ship's log
Antarctica
After COVID grounded A&K’s Latin America Product Manager Paul Medley for the better part of two years, the chance to visit one of the world’s last frontiers was far too good to refuse. Spending a memorable two weeks on an expeditionary cruise to Antarctica and its far-flung islands, Paul returned with a newfound appreciation for the power and fragility of the White Continent and an understanding of how important it is to protect this pristine part of the world for future generations. Here are some excerpts from the ship’s log:
Paul Medley Product Manager, A&K Australia
January 6, 2022 | Ushuaia, Argentina …. we arrived at the pier to our state-of-the-art, home afloat, Le Lyrial. And what a vessel. Embarking, we were welcomed by staff and crew and shown to our staterooms with safety briefings and time to explore the ship before a Champagne welcome. After dinner aboard, the crew weighed anchor and our sleek vessel slipped away into the Beagle Channel leaving the lights of Ushuaia behind. Giant petrels banked and a black-browed albatross soared astern signalling the wonders that awaited us in the Southern Ocean.
January 10, 2022 | Fortuna Bay and Grytviken Once anchored, we boarded Zodiacs and soon found ourselves ashore at the head of a large bay, where the beach was awash with seals, fur and Elephant, including pups in abundance. A short hike to a king penguin rookery up the glacial valley, amid driving snow and gusting winds, allowed us to observe the adults incubating eggs, chicks begging incessantly for food and skuas patrolling the skies above. Landing on a beach just below the Grytviken cemetery, we paid our respects to the great explorer Shackleton who is buried there alongside scores of whalers, while the whaling station’s rusty storage tanks, dilapidated boats, old industrial machinery and church are haunting reminders of the industry which decimated whale numbers in the early 20th century.
January 12, 2022 | Gold Harbour and Cooper Bay Early morning revealed the rugged mountains along South Georgia’s southeast coast… A king penguin colony was huddled farther down the beach, with groups of brown woolly-coated chicks scattered around the colony’s edges. Northern giant petrels stalked their prey while brown skuas alighted on the sand. Over lunch, flocks of blue-eyed shags flew across the ship's bow as we entered Cooper Bay amidst rafts of macaroni penguins.
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