Antarctica March 2023
Antarctica is the 7th landmass of the world and also my 7th continent to visit. I set a bucket list for me to visit 7 Continents by the time I hit 30. I was going to do it in 2020 during my Grad school program but COVID delayed those plans. 2023 was the first year that they started Antarctica tours again. My journey started from the Port of Ushuaia, Argentina which is the most southern city in the world! It was a nice-sized quiet town. So my trip started off as a nightmare. These Latin American Airlines run on their own time, forget a schedule. I flew Copa Airlines and they lost my bag in Bueno Aires. I packed so much winter clothes and equipment for this trip and was prepared then my bag never came to Ushuaia. I was livid like how am I going to go to Antarctica without any winter gear? I thank my inner self for telling me to pack a few thermals into my carry-on bag which saved me. I bought these nice waterproof thermal boots that went up to my knees because I knew that we would do wet landings from the zodiacs to get to shore. Since those boots were in my luggage they never made it thank God the boat had spare pairs of boots even though the quality of them was not good but it kept my feet dry and I wore a triple layer of thermal socks to keep my feet warm. Because I knew I needed more clothes since I was going to be out at sea for approximately 15 days I went on a shopping spree in Ushuaia and rented a special winter coat, and bought shirts, pants, and thermals to protect myself after all I am going to the Arctic region where it stays below freezing.
Our boat was called UM Ushuaia Loma which is a local Argentina boat. It was originally a US research vessel for the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) but it was retrofitted for commercial use. It accompanied about 97 people which is a perfect number because only 100 people of a vessel can be on Antarctic land at a time due to the 1959 Antarctic Treaty. Most people who go to Antarctica do not know that and take those huge ass cruise ships with 1000 people and have to take turns landing at different locations. It is the best use of money to make sure you are on a ship that carries 100 or fewer people to maximize your utility and experience.
The 1959 Antarctic Treaty essentially is an agreement between 12 nations of the world that made Antarctica a protected land from countries claiming the land and testing nuclear warheads there which was a very common thing in the 50s and 60s. The mechanism used to govern tourism is the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO). So Countries do have a claim to the land but it is treated as international land essentially countries cannot enforce their claim to the land. The vessels that travel below the 60-degree latitude are legally bound to the IAATO regulations for Antarctica.
Our first journey was to get through the Drake Passage which is known for having the roughest seas in the world. We had to take medicine to help with sea sickness because that boat was rockin’ side to side. I have never been on a cruise either so two days of going through the Drizzy passage was a challenge. I realized sleeping on a boat that is moving like that is difficult. Shit was flying around the room the door slamming against the wall the feel of the waves crashing against the side of the boat. Below is the map of where we went and landed. It is easier to just show a map rather than explain every stop because honestly I don’t got time for that.
This picture is from one of the excursions we did. We landed about 7 times even more than was originally planned because by the grace of God, the weather was beautiful. Most days were just straight sunny with few clouds. Often the weather at that time of year is wacky but we were blessed.
The 3 pictures below are the wall of a giant underwater volcano. The volcano is so large that our boat was able to go inside like it was a peninsula but it was quite scary knowing that it is an active volcano and we were sitting right on the rim of it.
Look penguins are the chillest animals that I have ever been around. They were coming up to me and chillin’ right next to me like I was one of them. They are pretty unbothered by humans maybe they think we are penguins also.
This is what we call a Penguin Highway
This is the Brown Research Station which is owned by the Argentina Government.
You only see 10% of ice bergs #Justthetip
The stars were so beautiful. The only other place that I have seen a sky like this was at Jasper National Park in Alberta, Canada.
Never melt Ice, This ice is a special ice that takes a very long time to melt. It will not melt in a warm beverage and it takes like 10,000 years to form. Apparently, there is a strong black market for this ice from Antarctica.
This was just a quick blog of what I saw. There were whales, seals, and penguins pretty much the types of animals that I saw. I would have to look through my photos to find the whale one because that whale was very close to our zodiac and I was like this damn whale better not capsize us.
On the way back a storm came and we had waves that were 12-16 meters high and that was scary. I definitely did not sleep well on those two days returning through the Drake passage. The waves crashed so hard against the ship the ship jolted and it sound like something broke on the ship. That was a once-in-a-lifetime type of trip. I do not recommend older people doing that because likely you will fall on that ship and get hurt with that type of current.
Now I need to write new bucket list goals since I completed this one maybe visit all 191 Countries in the world? That definitely would be a lifetime of traveling. I am pretty sure that number of countries will change in my lifetime considering all of the geopolitical instability going on in the world. I definitely recommend people get out and see the majestic beauty of a Continent that is inhabited by humans, just pure nature.
Leave a Reply