OTL25-25, trip log, Falkland Islands - South Georgia - Antarctica

The day had finally come! It was time to leave Ushuaia and board the good ship Ortelius for our epic expedition. The crew and expedition team had loaded our luggage onboard and delivered it to our cabins earlier in the day. All that remained was for us to take a few photos of Ortelius, our home for the next ten days, before heading up the gangway.

We were warmly welcomed by the crew and expedition team who assisted us in finding our cabins. We had some time to explore the ship, get our bearings and grab a coffee in the bar, then it was time to gather in the lecture room for the mandatory ship safety briefing where we met Expedition Leader Sara Jenner, and heard from the Safety Officer, who gave a practical demonstration on how to put on our emergency life jackets.

We underwent the abandon ship drill, putting-on our lifejackets and heading outside to be shown to the lifeboats, where we realised that we had already cast-off from the pier and our journey was underway! Following the drill, we assembled in the bar where Captain Per welcomed us with champagne and canapés, Hotel Manager Volodymyr talked about the shipboard services, and Sara gave an overview of the voyage and introduced the expedition team.

It was soon time for our first evening meal, with a delicious buffet selection prepared by Head Chef Ivan and his galley team, served by the friendly dining room staff. After dinner we were called back to the bar so that two more mandatory briefings could be delivered in the sheltered waters of the Beagle Channel. Sara first briefed us on the Antarctic Visitor Guidelines, as laid down by IAATO – the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators – of which Oceanwide is a founding member, and this was then followed by the Zodiac safety briefing.

With the formalities out of the way, many of us went onto the outside decks to enjoy what remained of the Beagle channel, marvelling at the spectacular mountains on either side in the evening light, scanning the waters for seabirds such as the Black-Browed Albatross, whales and dolphins. A brief sighting of a Sei whale was the evening highlight.

A good number of very keen passengers were up and about very early on the first morning of our expedition, many of which were very excited to experience the abundance of wildlife which abounds in this Sothern Ocean. They were certainly not disappointed, as right from the start the ship was escorted on its way by spectacular Giant Petrels and Black-browed Albatrosses cruising past the ship as if we were standing still whilst they seldom even flapped.

Each new bird was greeted by shouts and the clicking of cameras as we soaked in the unforgettable scenes. Soon though, it was time for our first ship’s breakfast which was closely followed by Simon giving a presentation on the bird species we hoped to encounter on our first landing in The Falklands on the next day. As soon as it was over he urged everyone in the bar to head out and experience some of the seabirds following the ship first-hand.

Mid-morning saw the first shouts of whale blows seen from the bridge and with the very understanding and skilled bridge team we slowed the boat and were treated to some brilliantly close Humpback Whales – one of which did a full breach in front of the admiring crowd. Next on the agenda was stowaway Allan’s talk on actually living in the Falklands, not just in the main city of Stanley but out on some of the more remote islands of the archipelago. Almost inevitably, Allan was interrupted before the end of his talk by shouts from the bridge of more whale-blows ahead, but no one really minded, least of all Allan!

After lunch, the expedition team handed out muck boots to all the passengers, an essential bit of kit for the weeks ahead of us and back to scanning the ocean for more wildlife. Sara’s afternoon talk was slightly delayed as more whales were sighted ahead of the ship. This was more special though: after some good views and some questioning glances and mouthed comments ‘is it?... It definitely is!’ between the guides on the bridge, the announcement went out that there was a Blue Whale in front of the ship! Some quick manoeuvring by the officers soon gave everyone some good views of this incredibly rare sighting – it was obviously a good area as there were also some Fin and Humpback Whales present as well as some wonderful birds including Southern Royal Albatross.

Sara then got us back on track with her presentation on photography tips and tricks for the voyage, an activity that the vast majority of passengers and staff will indulge in during the trip – so definitely worth the time to listen. A breathless first day at sea was followed up by more fine dining in the evening (sea days are supposed to be relaxing!), allowing everyone to reflect on some wonderful sights and experiences and look ahead to our first activities tomorrow, despite the ‘far from ideal’ wind predictions!

Good morning everybody! We have arrived at the Falkland Islands, and more specifically New Island, one of the islands that would give us the best opportunity to land the Zodiacs in the strong forecasted wind. Allan, our local guide has made an excellent choice as the conditions are marginal but doable.

After a quick breakfast the expedition team was soon ready on the shore to receive the first passengers. With the strong wind it was an adventure just walking down the gangway and getting into the Zodiacs. At the shore the conditions were very good; we arrived next to an abandoned ship that did not look particularly seaworthy anymore. We were received by some lovely people that are managing New Island on part of the Strange family and the Falkland conservation fund. The house at the coast is the museum where there are many artifacts of the whaling era. There was also a shop that had beautiful art by local artists.

The hike towards the other side of the island took about 15 minutes walking over a sand trail. On the way we say many birds, the most common being geese, Upland Geese inland and Kelp Geese closer to the coastline. The Long-tailed Meadowlark and the Dark Faced Ground Tyrant were flying around, and a rare sighting for the island – an Eastern Kingbird – a treat for the birders onboard.

Arriving at the other end of the island we got to see cliffs that were filled with birds. Hundreds of Black-browed Albatross and thousands of Rockhopper Penguins, a real spectacle to see and to hear. The albatross were sitting on their cylindrical mounds made of mud, which were also being used by some of the penguins, however most of the penguins had made nests on the ground out of grass and feathers. There was a small trail following the high tussock grass towards the edge of the cliff which albatross used as a landing and take-off track. Just standing there seeing all the birds go about was an incredible and unforgettable experience.

The wind had picked-up further and was gusting 50 knots (90km/h) as the Zodiacs headed back to the ship, making it a wet ride for some. It was still not sure if the afternoon activity would go as these conditions were far from ideal.

Arriving at the second landing site after lunch, a short distance up the coast of New Island, it looked like the wind had dropped a little; the expedition team went on shore and decided that it would be safe to go ahead. Once we had waded ashore, with some getting wet feet in the shallow water, we had a hike that was a bit longer than the morning. There was not much of a track as few ships come here. We passed a pond with a couple of hundred geese feeding, and many other birds flying around. After 15 min walking there was a group of Gentoo Penguins nesting with already large chicks. Along the track we had to take care not to step in the burrows made by nesting prions. Shortly after the Gentoo Penguin rookery we had a choice of going to the beach or to the cliffs.

At the large white sandy beach, we saw where all the Gentoos come out of the water – a great sight with so many gentoos together in seemingly warm summer conditions compared to the ones seen in the Antarctic peninsula.

At the cliffs, there was another Black-browed albatross colony also shared with Rockhopper Penguins and Imperial Shags. A few of these albatross already had a chick hatched which they were feeding. Some were just trying to reconnect again after not having seen other for a long time giving a beautiful dance-like display, clacking their beaks against each other; an amazing sight to see. The trail even went a bit further following some small red poles where Tim, one of the reserve’s caretakers, was standing. He showed where the Rockhopper penguins get out of the water and climb the cliffs to get to their nesting site. Sometimes you wonder if they would prefer to fly instead of only swim and hop over rocks.

During recap Sara explained what we could expect for our landing in Stanley the following day. We also got some information from Joyce about the Blue Whale that we had seen the day before, and Simon told us more about the Rockhopper Penguin. A spectacular day on the Falkland Islands and very lucky that we have such a motived team with the captain and the expedition team to make it all possible.

After the adventures of yesterday in difficult weather, it was a great feeling to wake-up and find a clear blue sky, to feel the heat of warm sunshine and experience very little wind. Ortelius motored gently through the narrows and in towards Stanley Harbour the gaily coloured town scattered along the hillside of the portside shore. The vessel was anchored just a short distance from the dockside small boat landing pontoons.

First a leisurely breakfast and, different from our other landings which were ‘wet’, splashing ashore in our muck-boots, we were told that we could wear whatever we wanted for the ‘city walks’.

How exciting! Zodiacs whisked us into the pontoons, one of which was covered with dozing Sea lions, some draped with their tails hanging over the edge. A birder group hired a taxi and went off down the coast, others prioritised a visit to the nearby Falklands Gin factory to sample production and purchase bottles of the enticing liquid. For those of us content to just amble leisurely through the tiny city the excellent museum, coffee shops, cathedral and super-store were popular destinations.

The varied architecture of the town was a stimulating point of interest for many photographers. The gaily coloured profiled metal roofed wooded buildings were the focus of many photos. The landing site was ideal as it was close to the busy Falkland Islands Tourist Office / shop and most of the attractions were situated on the long street beside the shore.

A steady Zodiac return-to-ship shuttle service operated for passengers from 11 am to 1 pm.

The ship then heaved up its massive anchor and in brilliant sunshine, motored out of the narrows into the open sea bound for South Georgia, 768 miles distant. We encountered dolphins as we cruised along the coast, and they delighted our enthusiastic photographers by riding the bow waves and cavorting close to the ship.

At recap in the early evening Hana delivered an interesting presentation on some of the 348 plants of the Falklands, 171 of which were native species. One of the most memorable and useful to the islanders was the Balsam Bog plant which was described as antimicrobial, an antioxidant, a laxative and antispasmodic. Joyce then explained the Ted Cheeseman conceived ‘Happy Whale’ project where passengers could use their whale photographs to participate in ‘people science’ research.

Another exciting Oceanwide Adventure Expedition day, roll on tomorrow!

This was another sea day with the option of sleeping in a bit – but the few early birds had the luck of seeing a few Hourglass Dolphins passing close to the ship. Those of us who woke up a bit later at Sara’s soft voiced wake up call, looking out the portholes or windows, saw a foggy morning – but still with a nice calm sea.

The first lecture was given by Koen on the evolution of penguins – from the pre-historic giants of 2 meters and 150kg to the 1.5kg/30cm Little Blue Penguin. It was interesting to hear the many facts of the evolution, how all the (presently 18) different species live in the southern hemisphere, with the exception of the Galapagos Penguin, and how all rely on cold or cool water in order to find their food source of either krill or small fish. It was also astonishing to hear that the Emperor Penguin can dive down to more than 500 meters and incubate their egg through the harshest winter storms on the ice shelves of Antarctica!

Whilst the ever-optimistic bird watchers bravely kept a lookout for birds at the bow in the reduced visibility, many of us enjoyed a cup of coffee or tea in the lounge, waiting for the next lecture, Joyce stepped on the scene to tell us more of the whales and dolphins that we might see, or already have seen in the Southern Ocean. There were lots of interesting details and facts on migration routes, feeding behavior, songs, size and weight – and maybe most importantly – how we recognize the different species when we see them in the ocean.

It was also the day where we stepped up on cleaning all our outer layers, bags and life vests, ready for the inspection by the British officers when we reach South Georgia: a lot of vacuum cleaning of jackets and bags, washing and using paper clips on our boots were done, before we could hear the next lecture.

Our second officer Ward held a humorous, but also very interesting lecture of all the instruments, radars, navigational systems, lights and buttons found on the bridge – and let our poor cadet Stan be the scapegoat in all the pictures of what NOT to do on the ship.

After a delicious dinner, we were treated with popcorn in the lounge and saw the recent released movie “Endurance”, the epic journey of Shackleton and his men to Antarctica – and the discovery of Endurance on the seafloor, 3000 meters below the surface. What a wonderful historic way to end our day on our way to South Georgia.

One more day at sea ahead of us: Sara woke us up after a pleasant night on a calm sea at comfortable time of day at 07:45. After breakfast we assembled in the bar to listen to Jens’ introduction and history of South Georgia.

With the calm and foggy conditions, wildlife sightings were sparse throughout the morning, and we could fully focus on mandatory strict biosecurity preparations and checks. After spending hours and hours of the previous day removing every single grain of fine sand from beaches of Falkland Islands, our outer garments, bags, boots, life jackets, tripods and walking sticks were thoroughly inspected by the expedition team. Each item was inspected, every pocket was vacuum cleaned, every piece of possible contamination was removed. We all took the biosecurity seriously and did a great job protecting the unique environment of South Georgia from spreading bird flu and introducing any possible invasive species or contamination. After signing a self-declaration form, we are ready for an inspection by South Georgia’s officers that would come on board the following day prior to our planned landings.

At midday, the clocks went forward one hour as we entered another time zone. Shortly after delicious buffet lunch, our ship approached Shag Rocks, a group of six islets located about 150 miles west of the mainland of South Georgia. They are home to thousands of nesting Imperial Cormorants, plus petrels, prions and penguins. Our amazing and extremely skilled captain Per brought as close as possible to Shag Rocks. Many of us went to the bridge and outer decks to watch its steep cliffs with their nesting birds.

The waters around Shag Rocks are fantastic for spotting whales during the austral summer. Humpback Whales and seals were sighted from the bridge throughout the whole afternoon.

Later in the afternoon, Bill invited us to look behind the scenes of M/V Ortelius. He showed and explained us how a polar expedition vessel operates, took us on a virtual tour to the ship’s kitchen, galley, laundry, engine room and workshops, and talked about the daily life of our lovely and smiley crew on board.

During our daily recaps, Sara first presented plans for the following days, Simon talked about the majestic Wandering Albatross, followed by our artist Bill who talked about Paintings of the Sea.

After many changes of plans and some scrutiny of the weather forecasts we arrived at the old whaling station and BAS research station of Grytviken early in the morning. The visibility had been tantalising to say the least, giving the early risers their first glimpses of the South Georgia coastline, before once again becoming shrouded in fog, but as we arrived in the bay the views were spectacular. High rocky mountains overlooked the buildings that house all the inhabitants of South Georgia and the crowded beaches full of very active Fur Seals and King Penguins.

The government officers and inspectors came aboard the ship after breakfast to start their biosecurity checks of the vessel along with the passengers and staff; this was the moment we had all trained for and although it did some time we all passed the inspection with 100% and we began disembarkation.

We were then soon marvelling at the amazing sights, sounds, and smells of this fascinating place; a site that has seen so much death and destruction over its lifetime with its brutal whaling and sealing history, but now is being reclaimed by the abundant wildlife that South Georgia is rightly famous for. Straight from the off we were greeted by many boisterous Fur Seals surrounding all the buildings and beaches, along with Elephant Seals and some moulting King Penguins. We didn’t know where to look – at our first sights of all this amazing wildlife – or at the historical monuments around every corner. We all tried to do both with trips to Ernest Shakleton’s grave site and to the museum/post-office interspersed with watching the adventures of the days-old Fur Seal pups – sensory overload alert! We had several hours ashore but it wasn’t enough and all too soon we headed back to the ship for lunch and repositioning for our afternoon destination.

We headed north up the coast a short way, experiencing gusts of 70 knots of wind which led to many doubts being cast over the feasibility of an afternoon landing. However, they proved to be unfounded as once we reached the shelter of Jason Harbour it was a stunning afternoon for operations. Half of us went ashore early whilst the other half listened to Julian explaining the dynamic geological history of the island before then heading ashore.

Once ashore we had to run the gauntlet of the Fur Seals packed on the beaches; these were predominantly young males, full of testosterone and posturing, all growl and no bite, albeit still pretty scary when they mock charge at you. The females with new pups were perhaps more serious but no danger really and most people got used to their antics soon enough. Once the seals were dealt with, a big proportion of the passengers were intent on seeing the endemic South Georgia Pipit and marched all the way to the end of the trail, only to be told that there was one showing very well back on the beach! Another quick march back down the hill and they were soon enjoying great views of this fascinating, geographically isolated species.

Another intriguing sight in the now glorious afternoon sunshine were some South Georgia Pintails (the other endemic species to these island) gleefully tucking into some fresh seal afterbirth – a great example of an adaptation to survive in this harsh environment, as they are the only meat-eating Duck species in the world.

Julian repeated his lecture for the early group, and once we were all back on board, we sat down for a late dinner, which was followed by an after-dinner recap giving all time to ask questions and allow the first action-packed South Georgia day to sink in – an awesome start!

A real expedition day as the daily program had promised. We started our day waking up in Godthul Bay where the surrounding mountains had a beautiful and pristine look with a layer of fresh overnight snow. Here our plan was to do a landing, however before breakfast Sara had gone out to scout and had decided to cancel the landing due to the huge amount of wildlife on the beaches and within the tussock grass.

So, a change of plan - it was decided to try for St Andrews Bay as the weather was rather benign so far. After a couple of hours, we arrived at 09:30 at the wide exposed bay, where we could see and hear one of the largest King Penguin colonies from the bow – an impressive sight to see from a distance. We experienced wind gusts of 50 knots at that time and with snow starting to fall, Sara decided to wait until noon when conditions could possibly improve. As our trusted ‘’Windy’’ website is not always as trustworthy around South Georgia it soon became clear that we would not be able to do a landing or Zodiac cruise here; a sad truth but onwards and upwards to the next destination.

After lunch we cruised over open water passing by whales and icebergs. Fur seals and penguins were jumping around in all directions. The wind gusts west just as strong further away from land so most of the time we were hanging in an 8-to-10-degree incline to starboard. An interesting experience to see what the wind can do to our ship and great to see how easily Ortelius handled the conditions. Getting closer to Stromness Bay the winds got much stronger. The gusts were easy to spot from a distance and how they were creeping up to us. The birds were enjoying the conditions with many flying around the ship during the approach.

The reason for entering Stromness Bay is that there are old whaling stations built in all three fjord systems: Stromness, Leith and Husvik. We started at Stromness, the site where Shackleton and his team came through before their expedition to the South Pole, and where he and two of his men arrived after having crossed the island from King Haakon Bay. With Captain Per expertly positioning the ship just 200m from the station. we could see the house of the station’s administrator, which the British Antarctic Survey is trying to restore and preserve. The other buildings are slowly falling apart, to be expected 60 years after abandoning the site following the ban on whaling.

The next whaling station was called Leith, the larger of the three in this bay. Approaching the station, we could see many buildings including the school, hospital and housing for the hundreds of men that would have lived here during the high season. Fur Seals and Elephant Seals were laying all over the place. Nature is reclaiming such an area that has been a slaughter site for so many animals; luckily nature holds no grudges. It did start to snow heavily for a while, which was our sign to keep on going. The last station was Husvik, the most southern and inland station. While getting closer, the wind started picking up making for a tricky navigation. As the station was beyond a few smaller islands we didn’t get too close but both entering and leaving this fjord gave us beautiful views of the surrounding mountains, making the diversion worthwhile.

For the day’s final ship’s cruise, we navigated into Hercules Bay, with a Macaroni Penguins colony. We entered the small bay with our ship to try to get as close as possible to the penguins. For many this was not quite close enough as they could only be seen through binoculars and few photos were taken. Due to strong gusts Captain Per was also determined to leave the bay after a short while. Looking for Macaroni Penguins in the water proved also not as easy, so for the few people outside we had to do with the pretty colours of the sunset and call it a night.

It has been a dynamic day with many beautiful moments. Hopefully tomorrow the weather will let us leave the ship and stretch our legs on land.

Our luck with regards to the weather changed today. Everyone was delighted to find that we were anchored off Fortuna Bay in ideal conditions for a landing. The location was superb – a sweeping arc of dramatic mountains covered with a light dusting of fresh snow, the contours on the rock-strewn hillside clearly defined by the contrasting tones, white through to black, with every shade of grey in-between.

Sara, Bill and Simon set off in the first Zodiac launched, to inspect the shoreline to find a gap on the beach relatively free of fur seals to establish the safest place to land. They then walked inland and marked out a red pole-lined route to the massive colony. The shuttle then delivered everyone to the shore and the serious photography began. The choice was overwhelming – bull seals sitting along the shoreline with their harems surrounded by playful pups. King Penguins galore played ‘follow the leader’ as they waddled down to the sea to then hesitate as they played a game of ‘after you’ before plunging into the sea.

As the landing was scheduled to last three hours, it was a leisurely affair. We ambled about savouring the experience, this is what we had travelled such a huge distance for! Everywhere we looked we viewed stunning mountain scenery. It was easy walking as we were on a grass covered glacial plain dotted with unbelievable hordes of penguin and seals – this was the South Georgia we had expected. Thankfully the weather and pleasant temperature held all morning, so there was no rush to get back to the ship.

After a late lunch and responding to an improvement in the weather, Ortelius motored back to Hercules Bay where we deployed all Zodiacs for an inshore cruise. This enabled us to get much closer to the Macaroni Penguins than we experienced during the ship cruise in totally marginal weather the previous day. It had been superb navigation by Captain Per in atrocious circumstances but obviously with Ortelius being such a large expedition ship with deep draft, this had its limits. We were then lucky to have this opportunity to return in Zodiacs and cruise much closer, at times only a few metres from the Macaroni Penguins on the cliffs. It was an unforgettable aquatic based photo session.

The day was summed up by Bill during recap, with his presentation of 50 photographs of smiling mouths taken during the landing. A powerful visual way of communicating the sheer joy of our Oceanwide Experience.

There was no sleeping-in this morning! Sara’s wakeup call at 05:00 indicated that we were able to spend the predicted short weather window for a Zodiac cruise at the beaches of St. Andrews Bay! So, in light winds but challenging swells, we managed to get in the Zodiacs at 05:30 and start a cruise among the hundreds of thousands of King Penguins, Fur Seals and Elephant Seals. With dramatic steep and snow-covered mountains and massive glaciers in the background, and with lots of curious Giant Petrels around our Zodiacs, we gently glided along the rocks and beaches, seeing, hearing and smelling all the animals.

Later we had planned to cruise up the spectacular 20km long Drygalski Fjord. We passed-by Cooper Island, witnessing many Humpback Whales close to the grounded iceberg. As we rounded the corner and entered Drygalski Fjord we were hit with hurricane force winds, funnelling freely between the mountains near the southern tip of the island and sending curtains of spray over the ship and onto the windows of the bridge where many of us had gathered to witness to full fury of the sea. Those keeping half an eye on the wind speed display noticed it topping out at 95 knots! With a navigation up the fjord, Captain Per turned the ship around – with the ship listing steeply as the full force of the wind struck the starboard side of the ship – and headed out to sea to begin the long crossing towards Antarctica.

During the storm, Jens managed to give a lecture, telling the story of the “Race to the South Pole”, ending in victory for Amundsen and defeat – and death – for Scott and his men.

Increasing movement of our ship indicated that we were entering open ocean again, and those who had not retreated to their cabins and were still on the bridge noticed that winds increased even further for a time, going off the scale for a while as we passed to the south of the island. The scale on the bridge maxes out at 99 knots! Tomorrow, we hope for calmer seas and a view of the majestic iceberg A23a!

What a stormy night! As we made our way slowly towards the west and further away from the storm, the sea got calmer and calmer. After breakfast, Joyce gave a talk about life in the deep seas.

At about 10:30, Ortelius was approaching the spectacular iceberg ‘’A23a’’. A23a is the largest iceberg in the world with an area of about 3900 km2. The iceberg calved from Flichner/Ronne Ice shelf in 1986 and was stuck on the seabed for many years, but then it started moving in 2020. It has been moving from the northern tip of Antarctic peninsula towards the Southern Ocean. In April 2024, the iceberg was captured by the Antarctic Circumpolar current and is expected to follow the current towards South Georgia. The iceberg is so large that we were sailing along its majestic walls and caves for more than four hours! During those hours, we witnessed small calvings of its 40m tall walls, we observed Gentoo and Chinstrap Penguins swimming around, and seals that had mysteriously found their way all the way to the top of the giant tabular iceberg! Appropriately the afternoon’s lecture was about icebergs and sea ice, given by Chris.

After daily recaps and delicious dinner, it was time for a “bar” quiz! We teamed up and tested not only the gained knowledge we learnt during the lectures, but also some fun facts about our crew and expedition team and tried to recognize them on their photos from childhood. The lucky winning team received a nice bottle of wine as a prize!

With the clocks moving back an hour, we doubly enjoyed the extra time in bed this morning as the seas were wonderfully calm and whilst it was overcast, it was bright, and visibility was excellent.

The early risers were soon watching a more Antarctic selection of birds around the ship with Southern Fulmars and Cape Petrels the dominant species, both common Antarctic breeders whilst little groups of Chinstrap penguins were a regular sight in the water and on icebergs.

The bow was busy through the morning with folks embracing the calm weather, no doubt lured out there by the frequent calls from the bridge of whale blows sighted ahead. We had good views of both Humpback and Fin Whales through the morning and were entertained by penguins balancing on the most unlikely of small icebergs, bobbing up and down in the swell.

The morning’s lecture came from Hana who described how research is carried out below the ice in Antarctica, but the day’s highlight came late morning (no offense to Hana!) when we were slowly edging through a thick band of floating sea ice surrounded by dancing Black-bellied Storm Petrels and angel-like Snow Petrels. We had just seen some showy Humpbacks when another whale was called out ahead of the ship, and it wasn’t too long before it was identified as a Blue Whale! The behemoth got steadily closer and closer giving us fantastic views and then, even better, there were two – one much smaller than the other – a mother and calf! An amazingly rare encounter and for once, the crowded bow of the ship was hushed in silence, in awe of these amazing creatures.

After lunch, Shan and Yu Kan provided some valuable lessons in Mandarin up in the bar, both some conversation starters and some more tailored words that will help with what we see on the trip. Then it was back out on the decks for a while to enjoy some more of the still very calm Antarctic waters and wildlife flying over it or swimming around in it before Sara delivered her presentation on the threats that the marine environment faces in this modern world – a subject dear to everyone who works in, lives in, and visits the fantastic Southern Ocean.

The evening’s entertainment was a blast, with the incomparable Bill Smith hosting a lively and fun charity auction to raise funds for the invaluable projects that the South Georgia Heritage Trust undertakes. The event was a smash hit with a vast array of items going under the hammer including chances to drive the ship and visit the engine room, unique artwork from Bill and others and some one-of-a-kind souvenirs from the Heritage Trust shop.

A wonderful and action-packed sea-day (which are supposed to be relaxing!) with amazing wildlife sightings and glitzy evening shenanigans, blurring the lines between cruise and expedition!

Early this morning we arrived at Elephant Island. The sea condition looked calm and there was not much wind, exactly as the weather forecast had predicted. During the wake-up call there was a large calving from the nearby glacier, an impressive sight and a reminder of the dangers of getting too close to the glaciers The calm conditions allowed a Zodiac cruise around the famous Wild Point where Shackleton and his men stayed after their long journey in the longboats. Only a few of the staff have ever been able to do this due to the usually rough seas, so this was a real adventure.

With the mist threatening to close in, there was no time to waste, and straight after breakfast we boarded the Zodiacs. We started the cruise by following the coastline of an outer island where many Chinstrap Penguins were nesting. Getting closer to smaller peninsula where Shackleton and his men stayed, we found many more nesting Chinstrap Penguins and some Elephant Seals laying around. Skuas were also nesting nearby and circled around the penguins looking for an egg to steal. At the lower end of the peninsula, we could see the bust of Piloto Pardo. Pardo was the Chilean captain that had sailed down with Shackleton on the final rescue mission after Shakleton’s crew had spent four and a half months on the isolated island. It was hard to believe that the men could have survived in such harsh conditions for so long.

During the morning it was announced that somebody had found a Leopard Seal swimming around some small icebergs. Most of us had the chance to see the large seal swim around, however he did stay quite shy and didn’t show much of himself. To end the cruise some of the Zodiacs entered the brash ice for a moment of silence. To hear the ice crackle and pop around you with penguin noises in the background is a special moment to cherish.

After getting back on the ship we made our way towards the South Shetland Islands. On our way we were surprised by an incredible amount of wildlife in a large feeding frenzy. There were Humpback Whales lunge feeding with thousands of birds in the water including Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins, Black browed Albatrosses, Southern Giant Petrels and as many Cape Petrels as the eye could see. An incredible wildlife encounter. A Humpback even breached immediately behind the ship. It was extremely difficult to leave the decks and head to lunch due to the number of animals that were still around us. After lunch there were still many whales around, but this time they were more Fin Whales, some of which came very close by our ship.

In the afternoon Captain Per was so kind to answer everybody’s questions; another moment showing what a kind and honest gentleman he is. After having heard some of his answers we can understand where he got all his wisdom from – a funny moment with some great questions asked. Later in the afternoon our expedition leader Sara gave her lecture about Woman in Antarctica later in the afternoon. A lecture that describes well that behind every expedition there is a woman that has an important role to play to make is successful. In the early years it was seen as bad luck to have woman onboard ships which made the presence of woman limited. This changed during the 1900s, which made for some great success stories and adventures.

Having enjoyed a delicious dinner, Ortelius passed close by Bridgeman Island in the hope of seeing birds on the island. The island is a volcano that was erupting as recently as 200 years ago. No birds were seen nesting on the island; however, penguins were spotted in a nearby iceberg, and some of these were Adelie penguins! We were not expecting to see many Adeilies during our travels through the Antarctic peninsula; fortunately, the captain was on the bridge and we made a turn towards the iceberg. Getting closer it was becoming more obvious that we were going to see all three brush tailed penguins on the iceberg together. To see the Adelie, Chinstrap and Gentoo together on a giant iceberg was an incredible lucky and beautiful experience. It certainly seemed that we have been very lucky during our trip with wildlife encounters. Let’s keep it up!

We arrived at our next landing spot with high expectations as our guides said it was a beautiful location. It was not a disappointment – when Ortelius sailed into bay, the huge mountains of Livingstone Island formed a dramatic snow-covered backdrop to the rugged foreground of the island. On the distant shoreline opposite, enormous glaciers cascaded down from huge ridges enveloped in cloud and mist, the walls of ice crevassed and indented as they met the sea.

When we landed, a relatively short walk to the left led us past massive outcrops of lichen-covered rock. The cliffs were covered in this delicate skin of merging orange, yellow, brown, green, grey and blue. The colours were beautiful. Overhead conditions today were dull, but we knew that had we arrived in sunlight it would have been spectacular. Our plastic-pole marked path led us to our target: a Chinstrap Penguin colony scattered across the summit of one of the outcrops. Penguins were sitting on closely packed quite large nests of small stones fused together and ‘decorated’ with guano. There was much adjusting of these structures and adding of a few more stones as they carefully tended their eggs.

A steady stream of Chinstraps provided entertainment and photo opportunities as they hopped and slithered back down the snow and stone covered hillside to swim in the sea. On the right of the landing another marked route ran out a couple of kms to the other end of the island. The highlights of this route were two large dozing young Elephant Seals and, at the very end of the walk, a cluster of much photographed Weddell Seals.

During lunch Ortelius repositioned a short distance down the coast to Yankee Harbour, formerly used by whalers. A convenient arc of raised sediment encloses a safe small boat anchorage with the usual backdrop of dramatic mountains. Our Zodiac ride in was lengthy and a bit wet, but well worth it as we discovered the new location was dotted with clusters of nesting Gentoo Penguins, and to the delight of the photographers and bird enthusiasts, a lone Adelie Penguin waddled down the shore and back up again, which caused much excitement.

Everyone was back on board for the usual recap of the day and information from Sara as to the next day’s plan. It had been another great Oceanwide Expedition experience, an endless variety of stimulation.

Today was the day when we experienced the true Antarctic weather, waking up to a misty morning, 20 knots of wind, 0 degrees centigrade and wet snow! As the ‘’blue group’’ went ashore at Palaver Point, the wind speed increased and the precipitation became heavier, so it was really a true Antarctic experience to climb the hill to see the Chinstrap Penguin colonies. To them it was just an ordinary day on the island – no Christmas spirit – just the usual disputes and stealing pebbles from the neighbours at the nesting sites. However, a few Christmas hats were seen among the staff, just to remind us that it was Christmas Eve. It was still a lovely experience – with our backs to the wind – to see how life is in the colony of these ever-active little penguins – fighting their way uphill in the deep wet snow or sliding down to the ocean on their bellies.

While blue group had their head start, Julian gave an interesting lecture of the meteorites found in Antarctica – and why the continent is such a good place to look for them on the blue ice. No one was to be cheated on the lecture, so when everyone from the first group was back, so was Julian, ready to give us the lecture again. A scientific way of ‘treasure hunting’ in Antarctica!

But the real treasure – or Christmas gift – was to be given us in the afternoon!

Despite a forecast for increasing winds in the afternoon, the winds did the opposite, slowly decreasing, making the Christmas snowfall a lot more idyllic. Foyn Harbor – named after the Norwegian designer of the first explosive harpoon gun – was the place for our afternoon Zodiac Cruise. Foyn Harbor is also the final resting place for a massive whaling factory ship, the Guvernøren. At the end of the whaling season in January 1915, the 89 men onboard were celebrating a long summers hard and dangerous work flensing whales and boiling the blubber into the sought after whale oil. As the celebration party was influenced by considerable amounts of alcohol, someone eventually tripped, knocked over an oil lamp and set the whole ship, able to carry 22,000 gallons of whale oil, on fire. Nobody lost their lives, but the rusty wreck is a grim reminder of the whaling era! Fortunately, that era is long gone, and hundreds of Humpback Whales are in the area. Our Christmas gift was the amazing opportunity to see lots of humpbacks really close for more than an hour – bubble net feeding and fluking time after time around our Zodiacs while the snow gently fell. To many of us, Christmas gifts don’t come better than that – what a wonderful and memorable afternoon and day!

Christmas Day, and what an expedition day! We were woken up earlier than expected by Sara announcing that we had reached the Lemaire Channel, but unfortunately we would not be able to pass through as planned due to the amount of ice at the far end of the channel. Sara invited us to at least see the entrance to the spectacular channel. It was certainly worth waking up early! Blue sky, sunlit mountain tops appearing above from majestic glaciers, blue icebergs, and humpback whales now and then. What a start to the morning!

As we could not reach our plan A destination on the Lemaire channel, we went for plan B, Stony Point in Paradise Bay. It was a beautiful sunny day, and we did our first landing on the Antarctic peninsula! We were welcomed by two Weddell seals and three Gentoos Penguins. Right above the beach, there was a rounded snowy hill. Its top is one of a few locations where it is allowed to sit, make snow angels, and play snowball fights! And this was not the only fun – Paradise Bay was also a place where we did our polar plunge – with many of us running into ice cold water directly from the Antarctic continent!

The day was stunning with sunshine and no wind, and we wanted to enjoy every single minute of it. Our captain took us to the afternoon destination of Flanders Bay while we were enjoying a delicious buffet lunch. The sea was like a mirror. We boarded Zodiacs and went for an epic Zodiac cruise with Humpback Whales, Minke Whales and Gentoo Penguins. When we switched off boat engines, whales approached us so close that we could feel water droplets from their flukes splashing. We enjoyed the moment of silence with only the sound of the whale blows, an unforgettable experience!

After a full day of sun, the weather slowly began to close-in. At the end of the Zodiac cruise, our guides had to navigate to the ship using their GPSs as wet snow started to fall and fog enveloped Flanders Bay.

After the daily recap, it was time to celebrate the white Christmas in a proper Antarctic style! Our crew prepared a barbeque on the helideck. We dressed back to our waterproof gear and enjoyed dinner and drinks watching glaciers and whales as the snow fell all around. The Christmas celebration continued with a party and dancing inside the heli hangar until late night!

What an amazing day full of adventures!

Our second Christmas day started very well when Sara woke us up with the news that there were Orcas nearby, a species everybody was still eager to see. Our captain quickly positioned the ship so that the Orcas were only a couple of hundred metres from the bow, a difficult task as their swimming patterns are fast and unpredictable. We were able to view them up close for some time, before sailing to our morning destination with a happy heart.

As the afternoon weather forecast wasn’t very good Sara had made a call to do a morning activity before the wind picked-up. We arrived at a place called Ketley Point; there was too much swell on the rocks for a landing, so we went instead for a Zodiac cruise.

The cruise started out at the Gentoo and Chinstrap Penguin rookeries; there were also many Snowy Sheathbills flying about and skuas looking for a fresh egg to steal. We followed the coastline watching the penguins go in and out of the water, living their busy lives in one of the most extreme places in the world. We saw Shags with chicks, some young moulting Elephant Seals lying on the coastline and a Weddell Seal that swam closely to some of the Zodiacs. A single Adelie Penguin resting on the shore kept the birders in the group happy. Around the corner of the point there was a beautiful iceberg with caves, a double tunnel in the ice made for a great photo looking through at a Zodiac on the other side. Finally, we got to see a Weddell Seal lying in front of a glacier wall before making our way back along the coastline to the ship.

After lunch we entered the wild and windy Gerlache Strait where we would ship’s cruise looking for wildlife, however the large waves made it difficult pick out any whale blows through the spray. We passed through the narrow passage between Brabant Island and Lecointe Island, an intense but beautiful experience with blue sky and heavily glaciated mountains surrounding us. Once we had finally found some protection from the wind, hot chocolate with rum was served on the open deck. With the glaciers hovering over us, and calvings entertaining us, this was a great way to say goodbye to the Antarctic peninsula.

In evening we had our recap where Sara revealed the weather conditions expected for the Drake Passage – a “Drake shake’’ not a ‘’Drake lake’’, but fortunately nothing as bad as it can get at times! Sara also had an extended recap about the Orcas that we had seen, and we got to learn more about the power of wind from Jens. After dinner we got the chance to see the movie made by Koen from our trip in South Georgia - a generous gesture from Debbie to share her auction prize with us.

After a night where the increased swell caused a few folks to hide away from the world, we awoke to seas that were slowly becoming calmer with the promise of a very pleasant and relaxing day at sea.

There was some slight consternation early morning as the proud owner (purchased at the South Georgia Heritage Trust auction) of a wake-up call exercised these rights and welcomed the new day at 5:30am – birders are well known for their comedy genius status!

The morning was very relaxed and gentle with the sun peering out from behind the clouds on occasion and the gently rolling ship creating a peaceful atmosphere. It was quiet for wildlife with a few Fin Whale blows in the distance and some beautiful Light-mantled Albatross cruising serenely past. Entertainment was provided by Simon’s lecture on the Birds of the Drake Passage with special, bonus feature of some Snowy Sheathbill facts, Bill’s lecture about Painting’s of the Sea, illustrating the full range of emotions the many different moods of the ocean can inspire and a close sail-past of MV Ortelius’s sister ship, MV Plancius heading back south for another expedition.

The afternoon carried on in the same vein, gentle seas, some bright sunshine and very relaxed vibes. Mid-afternoon saw Chris talk about his time working on Antarctica research bases – a different perspective of the great white continent whist a dedicated bunch remained stalwart on the bridge, eyes glued to anything flying over the waves, nine out of ten times it was a Blue Petrel but that didn’t dampen their enthusiasm.

Perhaps the day’s highlight (or not, depending on your point of view!) came at the familiar daily recap as after the usual plans, weather and facts came an ABBA based musical interlude created by some of the passengers, immortalizing the trip and the staff, especially Captain Per and Expedition Leader Sara.

After a rough night with over 4m high waves, the dining room was emptier than usual for breakfast. The waves did not ease up during the morning, but the birders were putting-in their shift on the bridge and were rewarded with some increased activity including fleeting sightings of Wandering Albatross through the spray.

Koen gave a lecture about the exploration of Antarctica up to the 1900s: Antarctica was said by James Cook to not exist; however, it was discovered 49 years later when it was discovered by Edward Bransfield and Fabian von Bellingshausen.

It was a quiet lounge in the afternoon as many chose to ride out the waves and catch-up on lost sleep in their cabins. Later in the afternoon Sara gave presentation of some of the other Oceanwide voyages planned for the Arctic and Antarctic and showed when the best time of year is to see the various species in the polar regions.

Just before 6pm, we passed close by Cape Horn, where Sara told us about the small dwelling perched on the cliff which doubles as the military lookout and the famous sculpture on the cliff-edge with the poem below inscribed next to it, in memory of the many mariners who lost their lives trying to round this unforgiving stretch of coast:

I am the albatross that waits for you at the end of the World.
am the forgotten souls of dead sailors
who passed Cape Horn from all the oceans of the Earth.
But they did not die in the furious waves.
Today they fly on my wings towards eternity,
in the last trough of the Antarctic winds.

Then it was time for Captains Cocktails in the bar, and the showing of the slideshow, put together painstakingly by Joyce, a fantastic final dinner and then time to reflect on a wonderful expedition.

We arrived in Ushuaia early morning, with many folks up and about to see us dock in beautiful sunny and unusually warm conditions. It was a stunning morning, with the surrounding mountains bathed in the early morning sunshine reflected in the still harbour.

The crew and Expedition Team handled all the luggage and placed it on the pier, while we enjoyed one last buffet breakfast. At 08:30 it was time to leave the ship, the voyage over, and time to go our separate ways. Fond farewells were exchanged on the dock, as our band of intrepid adventurers dispersed and began the long journey home. For some of us, it was just the beginning of the next chapter in our own personal travel story.