa and Resort, the only hotel inside the 136,000 acre Iguazu National Park. The view from our room was magnificent, looking out over the distant Devil’s Throat waterfalls…which constantly emitted an eerie, heavy mist from its churning waters. The entire waterfalls consist of 275 individual falls along 2.7 kilometers (1.67 miles) of the Iguazu River. There are actually 14 miles of waterfalls throughout the giant gorges. The longest waterfall drop is 229 feet. We walked on miles of elevated metal catwalks and trails, which wound in, over and beside many of the waterfalls. To look down into Devil’s Throat, we rode an open air train to a half-mile long catwalk overlooking many river fingers and through a very dense jungle, which lead to the actual viewpoint. It was definitely a highlight, not only of this vacation…but, of all the trips we have ever taken. Rushing water was furiously pounding nearly 200 feet down to the raging river below.

The most memorable part of this escape, however, had to be a one-hour boat ride we took into the base of several waterfalls. The roaring sound made by the cascading falls would have been sufficient to satisfy our sense of adventure. But, the river zodiac ride had just begun when the dark gray skies opened and we were literally deluged by the hardest, wettest cloudburst we had ever experienced (complete with nearby lightning and thunder). The rain pelted us so unmercifully that we were forced to bury our heads behind the seats in front of us in order to avoid the stinging rainfall. That was, without a doubt, the wettest either of us had ever been...outside, perhaps, scuba diving in Moorea, snorkling in the Caribbean, or being ground into the sand while body surfing in Hawaii.

While walking along some of the many trails in the park, we did manage to see a few critters that we had never seen in the wild before: many quati (small, inquisitive animals with tails like a raccoon and snouts much like an anteater)…a single toucan, so high in a tree that all photographs were somewhat on the poor side…a 4-foot long crocodile-like reptile…a 6-inch black, blue and purple butterfly (sorry, no photograph of this very elusive character)…and a wide variety of unusual birds. Unfortunately, we did not see a single monkey.

After our one night stay at Iguazu Falls, we were bussed back to the airport for a short flight back to Buenos Aires and the Melia Hotel (yep, our third stay at this facility). We enjoyed the hotel, several wonderful meals and nearby stores before departing for the Buenos Aires airport the following night. All that was left was our day-long sojourn back to Seattle (via Houston, Texas). We did revisit a restaurant, La Estancia, where we had eaten over 20 years ago. They had a fabulous Argentine Asado (meat barbeque) which we highly recommend.

We think you could say that our 20-day adventure was just that, an adventure! We’re glad that we could share some of it with you by way of this blog. Hopefully, at some future date, you will join us again: Perhaps in person on one of our tours…or, through these words and photos. Feel free to check this site where we will be posting our upcoming travels.

Drake Passage, Ushuaia, and Buenos Aires...again

A full moon over Ushuaia

Cape Horn from the Minerva

A beautiful sculpture in Buenos Aires

The largest, and most exotic cemetery we have ever seen

Tango dancers on Buenos Aires street

Argentina's President works in this building

Boca Juniors' futbol stadium

Colorful Caminita Street

Upon departing the indescribable beauty of Antarctica, the dreaded Drake Passage awaited us for what was expected to be a rough crossing. But, our run of outstanding luck continued. The weather, crossing the most treacherous body of water in the world, was more like navigating across Elliot Bay from Seattle to the Bremerton Ferry dock than it was from the wilderness of Antarctica to Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world. The Minerva did get within 12 miles of Cape Horn for a few long-range photos. But with Chilean naval boats patrolling extensively, we were not permitted to get closer than 12 miles.

Thankfully, the relatively calm weather enabled us to have plenty of time to pack our suitcases, visit with shipmates, attend wrap-up sessions and prepare for the next phase of our adventure…the regent post cruise option to Buenos Aires and Iguazu Falls. Our six-hour early arrival in Ushuaia meant the crew, as well as passengers, would have time to enjoy the harbor. Unfortunately, it was 9 p.m. Saturday, so most everything was closed. But, we did manage to pick up a few patches that Jan will sew onto the red Antarctic parkas which were gifts from the Minerva. After a short stroll, we returned to our ship, finished packing, and got to bed early enough to get a good night’s sleep.

Early the next morning, we said goodbye to the wonderful staff of the Minerva and were bussed to the Ushuaia airport for a three-hour flight to Buenos Aires. Our three day post excursion began late that day with a city tour, showing us both the poor and wealthy neighborhoods. The contrasts were amazing. We even visited the Recoleta Cemetary, where the wealthy of Argentina built one room memorials (many even had chairs inside for the families). It dates back to 1822, and contains 6400 mausoleums. Most contained several caskets within the same building. Eva Peron was buried in her family’s unit (she was buried 27 feet underground, because her body had been stolen so many times). Our next stop was at the Pink Presidential House (their President lives outside the city, but she does work there) and a lovely old church across the square.

Another stop was near the Boca Juniors Futbol (soccer) facility where we had been in 1985 and 1986 when our son, Greg, played soccer in South America. There is a very interesting street named Caminita pictured above with brightly colored tin houses next to the stadium. Several people were doing the tango, of course. Chuck Jacoby actually posed with one of the dancers. Unfortunately Jerry was told to leave his big camera in the minibus, so we have no photo of that. Our group did pay close attention this time as we were also with the woman who had her wrist and lower arm broken by a young man trying to steal her watch prior to our expedition to Antarctica.

All in all, Buenos Aires showed us a great time this day. We did, however, remember to leave all jewelry in the hotel room’s safe, and brought just a single credit card with us.

Our day finished with dinner in the hotel and an early evening preparing for our 8 a.m. flight to Iguazu Falls. The Falls are located on the Argentina, Brazilian, and Paraguay border (although Paraguay was up river a bit from our destination).

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.

Day 13: Half Moon Island, Antarctica

Chinstrap Penguin scurries away from us...

Fur seals courting...

Huge whale bones...

Skua's fur ball remains of penguin chick...

Research Station...

Jerry, Chuck and Fran facing the snow storm...

Zodiac waits for us to return to Minerva...

Well, today we really earned our stripes! Discovery Group (red dots) boarded zodiacs after Endurance (green dots) returned at 9:00 a.m. Light snow was falling, the temperature was 32 degrees, there was a light cloud cover, and the short ride to shore was quite smooth. Chinstrap penguins were watching us as we walked through ankle deep waves and strode up the rocky beach toward a fork in the penguin highway that lead to the top of a short hillside. If we travelled to the left, we could see a Chinstrap rookery; to the right about 3/4 mile were several fur seals and some whale bones. Our decision was to turn right and stop at the rookery on our way back. That was a bad decision (more about that later).

On the way down the beach, we passed a research station on the edge of a small rocky hillside, about 200-300 yards to the right of us. It had begun to snow a bit harder, so the research station was fairly difficult to photograph. When we reached the whale bones, we were met by Sean, our whale specialist, who showed us a mandible and partial skull from a blue whale, estimated to be over 100 feet long. He’d found a seal skull and skua’s fur ball from a digested chick penguin. After taking several photos of the bones and nearby fur seals, it happened! We were a full 3/4 mile from our zodiacs when the snow increased even more and the wind truly picked up. A white-out followed as we made our way back up the hill toward the waiting zodiacs. It seemed much farther than it really was. We were slowed down tremendously by the snow slashing on what was left exposed on our faces. We later learned that the wind had gusted to more than 65 mph, and was up to force 12 on the Beaufort scale. When we finally reached the top of the hillside, and could see our cleaning Guanomatics and zodiacs in the now pounding surf, we slowly began to descend the final treacherous 100 feet of rocky slope that was coated by newly fallen snow on top of penguin guano. As luck would have it…we made it to the beach without a mishap…outside of missing the Chinstrap rookery in our haste to get back to the zodiac and, more importantly, to the Minerva.

We were both bowsprits in the zodiac today. That means that we sat in the very front seats and, as luck would have it, were the recipients most waves that came spilling over the bow into the boats. Jan, in fact, wound up on the wettest side of the zodiac and was deluged by several as the craft made its way through increasingly higher waves on its way back to the Minerva. The weather is so changeable, in a short period of time, down here in Antarctica. We found that out today.

Once back on the ship, we had today’s hot drink waiting for us…hot tea. It’s a very nice touch. Soon after we weighed anchor and were once again under way, the captain announced that our afternoon’s scheduled Antarctic swim had to be cancelled due to severe winds that would prevent our ship from entering Deception Island’s caldera and Pendulum Cove with a dip in the thermal springs. We weren’t surprised.

Day 12: Elephant Island

Jerry, Jan, John, Pat, Della, Jim, Nicki, Bob, and Chuck (Fran, unfortunately, was missing)

Cape Wild

Glacier next to Cape Wild

Today was proclaimed “The Boss Day” onboard the Minerva. That’s the name that his men gave to Sir Ernest Shackleton. This morning, we had lectures about glaciers and Shackleton in preparation for our anchored visit (no one left the ship) to Elephant Island’s Point Wild, where Shackleton left 20 of his men to spend a winter in April 1916 while he and five others went for help. Three of those six were later left at a whaling station on South Georgia, while Shackleton and the two remaining men continued on foot across a mountain range knowing there would be help on the other side. He returned to save all his men through much heroic effort, determination, and positive leadership. The rescued men had not been on land in over a year. We cannot fathom how they were able to survive. Shackleton by Frank Worsley or Endurance by Alfred Lansing will give you the full adventure. They are great reads.

The whole ship was out on deck taking photos in front of the glacier next to Cape Wild. We even snapped a picture of the Cruise Specialists group on board. Hot white (glacier) chocolate was served on the outside pool deck. The entire ship’s contingent was out under the beautiful blue skies and sunshine. It did snow a bit yesterday and last night…but this is the Antarctic. We could see snow on the rocks onshore, but none of the white stuff stuck to the ship. What a blessing this fabulous weather has been!

By the way, the plastic bags or shower caps on everyone’s camera protect the cameras from the sea spray and salty air. All cameras also must be worn on lanyards around our necks.

Day 11: Monroe Bay, South Orkney Island

Never cross a penguin (guano) highway

Beautiful blue icebergs in Monroe

Chinstrap Penguin

Weddell seal

Leopard seal

Today began at 6:30 a.m. with a rush outside to the “real” Antarctica we came to see! Icebergs were all around our ship, snow covered the mountains all the way down to the water line in places. We were even snowed upon with small flakes. The largest tabular (table top looking) glaciers we saw today measured over two miles long and tower 250-300 feet above the ocean. 80% of each glacier is submerged into the icy water. We were treated to a fabulous cruise through literally hundreds of glaciers by way of a narrow strait named William Sound.

We followed three humpback whales for nearly a half hour, and saw two simultaneous tail flukes. One was a calf who was learning the ropes from its mother. When we reached Shingle Cove, we expected to board zodiacs to be taken to view thousands of Adelie penguins in their shoreline rookery. A scout zodiac went ashore to clear a path through the large elephant seals before the passengers embarked. We anxiously awaited our 15-minute alert to dress. Instead, our Captain announced that the entire Adelie penguin colony had disappeared. Matt, the ornithologist who was also in the scout zodiac, reported in part, “The Antarctic has an ever-changing eco system. The Adelies were here earlier this season. The only remains were 3 fledged (dead) chicks. The penguins must have bred earlier this year, hatched and babied their young and then abandoned their rookery. If it had been disease, there would have be some evidence (bones) of the event.” Amazing. We awaited Plan B.

OK, Plan B was announced: hopefully a zodiac tour could be made to a Chinstrap penguin rookery after lunch. It was a bit foggy, 33 degrees air temp, but not much wind and we were told to “Stand down to stand by for further instructions” by Suzana.

And wait we did until the 15-minute dressing call came. Full of anticipation, we boarded our zodiacs for Plan B, a boat-only trip to cruise past a Chinstrap penguin rookery. We were in Matt’s zodiac. He estimated there were over 200,000 penguins in this bay! Chinstraps eat krill (tiny shrimp) and, therefore, their guano (poop) is reddish brown instead of the gray we have seen in past days. Chick Chinstraps are downy gray and oh so fluffy!

Our first encounter with a Leopard seal happened near the end of our zodiac tour of Shingle cover. Luckily, we never got out of the zodiac and the Leopard seal never got into the zodiac for this excursion…so, we were safe. The Leopard seal looked very prehistoric…it was huge with a face a bit like a dinosaur or even a huge turtle. They can be very vicious. Matt told us about an encounter his zodiac had with a Leopard seal last year. His boat was filled with people just like us when they saw a Leopard seal. It actually bit through one chamber of his zodiac, which has five chambers…so they were still able to float and return to the ship safely. Upon examining his zodiac back on the Minerva, Matt discovered that the jaw opening of the seal was 18 inches…big enough to have bitten off a human arm, leg of even head! Needless to say, we were relieved to get back to the Minerva safely.

As we glided back to our mother ship, we enjoyed gorgeous blue icebergs all around, close enough to touch as we passed by. Small snow flakes continued to fall, but it was just 32 degrees with no wind. None of us was cold. It had been a great day!

Day 10: At sea again…

Here's our "all-weather" clothing for a डे

Jan scrubbing her boots with the "Guanomatic" cleaner

Today we had lectures about penguins, volcanoes, and life in a research station from 1964-65. Every evening, the ship provides a “Daily Recap” at 7:00 p.m. That is followed by tentative plans for the next day. Briefings include mini lectures on a variety of subjects. Even though the lectures are also broadcast on the TV sets in our staterooms, they are very well attended. Maybe that’s because canapés and drinks are served if you show up in person. Following that, dinner is served. We spent most of today catching up on our blogs. By the time this one is posted, everything should be up to date. Hooray!

While there was a lull in today’s activities, we laid out the clothing we wear for each shore expedition. All you can see needs to be applied to our bodies either worn, snapped on, or slipped over our heads) before we embark the zodiacs. We start with long undies, then a capilene (polyester) layer, next polar fleece or ski pants (perhaps both, as the Minerva sails further south), and topped with a neck gator, liner gloves, parka, hat, ski gloves, life jacket, and back pack (we don’t use those very often). Oops, forgot way back there in this list, that we had to put on sock liners, (Fran adds foot warmers), wool socks, then rain pants, and finally our Wellies (knee high rubber boots). All is tucked into the boots except the waterproof pants which stay on the outside. By this time, we all look and walk like penguins!

We have also included a photo of the self-powered "Guanomatic", that is used to remove penguin guano off our boots before we re-enter the zodiacs prior to reboarding the Minerva. Jan models the machine in this photo. Once back on the ship, we also walk through a disinfectant solution.

Day 9: Grytviken and St. Andrews Bay, Island of South Georgia

Grytviken photos:






St. Andrews Island Photos:






Our day began with a 5:00 a.m. wake up call, for the Red group, and 5:45 departure in the zodiacs. It was a gorgeous sunrise, and its remnants were still visible on the snowy mountain ranges as we climbed aboard our rubber flotilla. After we were whisked to the beach, we picked our way through more King Penguins, fur seals, and elephant seals to the cemetery where Sir Ernest Shackleton is buried. He is responsible for much exploration, nearly reaching the South Pole in 1909. Jerry just fished reading the book “Endurance,” which details a trek he made with over 20 men in 1914-15. The loss of Shackleton’s ship produced the greatest trial of survival in Antarctic history. This is a truly exciting read…and Jerry highly recommends it to anybody with a speck of adventure in his soul. We had a mini lecture and a hot chocolate toast to Sir Shackelton at his headstone.

Grytviken was refurbished in 1990 which meant they cleaned out the old whaling leftovers such as asbestos, broken parts, and discarded junk left lying around. Whaling stopped here in the 1960s. They also repaired a lovely church built in 1913. Jerry and went inside and up the little staircase and I rang the bell 5 times, once for each of our grandchildren. I understand there was a photo of both of us on one of the other two sites the ship recommends for family and friends at the bell. When we looked today, we couldn’t find it, but our bandwidth continues to be very minimal. As a refresher, those websites are: www.abercrombiekent.com/travel_logs and http://www.swanhellenic.com/antarcticlog

We had our first (and perhaps only we are told) shore side Antarctic shopping opportunity at a wonderful little whaling museum. We purchased some cards, shirts, and books there. It was manned by three researchers from a nearby Research Center.

That afternoon, we once again dressed in layers (fewer this time) and boarded the zodiacs for an unforgettable trip to St. Andrews Bay. Susana, our expedition leader, knows her stuff! She is an amazing Brazilian woman (married to the excellent photographic coach onboard). When the afternoon excursion was cancelled for the Green group yesterday (with all the King Penguins), Susana got to work. She is in constant contact with all the other explorer ships and stations in this area. She was, therefore, able to schedule a surprise visit to another King Penguin rookery. The one at St. Andrews Bay is the largest in the world, and we were blessed with a visit today. According to Susana, there are over 1 million King Penguins there. We cannot adequately describe what we saw: King Penguins as far as the eye can see, with large numbers of fur seals, elephant seals, and a herd of over 25 reindeer (introduced by explorers, not native to this part of the world). There were all sizes and ages of Kings, from eggs to 30 year-olds. In one of Jerry’s photos, you can see one egg peeking out from the base of its parent’s skirt. Both parents take turns holding the egg and keeping it warm with their skirt, then protecting the chick there after it is hatched until it matures enough to handle the weather without the parent’s protection. Then the fuzzy brown chick grows and grows, sheds the brown feathers and finally shows the black and white with yellow/orange ear patches and neck area.

We saw all stages up and down the beach and hillside. What an expedition! We were told to sit down and perhaps a penguin would come to visit. Jerry was snapping pictures everywhere, so Jan decided to squat in the guano. Almost immediately, a couple (they mate for life) approached her, seemed to sniff her out, and then tilted their heads as if in conversation with her. Marvelous!

Our time at St. Andrews Bay wasn’t enough. Soon, we were back in the zodiac and headed back to the Minerva. The waves were high, and re-boarding our ship proved a challenge. But, we returned in awe of the sights that we had just seen.