Our second day in Antarctica, 10 February, was a tiring but exhilarating 13 hours of eye-popping scenery. It began immediately after an early breakfast with a zodiac cruise through stunning Graham Passage. In all directions there were fantastic glaciers, icebergs and floating ice, and on the animal front, whales, orcas, seals and many birds were sighted. Some were up close and personal, like the two crab eater seals we snuck up on as they lolled about on a fantastic small blue-hued iceberg. ‘Crab eater’ seal is a misnomer though as they never touch crabs, preferring krill and fish.
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This was also the first day of the kayaking program. About 15 of the passengers, including Dylan, had signed up for this, and for the remainder of the cruise they spent most of their time not on zodiacs powered by outboard motors, but on kayaks powered by their own arms. They became an exclusive close-knitted group on the ship, dining together, and answering frequent calls to the library for briefings before their next adventure.
The return to the ship for lunch was short, before we went through the now familiar ritual of donning our layers, waterproofs, beanies and muck boots, then going down the stairs to the disembarkation platform, “signing out” of the ship, washing our boots, and then one-by-one stepping into a zodiac in a strictly regimented manner to prevent any falls or injuries.
The afternoon zodiac cruise was to Cuverville Island, home to several large Gentoo Penguin rookeries. When the penguin viewing was over we hiked gingerly to the top of a very icy hill to survey the fantastic scene below of a bright blue bay littered with large chunks of ice (micro icebergs?) before inching our way back down to the zodiacs and returning to Sea Adventurer anchored a couple of kilometres offshore.
Once back at the ship there followed the above ritual, in reverse order, and then a great dinner. But that wasn’t the end of it. A third zodiac cruise was announced! This was to be to Neko Harbor deep in Andvord Bay, also a significant Gentoo Penguin breeding site. With twilight lasting until nearly midnight there was plenty of time for this after dinner. We may have been sagging but there was no way we’d risk not going and then hear from returning passengers how great the place was. And of course it was spectacular, like all the other places we’d already seen.
But a special event took place on the shore of Neko Harbor as the light of day began to fade. A young couple from China had chosen this place to be married. The bride bravely removed her coat and was bare-armed for a few minutes during the ceremony officiated at by a crew member marriage celebrant and the ship’s captain. The quiet was disturbed only by the crunching of ice under the feet of the thickly and warmly dressed passengers gathered around, and the unstoppable squeaking of a few thousand nearby penguins. Cheers rang out as rings were exchanged.
Meanwhile, the kayakers had spent the day at the same places, paddling around all this fantastic scenery. We were very tired at the end of it all, and we’d been in zodiacs. Spare a thought for the kayakers.
