February 8 - Cuverville, Antarctica

Today we are lying off Cuverville Island which is in the Errera Channel off Graham Land in Antarctica.  Yesterday evening as I reported in my last post the captain told us the weather could be a problem today.  .

During the recap of our zodiac tour yesterday we were told that on Cuverville the main sight to see is a penguin colony.  To get there we would have to walk through mud and penguin poop.  I’ve been to a penguin colony a few times, so I made the executive decision to stay on board today, especially if the weather could be an issue.

It turns out it was a good decision.  It’s 10:30 AM and they’ve just announced that all landings have been canceled because the wind came up earlier than expected and now they have to retrieve the people ashore. They should have a fun ride because there are some whitecaps out there. A mid-afternoon update – the captain came on and told us that we had finally managed to get the last equipment onboard and we’re leaving for tomorrow’s location (I don’t know where that is). He told us the wind had gotten up to 70 knots.

I’m going back to last night for a moment.  Just as I stepped out of the shower, the captain came over the PA system and said we had a large number of whales feeding off our port side (that’s the side I’m on).  I put on my bathrobe and ran out on my veranda barefoot to try to get some pictures of them.  I got a couple of videos and if the internet ever comes back, I’ll attempt to post them.

I have a confession; that's not my video, it's one Harry sent me because mine wouldn't upload for whatever reason.  I clearly have much to learn about this stuff. Fortunately I have plenty of days to try.

All evening we sailed very slowly through some magnificent scenery.  As the evening wore on and the sun went lower the colors were incredible.  Unfortunately I was dining and could only see it through windows and was unable to take photos.  You’ll have to take my word for the beauty surrounding us. That’s something I’ve forgotten to mention.  It stays light until after 10 PM.  I went to my cabin around 10:30 and it was still twilight outside.

The scenery today is very different from yesterday.  The hills and mountains around us are much more rugged and there are some sheer walls of rock. If I see Robin, the geologist, I’ll have to ask her what kind of rock it is.  It locks like black basalt, but what do I know.

One of the things I’ve been thinking about each of these days is what kind of men the first explorers who came here must have been. It’s only about 120 years ago that exploration really began.  Those people came clad in furs, in wooden boats for the sea, and only dogs or their own feet for transportation on land.  They had no accurate maps and few navigational aids.  There was also no way to call for help.  Wow! They were either very brave or crazy or a little of both.