My Antarctic adventure would continue today as I’d visit two more very special places in the White Continent. We had an opportunity to make a third landing on the continent, visiting an abandoned Argentine base. I had trouble getting up this morning and getting to breakfast. If only I could live on this expedition ship forever…no need to worry about cooking, washing dishes, vacuuming, or making my bed. I’d feast on gourmet food three times per day and have a gorgeous view and great people all day. It feels like this journey has gone on forever!
Aboard the Zodiacs we were I thought of my latest joke: there was a dinghy that went missing, and it was later discovered in a dozen pieces, therefore there were 12 signs of the Zodiac. We had an hour ashore at Almirante Brown Station, which hasn’t been used since the ‘80s.
I wanted to collect some info for an Earthcache but I couldn’t find a geodesic benchmark in which I had to write down some numbers from. The water was very calm and there was no wind. We only had an hour at the base because we had a lot of distance to cover today. Safely back on the ship, we were going full steam from Paradise Harbour toward the majestic Lemaire Channel. Antarctica’s rapidly changing weather hasn’t been particularly sunny but Antarctica is like a gorgeous blonde lady: there’s no such thing as a bad photo of her. The Lemaire Channel, named after an explorer from the era of King Leopold, is no wider than 500 metres at its narrowest point and makes for some stunning photos. Parts of the Antarctic Peninsula are known as the Kodak Channel due to photo ops.
Lunch was at noon instead of 12:30 PM due to the schedule putting us in the Lemaire Channel at 1:15 PM more or less. Roast flank of Argentine beef was tasty, but the vegetable lasagna was divine. I enjoyed it so much I asked Ruel for a takeaway plate. Pear & marzipan galettes sent my taste buds into convulsions. I’ll talk about the food on this journey as much as I want because it’s one thing I have absolute zero complaints about. Anyone who has money to throw around and has even a remote interest in Antarctica should take this expedition. You don’t even have to get off the ship if you don’t want to (though you’d be extremely foolish not to).
I heard of at least one group who didn’t make it to Port Lockroy last week due to sea and ice conditions. Anja made an announcement that there’s a lot of ice as we approached the Neumayer Channel, and that the captain was trying to find a way around it. Although I was ready for a power nap, I hurriedly made my way to the bridge with my fingers crossed that we’d reach Port Lockroy; two of my goals for this journey are a passport stamp and at least one geocache find in Antarctica, and there’s a guaranteed find at Port Lockroy. Captain Oleg was busy with a cigarette in one hand and binoculars in the other, keeping an eye on the ice.
My heart started to beat faster, as I’d be sad if we didn’t reach the first scientific base ever built in Antarctica. With my eyes locked on the geographic coordinates, I hoped we would continue north and then east. Lockroy would radio in stating there’s a fair bit of ice near the station but the girls there were itching to have a shower since there’s no running water at the station; their only opportunity to have a shower is when a ship comes in. Captain Oleg did very well as we did make it to Port Lockroy with a lot of ice surrounding us.
With so many Chinese on board, he should be nicknamed the “Great Helmsman.” Hannah would come aboard and give a presentation as well as announcing that she was looking forward to a nice, long shower. Our passports were all stamped and I made sure to see mine before it was put away because it would be disappointing to come all this way to discover they forgot to stamp it. The Chinese group went first and then I was ashore, where I got some stamps, a magnet, and a postcard.
I also signed my first geocache in Antarctica!
After today I’ve made purchases with a credit card on all seven continents, and I’ve found geocaches on five continents (only Africa and Europe I have to find caches on). Port Lockroy was the first scientific base established in Antarctica but no longer functions for that purpose; instead it’s a museum and shop. Two postcards I sent to myself, as well as those to María, Jo, and Marcia. Mail takes around three months to reach its destination because it has to go to the Falklands and then to the UK, and then to its respective country. Port Lockroy no longer functions as a scientific base and it's now a small but fascinating museum, complete with British food tins.
Dinner tonight would be another divine one. The specialty would be veal shank but since I prefer not to eat veal I got carrot ginger soup and tomato bruschetta before having vegetable penne. Whilst I admit I really like Yvonne, I really wish I could meet and be with one girl. I was still a bit hungry so I tried a little bit of veal and that another appetizer of bruschetta.
Ab would give a presentation about the snowy sheathbill, colloquially called the “shitbill.” These white birds are the “garbage disposals” of the Antarctic and anything they can swallow, and this includes food from boats, eggs of other birds, penguin excrement, carrion, and even mucus from seals’ noses….Ugh!!!! There are many creatures in the Antarctic I wouldn’t want to be! It’s a good thing I had ate before this presentation.
Tomorrow begins the long journey north. My dreams only get bigger with each accomplishment, because I now want to go to the Ross Sea as well as doing a trip aboard a Russian icebreaker to the North Pole. 40 countries and all seven continents under my belt, I now have to figure out ways to achieve even bigger goals. For the past week, we’ve all loved this journey and we’ve all made the M/V Sea Spirit our home.
