Land Ho! (21Feb2022)

On the morning of the 21st we woke to find proper land in a bay at Anvers Island.  For the next week we would be seeing volcanic landscapes with rocks jutting impossibly out of the cold water.  Sometimes the land was a scree-laden slope with beaches but many times glaciers draped over the mountains like huge snow banks and ended abruptly at the water's edge.  Never the less, there is no plant life in Antarctica with the exception of some moss and lichen.

We arrived in this bay where an Argentine naval station was perched at the foot of the black cliffs.

Here is where we would take our first zodiac tours organized by group names.  Matt and I were dubbed the Skua Group and we had to wait our turn while the zodiacs were lowered from the top decks and the side access was opened so the groups could jump into the zodiacs.   

While we waited, we were enveloped in a snow flurry with massive flakes which made it difficult to see.  

I initially thought we were looking at our first penguins on a cliff side but they were in fact Antarctic Shag which really look identical to the Imperial Shag we had left on the Beagle Passage, at least to my untrained eye.  Makes more sense too considering Penguins don't fly.

Zoomed in shot.

Finally the Skua group was called and we got into our zodiac and motored over to look at the naval station from the water and check out our first looks up close of Shags and Penguins and Skuas.

Here you can see why the Imperial/Antarctic Shag is also known as Blue-eyed Shag.

Gentoo Penguins!  Sure you may have seen Penguins at the zoo but you don't fully appreciate them until you see them up close in their natural habitat.  They are comical and majestic all at the same time.

The huge snow flakes were making photography really hard in several respects so I didn't take too many photos this time.  

However, later that day in the afternoon we went on a second zodiac tour this time with a visit to land at Neko Harbor which is also on the continent of Antarctica on the west coast of Graham Land (Antarctic Peninsula).  Here we were able to get up close and personal with the Gentoos and other birds.  Here is a short video taken shortly after landing.

I still have not mastered the iPhone camera.  My wife takes unbelievably good photos with it but I haven't had luck.  The point is that the penguins were really close and all around us.

The view of our ship at the top of the hike overlooking Neko Harbor.

Matt and I.

The bray of the Gentoo sounds like a donkey but apparently the name Jackass Penguin was already taken by the African Penguin.

Skuas flying in front of glaciers never got old.

These were presumably South Polar Skuas. The other possible Skua species down here are Brown Skuas but they are quite a bit beefier and we did not get confirmed looks until the next day.

Here you can see a zodiac shuttling back and forth from the ship.

Neko Harbor would be cool even if there were no penguins to look at as it hosts a huge calving glacier.  A couple times during our stay massive chunks calved off the side and generated big waves which is why we were told not to hang out to close to the shore's edge.

Presumed South Polar Skua

One of the blonde individuals.

Watching the Gentoos porpoising was freaking awesome. 

There was a scientific team from some university taking measurements and doing some "science" with a drone.

A Weddell Seal doing its best Elephant Seal impression.

South Polar Skua - hard to imagine that these are the same species we see in our summer out on the Gulf Stream in more tropical conditions.

At one point we heard the huge crack of the glacier calving off some huge chunks and I was able to take a pic.  As with everything in Antarctica, the immense scale of the explosion is not captured well in a picture, but try and imagine each of those ice chunks were boulder-sized and detonating upon impact.  

The wave generated was probably chest high but surfing it would have been a stretch as it was not well formed at the source.

The wave soon cleaned up after about 20 yards but wasn't really breaking in the deep bay.  I have heard stories and seen videos of people surfing glacier waves. Here is a clip of a team of novelty surfers doing it with jet ski tow assists.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJkPniK-hMU

Kelp Gull

Wilson's Storm-petrel - here was another of our summer pelagic species in NC that looked out of place in Antarctica until I got used to seeing them zipping in front of ice bergs.

That first day on the peninsula set the stage for what would come over the next handful of days.  Next post includes other penguin species and some other goodies.

Second Leg of the Drake and Icebergs Appear (19-20Feb2022)

I had a hard time leaving the deck of the ship even for the delicious meals.  The birding was not necessarily fast and furious but there was a constant flow of 1-2 birds and I didn't want to miss any of the more rare birds like the Kerguelen Petrel which I know was a long shot.  Spoiler alert, we never got one.

Gray-headed Albatrosses made some closer passes allowing for better study.

We started getting good looks at the White-chinned Petrels which are eye-popping birds.

The Soft-plumaged Petrels kept fairly distant but they are obvious because of the dark underwings reminiscent of a Fea's Petrel.

I started to realize that the Southern Giant Petrels would be one of the few species that would be with us the whole trip.

Matt seemed to favor the bridge of the ship for a couple reasons.  You can see any birds that are flushed from the front, it was warm and windless and you get a wider view.   Plus Matt is more of a people person than I am and enjoyed chatting up with the other passengers. Whereas I favored the back, mainly because I was looking to photograph the birds without glass in the way and usually there was some wind protection.  Also, I liked having my mask off and taking in the fresh air.  Lastly, there seemed to be some species that would come up the wake of the boat and follow for a while.  Next time we go on a trip together, we vowed to bring walkie-talkies so we can share any good birds in more real time.  There was no phone reception out there.

Blue Petrel was one of the species I got on in the back that unfortunately I was not able to get Matt on.  I did run up to the bridge but by the time we got back to the aft it was gone.  Even the looks I got were sub-standard and fleeting.  Blue Petrels look and fly a lot like the Prions we subsequently saw but they have white tipped tails and also no white supercilia like the prions.

Blue Petrel 

The Prions on the other hand were more accommodating and stayed with the boat for good looks.

Antarctic Prions look a little beefier than the Slender-billed Prions but the best field mark is the face mask which is thicker and gives it a darker look overall.

Note the dark tip to the tail compared to the Blue Petrel.

Slender-billed Prion - the weather was a little gray but the fact that all these birds are all blue-gray gives the impression that I was shooting black and white.

Prions dancing in the wind.

Matt had a Light-mantled Albatross up front which would have been new for me so up I went.  As I was waiting, I read the description in my App and it said "Does not usually follow ships for long periods, but will often come up close, especially around the bow and bridge".  

Light-mantled Albatross living up to its description, it made multiple passes up near the bridge.  It blows my mind that depending on the species of Albatross, you can reliably find them either in the back or front of the ship. 

Light-mantled Albatross

Slender-billed Prion

Black-bellied Storm-petrel!  I was so excited to see these and then I quickly realized they were quite common.

I believe this was a Minke Whale fin.  Humpback Whale fins have a bump on the forward slope of the fin. We saw Fin and Sei Whales too but they have more hooked looking fins.

Slender-billed Prion

Southern Fulmar!  These were similar to their northern brethren but the bills were more pink than yellow.

Cape Petrel!  What a stunning bird!

Cape Petrels

Southern Fulmar

There is something more gentle and friendly looking about Southern Fulmars compared to the Northern.

Antarctic Prion

Of course the Black-browed Albatrosses were still with us as they would be most of the trip.

Black-chinned Petrel

Cape Petrel

The water was getting colder and then we started to see ice bergs! 

I have seen ice bergs before in Alaska among other places but it still is quite surprising and awe inspiring when you do see them in person.

I was also a little surprised to see Humpback Whales tailing amongst the bergs.  I have surfed with them in Hawaii and now floated by their side in Antarctica.  What an amazing species.

Crabeater Seals were a new species for me.  They have slender up-turned noses and can frequently be seen amongst the bergs.

It started to get dark as we settled into a snow shower and we went in for a delicious meal while we floated by ice bergs bigger than our boat.  A truly awesome experience.