We had a calm sail with gentle rocking up the Bransfield Strait during the night, much more restful than the trip going down south. However, at breakfast it was announced that the morning’s land excursion to Half Moon Bay would be the last excursion for the trip, as there were storms starting to develop in the Drake Passage. Other ships in the area had decided to start for the Drake today, to try and outrun the bad weather, and our captain suggested that this would be a very good idea for us also!
For the last time, everyone loaded up into their Michelin Man gear (three layers of thermals, polar fleece and down jacket, covered by the outer layer of waterproof jacket and pants, and accessorised by two pairs of gloves, balaclava, minimum of one hat. The final struggle into knee-length waterproof boots completed the ensemble.) Zodiacs were launched, kayaks towed along behind, and do wn the gangway we went.
Half Moon Bay has a colony of Chinstrap penguins, and these ones have attitude! There were still a few chicks around, although they are quite large now. Often you will see a male Chinstrap quickly stealing a small stone from a rival’s nest, then waddle across to place it carefully on his own. This naturally is done to impress the female, hoping she will pick the male with the larger nest. If the penguin whose nest was rifled has any mettle, he will engage in a highly voluble exchange with the thief, protesting vehemently against the loss of his stone. An extra excitement for the morning’s excursion was to catch a glimpse of “Kevin”, the lone Macaroni penguin who for many years has found a home among the Chinstraps, where he stands like a solitary soldier against the weather, and possibly Chinstraps stealing his food! Kevin was sighted only a couple of weeks ago, loo king a bit worse for weather, but sadly there was no sign of him today.
Most people took the chance to stretch their legs by walking from one end of the point to the other on a beach which, unusually, was devoid of snow. A few Antarctic fur seals were spotted, there were quite a few Gentoo penguins flapping around, and skuas, snowy sheathbills and Wilson’s Storm petrels were sighted in the sky.
There was huge excitement amongst the two kayak guides Ehren and Brendan, as their ten kayak proteges completed a third circumnavigation of an island – this time Half Moon Island. To their knowledge, no-one else has done this, so their achievement has been dubbed the “Triple Crown”. No doubt this will have now set a standard that will need to be matched in future trips!
A late morning flurry of snowflakes and drop in temperature sent everyone back to the ship, to extricate themselves for the final time out of the Michelin outfit and get ready for another delicious lunch. The prospect of a final foray into the One Ocean Expeditions Gift Shop after lunch (out by Gangway, two doors to the right, rug up) brought in quite a few expeditioners looking for last minute gifts and mementos, while the remaining passengers either rested up, or ventured down into the depths of the ship into the Multi-media room to sort out photos, ready for the final show and tell on the last day.
On every trip to Antarctica, both One Ocean Expeditions and Cheeseman’s Ecology Safaris hold an auction towards the end of the trip, the proceeds of which are distributed amongst a number of worthy scientific and non-profit organisations working towards preserving and understanding Antarctica. At 6pm in the bar, fuelled by a never-ending supply of fruity sangria, the expedition staff displayed, demonstrated, modelled, cajo led and encouraged us to bid for many eclectic items up for auction. These ranged from whiskey tumblers from the bar, a bottle filled with water melted from pure Antarctic ice, a staff shirt and toque (beanie), to cute knitted penguins and a penguin cocktail shaker, and culminated in the highest bids for an illustrated map of the voyage, and the chance to “Name a Whale”. It was a fun evening, with bids getting higher and higher as the sangria flowed more freely, and everyone left in a glow of satisfaction knowing that their over-zealous but generous bids made a significant contribution to science (or possibly, the glow of satisfaction was due to the over-imbibing of sangria!)
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