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Imagine my relief to discover that Clipper Adventurer, our home for the next twelve days, was relatively small for a cruise ship. I’d seen photos of her, but I also had stood next to one of the mega-cruise ships docked in Portland near where I paddle dragon boats on the Willamette River. These ocean cruisers often […]

My fellow birders and I settled into life at sea, bound for Antarctica. Ahead of us lay Drake Passage, one of the most formidable and dangerous bodies of water, known for the worst storms on earth, and at times, icebergs. This tempestuous passage is located between Tierra del Fuego, Argentina and The Falkland Islands to the […]

After our tasty Thanksgiving dinner, we moved to the comfortable lounge where Julio prepared us, once again, for shore visits. The small craft landings in the Falkland Islands were practice runs, trials for proper clothing, transportation, and discipline. The mild consequences of mistakes during the Falkland shore landings were minimal. Now, anyone who wandered off […]

At six in the morning of the sixth day, I awoke to Julio’s low voice over the speaker in my room. He almost whispered, “If you are awake, come up on deck to see the icebergs.”   Jumping into my clothes, I donned my red jacket, and hurried up the two flights of stairs. Through […]

Our ship continued southeast through Antarctic Sound, the official name of Iceberg Alley. Our destination, Paulet Island, had an interesting history and one of the largest Adélie Penguin colonies in the world. The breakers were so strong when we approached the shore of Paulet Island, the crew had to tie the stern of our Zodiac to a […]

Leaving Paulet Island to the penguins, Clipper Adventurer retraced our route through Iceberg Alley during the night. The next morning, we early risers enjoyed a pod of Orcas leaping and spouting for several minutes in front of the ship’s bow. And as quickly as they arrived, they were gone. What fun! As I watched them cavort, I […]

Our naturalists educated us about penguins and their lives throughout our tour. After seeing the penguins’ behavior firsthand, and learning about their lives and habitats, I finally began to understand and appreciate the complexities of their lives and how they intertwine with the other wildlife. For one, they all depend on Antarctic krill, a necessary […]

After the relatively easy voyage south across Drake Passage to Antarctica, all of us hoped for similar good luck crossing that passage to Ushuaia, Argentina where our trip ended. But the return north was another story. At the end of our last day of exploring the Antarctic Peninsula, the captain of Clipper Adventurer cancelled our scheduled landing […]

More than fifteen years later after this adventure, I remember most Antarctica’s isolation and its pristine landscape, rarely marred with a human structure. The humbling sight from shore of an enormous glacier dwarfing our ship as it anchored in one of the bays is unforgettable. Crystal clear water, hanging ice cliffs, and floating icebergs, all […]