The Expeditioner aurora Expeditions’ newsletter • December 2011
At this time of year i reflect on the wild and remote places that you, our passengers, have experienced aboard our ships. in the Aurora expeditions’ office we feel numerous pangs of envy, but we never tire of hearing about the remarkable encounters with wildlife, and being immersed in nature at its best. extraordinary moments seem integral to our style of adventure travel.
Across the top By golly, we did it! Aurora Expeditions is thrilled to be amongst the first to navigate Russia’s North East Passage in an ice-strengthened passenger vessel. Aboard Akademik Shokalskiy, 50 pioneering adventurers, our expedition staff and indefatigable Russian crew pushed back from the port of Murmansk in August, traversing Siberia’s vast north coast and crossing nine time zones to arrive in Anadyr 26 days later. The inaugural voyage, led by Howard Whelan, was one of Aurora Expeditions’ most extreme in scope and duration, visiting a corner of the globe where few have ventured. We took the chance to land at militaryrestricted Novaya Zemlya, name peaks on mountainous Severnaya Zemlya, and cruise at midnight around the Novosibirskie Islands. Shokalskiy steamed north of Wrangel Island to the edge of the pack ice, where we encountered a dozen polar bears and hundreds of walrus. During the voyage
A rarely seen wolverine
Demonstrating reindeer wrangling at Yanrakynnot village
we discovered 10,000-year-old fossils of mammoth tusks and teeth. At dusk, a frenzy of short-tailed shearwaters rose from the water and darkened the skies. We plied the waters alongside beluga whale and whitebeaked dolphin, Zodiaced amongst fractious walrus, and those with cameras at the ready snapped the rarest sighting of all: a wolverine. With safety at the forefront, Aurora Expeditions continues to push the boundaries of adventure tourism, creating itineraries to stimulate the senses and open up some of the least-known places on our planet. For those ready to layer up, stride out and explore the North East Passage, call us about our 2012 & 2013 program (we have limited berths still available on our 2012 voyages). Or check our two new 2012 Russian adventures: Arctic Ocean Discoverer – Wrangel Island and Treasures of the Russian Far East at www.auroraexpeditions.com.au/ expeditions/category/russia-cruise
Alan Burger
In this issue, you’ll share our thrill in being one of the first passenger vessels to traverse Russia’s North East Passage. You’ll hear about that other Aurora, the northern lights, and the wonders of an East Greenland voyage. On 2 December, 100 years to the day after polar explorer Douglas Mawson steamed south from Hobart towards the frozen south, I shared the excitement and nervous anticipation as our own Akademik Shokalskiy motored down the Derwent River bound for Antarctica’s Commonwealth Bay. Our Antarctic season is well underway, bringing with it a much-anticipated flysail era. Already our 2012–2013 brochures have landed on my desk. They promise the largest-yet range of destinations and options, with two sister ships and double the voyages. In 2012 we offer two trips to Papua New Guinea; we return to Wild Scotland and those fabulous Faroes. Two new voyages have been added to our Russian Coast program. On the home front, we warmly welcome Ludmila to the finance team, and Amanda Till, who we have enticed ashore for some of her time, to a new role as Expeditions Executive. Those aboard our ships in Antarctica will be enjoying a very white Christmas. Whether this finds you at home or abroad, I wish every one of you a safe and joyous holiday season and a happy 2012! Lisa BoLton, CEO, Aurora Expeditions
Alan Burger
FRoM tHE HELM
others examined the ancient Eskimo food caches and stone tent rings near the beach. In this biggest of big landscapes, snow buntings and wheatears flitted around the rocks like fairies. Once back on board, the day was so glorious and sunny that the elves prepared a picnic on the bow while Polar Pioneer powered through the brash ice of Rödefjord, bergs of fantastical shapes and sizes around us.
Zodiac cruising at its finest
For more of Ken’s stories about the Jewels of the Arctic Expedition, taking in Iceland, Greenland and Spitsbergen, pick up the January 2012 edition of Australian Geographic, or log onto www.australiangeographic.com.au Aurora Expeditions is one of only two tour operators who visit East Greenland. To learn about our 2012 selection of voyages, download a brochure at www.auroraexpeditions.com. au/expeditions/category/arctic-cruises
Arctic hare
Alan Burger
AurorA expeDitions’ inforMAtion sessions 1 February 2012 PAPUA NEW GUINEA 2 February 2012 EUROPEAN ARCTIC 7 February 2012 RUSSIAN COAST (SYDNEY)
Join our expedition experts from 6pm to 7.30pm at Aurora Expeditions’ Office, Moran House, Level 3, 13–15 Bridge Street, Sydney. For the Russian Coast information sessions, Aurora Expeditions has partnered up with Australian Geographic Magazine. These sessions will be held at different venues and times. To reserve a place, please email info@auroraexpeditions.com.au or call us on +61 2 9252 1033.
8 February 2012 RUSSIAN COAST (BRISBANE) 9 February 2012 RUSSIAN COAST (MELBOURNE) 15 February 2012 KIMBERLEY COAST
gary Miller
iN AN ANCieNt lAND Where glACiers carve valleys as broad as a state, where the passage of time is told by strata of stone and gargantuan geological folds, where land and ice is as immense as the sky, wondrous displays of nature can be found on show, day and night. At two in the morning, unable to sleep, journalist Ken eastwood left the warmth of his cabin and ventured up to the flying bridge of Polar Pioneer: The starry night was a black velvet canopy encrusted with sparkling jewels. Perhaps the cold explained my tardiness in not immediately recognising the lines and shapes that materialised above, until a luminescent green ‘J’ took over a third of the sky. I was joined by expedition leader Don McFadzien and fellow passengers to view the famous Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights. In a flowing ballet, swirls of green and white speared across the sky toward the far side of Harefjord. Surely the rumours of auroras being created by fairy dust, and communications from other universes are believable in the Arctic? It is, after all, a deeply magical place. Take the morning landing. Under an almost cloudless sky, and with calm conditions glazing the fjord, our Zodiacs crunched through a slurry of ice. We landed on a palette of tundra, where frosted birch and willow leaves whispered secrets to photographers, while musk oxen grazed the sweeping plain. Fish skittered behind boulders in a creek trickling from a shining lake, and a snowcap sat like oozing white icing on a 300-million-year-old layered rock cake. A keen group descended into a steep iced gully, while
the magic of greenland
Alan Burger
expeDitioner DiArY – JeWeLs of An Arctic sKY
blue, blue sky, the towering pink and purple cumulous storm clouds in the build-up to the wet, thundering crystal clear waterfalls, billions of bright clear stars, King Leopold sandstone escarpments ablaze with orange dawn light, ancient rock paintings depicting stories from long ago, and abundant wildlife. How did you become so involved in the indigenous community? I arrived in Broome as a teenager and back then it was very much more multicultural than it is today. I quickly made many Aboriginal friends and later, when I owned my own tour company, pioneered partnerships between Indigenous communities and tour operators. I had an experience that resulted in the rare honour of being given the ‘skin’ name Jalanga and being adopted into an Aboriginal family. I was caught in a bushfire whilst camping but luckily escaped the flames by driving through thick scrub breaking through to the coast. Suddenly, an Aboriginal man appeared who had heard my vehicle. He asked for help. We ran together to his property, back-burning along the way, and saved the majority of the community buildings. We became friends and
Dan Balint
A tufi man shows off traditional costume in papua new guinea
our fALLen heroes
Visit www.auroraexpeditions.com.au or call us on +612 9252 1033 to enquire about our Kimberley and Papua New Guinea cruises.
Boab trees are emblematic of the Kimberley
145° E
150° E
Admiralty Islands
Tingwon Island
Rambutyo
New Hanover Tabar Islands Djaul Lihir
New Ireland
BISMARCK
B i s m a r c k River
Sepik
S e a Ambitle
Manam
Rabaul
ARCHIPELAGO Lambon
Karkar
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Madang
Buka
Long Island
in ta Bri
Umboi
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Tuam Island
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Tami Island
Huon Gulf
S o l o m o n
Jacquinot Bay
Bougainville
Voyage 1: Alotau to Alotau Voyage 2: Alotau to Rabaul
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GUINEA NOMINAL SCALE 1:4,250,000
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Thanks to the support of Papua New Guinea’s Government matching the Australian Government’s $100,000 donation to the Rabaul & Montevideo Maru Society, a memorial can now go ahead to honour the soldiers and civilians who lost their lives in the sinking of Montevideo Maru. Aurora Expeditions is proud to support this great cause by donating a percentage of profits to the Society from our forthcoming 2012 Lost in Paradise Papua New Guinea voyage. This thirteen-day voyage will feature the historic sites of WWII and close with a special ANZAC Day service in Rabaul, marking the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Rabaul and the sinking of Montevideo Maru. To donate to the Society visit www.memorial.org.au
over the years I helped by bringing in supplies before the wet when roads into town could be cut for months. Many years later the community ‘adopted’ me in the traditional Aboriginal way and I now have a large extended Aboriginal family who treat me as a brother, cousin and son. you say that Papua new Guinea is a “must see”. why? It was only 80 years ago that the outside world discovered over one million people living in the fertile Papua New Guinea highland valleys, with farming techniques that may have originated before Europeans began cultivating crops. Papua New Guinea is an island of mysteries and a last chance to see an ancient world still relatively untouched by modern man. This is a country with incredibly diverse cultures, pristine fringing coral reefs and atolls, world famous bird species and tropical oldgrowth forests where mammal species still thrive that only exist as fossils in Australia.
Andrew halsall
why did you become a naturalist? I feel very lucky to have spent long periods of time in pristine wilderness areas such as the Kimberley and Papua New Guinea. I get a deep satisfaction from viewing and surveying wildlife, researching the food or medicinal value of plants, interpreting rock art sites or being involved with historical expeditions. tell us what you find special about the Kimberley region. The red pindan soil of the Kimberley just gets into your blood and you become hooked on the wide open expanses of
Darren Jew
Mike cusack
staFF PRoFiLE: Dan BaLint, PaPua nEw GuinEa & KiMBERLEy natuRaList
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D’Entrecasteaux Islands Normanby Island 10° S
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AUSTRALIA
Tagula 145° E
Arc
150° E
Akademik Shokalskiy departs hobart, 2 December 2011
to the AntArctic AnD success We cannot not let this special month go by without a final tribute to Sir Douglas Mawson and his 1911–14 Australasian Antarctic Expedition. Indeed, as this newsletter Douglas Mawson goes to print, our own Akademik Shokalskiy has departed Hobart, Tasmania on the very same day as Steam Yacht Aurora, a century before.
As celebrations abound to mark this important centenary, we honour Sir Douglas Mawson, Captain John King Davis and their men’s farreaching accomplishments: oceanographic studies, charting miles of new coastline, scientific research including relocating the South Magnetic Pole, transmitting the first radio signal from Antarctica to Hobart via a radio relay station established at Macquarie Island, and, by 1931, the discovery of more Antarctic territory than all previous expeditions combined, ultimately staking forty percent of the frozen continent as Australian Antarctic Territory.
Knox grammar school
striVe, eMBArK, DiscoVer, AchieVe
peter Mccabe, right, with D of e Award participants and leader David sedgeman
Field Leader and Heritage Carpenter Peter McCabe is all too familiar with the physical and mental challenges of working in Antarctica, especially at a site recorded as the windiest place on earth at sea level. Peter was a team member of the successful 2010–2011 Mawson’s Huts Foundation Expedition, where he carried out conservation work on Mawson’s Huts at Cape Denison, Commonwealth Bay. Recently, Peter spoke to teenage boys at Knox Grammar School, Sydney who participated in the Duke of Edinburgh Award
Scheme. His motivational speech paralleled the leadership qualities and expeditionary skills of polar explorer Sir Douglas Mawson, with those of our expedition staff at Aurora Expeditions. Peter likened the individual and team skills required to conduct a remote, adventure-style voyage, to the core qualities that boys and girls strive to attain in the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme. Peter presented D of E awards to gold, silver and bronze winners. Peter joins the Aurora Expeditions’ team on Mawson’s Centenary Celebration voyage, departing 2 December 2011.
Our Mawson Centenary voyage replicates the legendary route taken by Sir Douglas Mawson to Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica, via Macquarie Island. We may be travelling in the comfort of a modern ice-strengthened vessel equipped with GPS, radar and navigational charts, but as our ship forges south across the Southern Ocean, you can be certain that our hardy passengers, expedition staff and Russian crew carry the same adventuring spirit.
MAWson’s forgotten Men Tasmanian-born Charles Harrisson joined Sir Douglas Mawson’s 1911–14 Australasian Antarctic Expedition as a biologist and expedition artist. He was a member of Frank Wild’s eight-man Western Party whose hut was erected on the Shackleton Ice Shelf in Queen Mary Land. Harrisson was also a gifted writer and the diary he kept during his fifteen months in Antarctica has now been transcribed and edited by accomplished author Heather Rossiter. Marking the 100-year anniversary of the departure of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, Harrisson’s compelling narrative is complemented by his beautiful Antarctic sketches and watercolours, as well as photographs of the Western Base party. Aurora Expeditions’ founder, Greg Mortimer, provides a fitting foreword to a volume that honours the daring spirit of a lesser-known but equally audacious Antarctic explorer. Mawson’s Forgotten Men is published by Murdoch Books. ISBN 978-1-74266-150-6. RRP $49.95
Amanda till
xavier Mertz
SY Aurora leaves hobart’s princes Wharf, 2 December 1911
epic VoYAges
Mountaineers traverse south georgia
E p i c
For centuries, Epic Voyages daring explorers have struck out across unknown oceans in search of new lands. In 1521 Ferdinand Magellan proved the world was round when his ship Victoria circumnavigated the globe. Captain James Cook’s voyages of discovery led him to the great southern continent of Australia. More recently, explorers have been propelled by scientific curiosity or the urge to attain the near impossible. Polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and his 28 men struck disaster in Antarctica’s Weddell Sea when their ship Endurance was crushed by ice, beyond all hope of help. Thor Heyerdahl’s Kon-Tiki expedition overcame remarkable odds to show that a traditional log raft could traverse the world’s widest ocean. And yachtsman Francis Chichester became the first to sail single-handedly around the world. With fold-out posters, maps, photos, illustrations and charts, young readers will be captivated as authors Robyn Mundy and Nigel Rigby recount the drama and perils faced by these five courageous explorers during their epic voyages of adventure and discovery. Epic Adventure: Epic Voyages is published by The Five Mile Press ISBN 978-1-74248505-8, and Kingfisher ISBN 0753465744. A d v e n t u r e
Discover how adventurous mariners used their skill and resourcefulness to adapt to challenging conditions— unpredictable weather, physical hardship, unforeseen perils. Find out which strategies and survival techniques succeeded and which failed, sometimes with tragic results.
Explore the vast oceans and wild seas navigated by these intrepid sailors on their long, dangerous voyages.
way
Large fold-out posters and gatefolds show the maps and the story of the route in a graphic style.
FERDINAND
Magellan VIC TORIA
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MASTEr MAriNEr
As a young page in Portugal’s royal court, Magellan received an education in navigation, astronomy, and mapmaking—skills that would guide him on his epic voyage around the globe.
Setting Sail E
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•Five great stories of adventure •Into the unknown, sailing by the stars, life at sea craft from great square-riggers to a •Sailing small raft •photographs, illustrations and fascinating diagrams maps show the amazing distances •Detailed travelled, and what happened along the
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uropeans knew little of the greater world until the 1400s when explorers established sea routes around the southern tip of Africa to the spice-rich countries of Asia. Then in 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed west from Spain to discover the Americas the New World. Young King Charles 1 of Spain welcomed to his court Ferdinand Magellan, an accomplished mariner outcast from Portugal. Charles admired Magellan and commissioned him to undertake a voyage of discovery westward in search of el paso, a sea passage through the New World to the Spice Islands of Southeast Asia. Little did Magellan know he was embarking on the first circumnavigation of the globe, or that he would endure treachery, peril, and bitter hardship. In September 1519, a fleet of five ships and 277 crew struck out across the Atlantic Ocean. Only one ship and 18 survivors would complete the voyage.
Bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops sp.)
Forestay and foresail.
Windlass. When Chichester needed to slow the boat in strong winds he trailed warps (long ropes) behind. These were heavy and he used a mechanical windlass (a powerful winch) to let them out and take them in.
He cooked on a Primus stove, a single-ring paraffin cooker.
Mizzenmast and mizzensail.
The mainmast with mainsail.
An inflatable dinghy was kept in the stern locker.
MAGELLAN MovES To SpAiN
As a young captain, Magellan argued with King Manuel of Portugal and was scorned at his court. Magellan left his homeland in disgust and moved to Spain to serve the new, 17-year-old King Charles.
Antwerp Genoa Venice
Self-steering gear. This essential piece of equipment for a single-hander was badly damaged in a storm, but Chichester made temporary repairs, which got him to Sydney.
Plymouth
Overland routes Sea routes
A S I A
PACIFIC
A F R I C A
OCEAN
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O C E A N
Fragrant Treasures
Spices were highly sought after in Europe, but only the wealthiest households could afford them. Transporting spices from the East involved months of arduous land and sea journeys. Every port demanded taxes from traders, while pirates and thieves posed constant danger. By the time a bale of spices reached Venice, it sold for one hundred times its original purchase price—making spices more costly than gold.
London
EUROP E
Second voyage Third voyage A S I A
P A C I F I C
A F R I C A
PORTUGAL
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Forward watertight bulkhead.
ST ELMo’S FirE
fter the great success of the first voyage a second was planned to continue the search for the Southern Continent and build scientific knowledge of the Pacific. This was to be even more ambitious, with two ships and a much larger complement of scientists. Banks withdrew after a disagreement over the accommodation for his party. Cook took Resolution and Adventure beyond the Antarctic Circle, the first ships to sail so far south. Although no continent was found, the scientific rewards were enormous. Cook then retired from service at sea with great honors but could not resist coming out of retirement to command a third Pacific voyage in search of the Northwest Passage of North America. This ended tragically when Cook was killed in Hawaii.
Construction of Gipsy Moth IV
At sea during a thunderstorm the crews of Magellan’s fleet noticed St Elmo’s Fire, a bright glow of fiery light at the tip of the ships’ masts and yards. Unaware that it was caused by electricity in the atmosphere the sailors became fearful; they thought it was caused by a supernatural being.
At 53 feet (16 m) overall, 39 feet (11.9 m) at the waterline, Gipsy Moth IV was a large yacht for a single-hander at that time. Chichester later admitted that the boat was too big for him. The theoretical maximum speed of a yacht is related to its waterline length—the longer the hull the faster the boat—and Gipsy Moth IV was theoretically capable of sailing 200 sea miles a day. To help the speed, she also had a light, easily driven hull with a cutaway keel. Despite her length, the cabin was cramped and Chichester discovered at sea that the stowage space had been badly designed, with equipment bashing around and making a noise like “a country fair in full swing.” The hull was, however, strongly built from cold-molded Honduran mahogany, although the plywood deck leaked where it joined the hull.
MAGELLAN’S FLEET Ships
Trinidad
Flagship
San Antonio
Concepción
Tonnage
110 tons
120 tons
90 tons
Victoria
85 tons
75 tons
EUROP E
AFRICA
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return to tahiti
Equator
TREATY OF TORDESILLAS LINE
Treaty of Tordesillas
An imaginary line was drawn north–south through the Atlantic Ocean; Portugal could claim new lands east of the line, Spain could claim lands west of the line. Magellan assured the king that the Spice Islands, if reached by sailing west, could be claimed by Spain.
Santiago
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The large and heavy wooden tiller.
Forward cabin, which Chichester mainly used to store sails.
Forward heads (toilet) with hand basin.
Main cabin with folding table, one berth and six seats.
Lead-filled wooden keel. To improve stability 2,400 lb (1,090 kg) of lead was added.
Chichester’s gimballed (selfrighting) chair.
Chichester’s sea berth with navigational instruments above his head.
The rudder.
A heads (toilet) was in a compartment forward of his sea berth.
Navigation table and communications instruments.
Humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae)
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northwest passage
Cook’s ships made two brave attempts to find the Northwest Passage, but were defeated, and nearly destroyed, by pack ice. The search for the Passage would become almost an obsession for the 19th-century British Navy
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Cook’s three great voyages replaced myth and speculation with an accurate map of the Pacific. As many later explorers commented, he left them little to do except fill in some gaps.
Later Voyages
EUROPE
AFRICA
SOUTH AMERICA
ATLANTIC
SOUTH AMERICA
AUSTRALIA
OCEAN
Steering compass in the cockpit.
Charting the Pacific
NORTH AMERICA
A young Italian nobleman, Antonio Pigafetta, volunteered to join the expedition. Through the three-year voyage he kept a daily journal of events and observations. He was one of only 18 survivors and, luckily, his journal has survived to tell us much about the journey.
NORTH AMERICA
Hawaiian Islands (Sandwich Islands)
Equator
INDIAN
Cape Town
With the king’s money, Magellan purchased five ships. Because he was Portuguese, several officials resented Magellan and made him hire unsuitable Spanish captains. When the fleet set sail, three captains plotted to kill Magellan and take over command.
ANToNio piGAFETTA
EUROPE
Forehatch. Sails stored below could be manhandled through the hatch onto the deck.
SAiLiNG FroM SpAiN
The Age of Discovery
The wealth of the spice trade prompted seafaring nations to explore fast sea routes to Asia. In1498, Vasco da Gama sailed around the southern tip of Africa to reach India, creating an eastern trading route for Portugal. Magellan was inspired to explore a western route for Spain after rumors of el paso, a possible passage around southern America.
AT L A N T I C
OCEAN
Cook’s achievements
Cook set new and exacting standards for maritime exploration. He mapped thousands of miles of coastline previously unknown to Europe, charting 5,000 miles (9,250 km) on his first voyage alone. He accurately fixed the positions of numerous Pacific island groups. He brought back thousands of plant and animal specimens and detailed descriptions and drawings of Pacific peoples. These were to revolutionize European science.
easter island
Cook’s second voyage in Resolution and Adventure reached Easter Island, the most easterly point reached by early Polynesian settlers. The stone statues there would later help Thor Heyerdahl form his theory of westerly Polynesian migration from America.
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Cook returned to Tahiti on both his second and third voyages, anchoring in the familiar bay. On his second trip he took an islander named Omai back to Britain; the man’s presence caused great interest.
hawaiian islands
An Hawaiin warrior wears a ceremonial helmet. Cook landed in Hawaii, most northerly point of Polynesian settlement, on the third voyage when sailing north to the Arctic. He found so much fresh food there that he decided to return the following winter.
fatal enCounter
Cook, four marines, and 17 Hawaiians were killed in a brief but bloody incident at Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii, on February 14, 1779. Webber, artist on the third voyage, based his painting of the scene on eye-witness accounts.
Captain James Cook, R.N., by John Webber. Cook was promoted to post-captain before his third and final voyage.
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With two sturdy sister ships and 20 premium voyages designed to make the most of the Antarctic Peninsula, Weddell Sea, South Georgia and the Falkland Islands, this season is shaping up to be our biggest and brightest. We now offer a choice of comfortable vessels, Polar Pioneer and Akademik Shokalskiy, each carrying a maximum of 54 passengers. The small-group advantage is part of our winning formula, while the added capacity allows a greater diversity of voyages, with more opportunities for adventure activities such as kayaking, scuba diving, ice climbing and camping overnight. Our new Fly & Sail option on select voyages allows passengers to experience more of
Antarctica in a shorter length of time by eliminating one sea crossing. South Georgia & Weddell Sea – Shackleton’s Odyssey is a voyage inspired by explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton, whose survival story is one of the greatest in Antarctic exploration. In this new voyage we attempt to explore deep into the Weddell Sea, while those with climbing experience will have the option to lace up their glacier boots for Shackleton’s Crossing, a rigorous alpine traverse of South Georgia’s interior. Prices for the 2012–13 Antarctic season start from US$6,365 per person based on a triple cabin for an 8-day cruise. Visit www.auroraexpeditions.com.au/ expeditions/category/antarctica-cruises
tim griffin
King of Kings
tim griffin
DouBLe the cApAcitY, DouBLe the fun!
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Tim Griffin has won this year’s Aurora Expeditions’ Antarctic photography competition with a stunning portrait of king penguins at South Georgia’s Gold Harbour. Tim claims it was something of a lucky shot. ‘I was in a state of information overload with this landing being my first at a king penguin colony. The sun was setting and the light fading fast. I found my way to a stream that runs behind the beach—it was like a mirror and reflected the sunset perfectly. I had the ISO turned up as high as I could without the quality of the photo being impacted, the shutter speed as low as I could handhold, and the aperture wide open. When I spotted these two kings posing perfectly, I rattled off a couple of shots—it all just fell into place.’ The day before visiting Gold Harbour, Tim had reunited with fellow passengers and his wife Fiona after completing a gruelling alpine crossing over South Georgia from King Haakon Bay to Stromness Whaling Station. Tim and Fiona have one more reason to celebrate. In November they welcomed the birth of a beautiful daughter, fittingly named Georgia Nieve.
2012–2013 VoYAge cALenDAr 2012
Code
Destination
Activities
ship
January 5 – 21
ASG42
South Georgia & Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking
PP
January 21 – February 6
ASG43
South Georgia & Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking
PP
January 23 – February 17
MAW08
Mawson’s Centenary Celebration – Hobart to Hobart
February 6 – 17
ANP83
Weddell Sea & Antarctic Peninsula
Diving
PP
February 17 – 28
ANP84
Weddell Sea & Antarctic Peninsula
Diving
PP
February 28 – March 18
ASG44
South Georgia – Shackleton Odyssey
Alpine Crossing
PP
April 2 – 14
PNG10
Islands of Smiles – Alotau to Alotau
Kayaking
AK
April 14 – 26
PNG11
Lost in Paradise – Alotau to Rabaul
Kayaking
AK
May 28 – June 7
KIM45
Kimberley Coast – Broome to Broome
CP
June 8 – 18
KIM46
Kimberley Coast – Broome to Broome
CP
June 11 – 24
SCOT8
Wild Scotland & Faroe Islands
June 18 – 28
KIM47
Kimberley Coast – Broome to Darwin
June 25 – July 7
KUR04
Ring of Fire – Kuril Islands
Kayaking
AK
July 7 – 19
KAM05
Bering Sea Explorer – Kamchatka, Commander Islands & Chukotka
Kayaking
AK
July 19 – 29
SVAL30
Spitsbergen Odyssey
Kayaking
PP
July 19 – 31
KAM06
Treasures of the Russian Far East – Kamchatka & Chukotka
Kayaking
AK
July 29 – August 8
SVAL31
Spitsbergen Odyssey
Kayaking / Diving
PP
July 31 – August 13
WRA01
Arctic Ocean Discoverer – Wrangel Island
Kayaking
AK
August 8 – 21
GRN20
Jewels of the Arctic – Spitsbergen, Greenland, Iceland
Kayaking / Diving
PP
August 13 – September 7
NEP02
Across the North East Passage
Kayaking
AK
August 21 – September 3
GRN21
Jewels of the Arctic – Iceland, Greenland, Spitsbergen
Kayaking
PP
September 8 – 21
FJL03
Voyage to the End of the Earth – Franz Josef Land
Kayaking
AK
November 10 – 26
ASG45
South Georgia & Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking
AK
November 12 – 30
ASG46
South Georgia & Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Photography
PP
November 26 – December 3
ANP85
Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Camping
AK
November 30 – December 11
ANP86
Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Climbing / Photography / Camping
PP
December 3 – 11
ANP87
Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Camping
AK
December 11 – 19
ANP88
Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Camping / Photography
AK
December 11 – 22
ANP89
Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Climbing / Camping
PP
December 19 – 27
ANP90
Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Camping
AK
December 22 – 31
ANP91
Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Camping
PP
December 27 – January 12
ASG47
South Georgia & Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking
AK
December 31 – January 10
ANP92
Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking / Camping
PP
2013
Code
Destination
Activities
ship
January 10 – 26
ASG48
South Georgia & Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking
PP
January 12 – 28
ASG49
South Georgia & Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking
AK
January 26 – February 11
ASG50
South Georgia & Antarctic Peninsula
Kayaking
PP
January 28 – February 7
ANP93
Across the Circle
Kayaking / Diving
AK
February 7 – 17
ANP94
Across the Circle
Kayaking / Diving
AK
February 11 – 22
ANP95
Weddell Sea & Antarctic Peninsula
Diving
PP
February 17 – 28
ANP96
Weddell Sea & Antarctic Peninsula
February 22 – March 13
ASG51
February 28 – March 16
ASG52
AK
Kayaking / Diving
PP CP
NeW
NeW
AK
South Georgia & Weddell Sea
NeW
Shackleton Crossing
PP
South Georgia & Weddell Sea
NeW
Shackleton Crossing
AK
AK: Akademik Shokalskiy – CP: Coral Princess – PP: Polar Pioneer Aurora expeditions – Level 3, 13-15 Bridge street, sydney, nsW 2000 Australia Aurora expeditions’ newsletter printed December 2011 • editor: robyn Mundy • Design: grin creative www.grincreative.com.au