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Day
Six - 9th December - Landing on the Antarctic Continent proper
Paradise Harbour
Having returned to the comfort of the Ioffe, the morning was spent
at leisure, making our way north through the Lemaire Channel to
the aptly named Paradise Harbour.
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Ioffe
at Paradise Harbour
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After
lunch we cruised among the brash ice, enjoying close views of the
nesting Cape Petrels, Antarctic Terns and Blue-eyed Cormorants,
before landing near the abandoned Argentinean Almirante Brown Research
Station. The more adventurous passengers climbed to the top of the
glacier and tobogganed their way back down the hill to the landing
stage, whilst we enjoyed the amazing view of this natural harbour,
encircled by the mountains and glaciers, in brilliant sunshine.
On this, out third consecutive day of glorious weather, someone
asked one of the expedition staff whether he had ever known it to
be so consistently good. He recalled one previous cruise when they
had enjoyed four consecutive days of good weather. Would our good
fortune continue?
We
had superb views of more Gentoo Penguins here, nesting around the
landing area, swimming alongside the Zodiac and resting on floating
ice. These birds are bigger than the Adelies, standing about 3'
tall, and they have a longer, orange-red bill with a dark tip, white
marks from above the eyes that just meet on the top of the head,
and brighter orange-pink legs and feet. I watched one of the ever-inquisitive
Sheathbills fly out across the harbour and land on the ship.
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Chinstrap
penguins
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Killer
Whales
Dinner was interrupted when four Killer Whales, or Orcas (as they
are often called), were seen near the ship. I have never seen a
dining room with over a hundred people in it empty so quickly as
everyone rushed to the bridge and the open decks to see these animals.
There were four of them, including a male with its three-foot-high
dorsal fin quite close to the ship and they moved slowly from right
to left across the bows, close enough to see the yellowish-white
markings on their otherwise black bodies.
At up to 27' in length, and weighing up to five-and-a-half tonnes,
these animals exude tremendous power, truly befitting their place
at the very top of the Antarctic food chain. The yellowish hue to
what I was expecting to be white markings is staining caused by
diatom algae. Seeing the Killer Whales so well was a fine end to
another superb day.
Day
7 - Orne Harbour & Whales close enough to touch »
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