The plan for this day was to do two separate stops in amazing locations. In the morning, we’d be going to Wilhelmina Bay. Since we’d finished at Deception Island so early and transited overnight, the surprise from the expedition team was to explore the bay by cruising in the zodiacs (and kayaking, for some) instead of just observing from the ship. The bay was supposed to be a good place to see beautiful icebergs and potentially whales. In the afternoon/evening, we’d have landings (and kayaking, and science boat) at Orne Harbour. Setting foot on land here would mean actually standing on the Antarctic continent, not just an island. The steep hike up the hillside (about 100m / 400 ft in elevation) would be worth it for the view and the chinstrap penguin rookery.
I was awakened by an announcement at 7:25a that we had arrived at a position just east of Foyn Harbour. The weather was MUCH better than the previous day, with just 8 knot winds, temperatures of 4-5 C / 39-41 F, and tons of bright sunshine. Cruising operations would start as planned at 8a. The Minke Whales would be one of the last groups at approximately 10:15a, so we had plenty of time to get breakfast and get ready. We were reminded that we needed the mandatory waterproof outer layer, boots, and life vests, plus sunglasses and sunscreen. Each group would be on the water for about 45 minutes.
When the Minke Whales were called (about 20 minutes behind schedule), we headed down to the Expedition Lounge on Deck 3. There were generally 12 passengers to a zodiac, and the zodiacs both loaded and traveled in pairs. Crew members were there to help everyone on and off the boats safely. We were happy to see that our boat captain/guide was the environmental scientist who runs the cloud observing program.
We first headed to Foyn Harbor; there was a sailing ship departing as we arrived. I would HATE to cross the Drake in a ship like that, but have lots of respect for the original Antarctic explorers. The shipwreck in the harbor is the Norwegian Guvernøren, a whaling factory ship; in 1915, its crew was celebrating the end of a successful whaling season when someone knocked over a lamp. The ship was full of whale oil, so it went up like a torch. The crew ran the ship around and were rescued by another nearby ship. The island was originally called North Nansen Island, with South Nansen Island nearby. But this was confusing, so the UK renamed North Nansen Island as Enterprise Island (in honor of its whaling history) and South Nansen Island is now just Nansen Island.
We continued cruising around with our guide explaining about different features on the icebergs, as well as the difference between an iceberg (>16 ft above the water), a bergy bit (3-16 ft above the water), and a growler (< 3 ft above the water). Those are the technical terms, I swear.
At some point, I put my camera down and just watched. The scenery was stunning, but it also made me a little sad. The beauty of this planet is something we can lose. Actually, not just lose, but actively destroy. I wished everyone could see and appreciate this.
Once everyone was back aboard, the ship headed through the rest of Wilhelmina Bay on our way to Orne Harbour. As the expedition team hoped, we did see whales along the way.
The morning program had run a bit long, so the afternoon/evening was expected to be about 1 hour later than planned. We also were sharing the site for an hour with the sailboat we’d seen earlier back at Foyn Harbor, so that limited the number of people that could be ashore and made things a little more tricky. The views were beautiful from the ship; couldn’t wait to get up there!
Dinner was once again with our friends at Fredheim; it was surprisingly empty. The plans for the next day were posted in the app just before we sat down, so I spent some time looking at the destinations and weather forecasts. While waiting back in our cabins, it was announced that there was a whale on the port (left) side. It hung out for a long time, never showing its tail, just spouting and swimming around. We were so happy we’d picked a cabin on the port side; the zodiacs and kayaks were coming and going from the starboard (right) side, but we had nothing but peace when we went out on our balconies.
We finally got called down to the Expedition Lounge (about 25 minutes late). Since we’d be doing a pretty strenuous hike, I went light with layers – just a base layer and waterproof layer. I put middle layers and a heavier hat and gloves in my backpack in case I needed them (I did not). I also brought a water bottle, lip balm, and sunglasses.
The landing site didn’t have an area to stand or hang around; it was a patch of rocks and then the path led right up the mountain. I took a moment for a picture before we started up the slope – my feet were actually standing on the Antarctic continent!
It was a tough hike, much more than I expected. You could stop to rest at the corners of the zig zags. The hiking poles they gave us were really helpful, as the snow had the consistency of a snow cone and everyone was slipping back every few steps. I considered stopping and going back a couple of times, but we made it to the top and were so glad we did! The view was incredible, and the chinstrap penguins made a fun (and noisy!) welcoming committee. There were many more penguins further along the ridge, but we had taken our time up the hill and didn’t have a chance to investigate.
The trip back down the hill was easier than the trip up, but still lots of slipping. I would have twisted my ankle about 4 times if not for the design of our boots. We saw penguins playing in the water during the zodiac ride back to the ship, but weren’t able to get pictures. Once back aboard, everyone had to go through the boot wash to clean and disinfect our boots before going to another landing site.
Since the ‘Whales’ boat group was the last group this day, we would be first the next day, with a landing bright and early at 8a. I decided not to close my curtains and therefore captured this when I randomly woke up at about 1:30a:
