Elephant Island, Antarctica: A Brief History

The island's odd moniker, so dubbed by passing seafarer George Powell in 1821, derives its name from both the seals who live there and from its unusual shape: like the head of a circus elephant. The island is the largest (roughly 23x13 miles) in the Elephant Island Group which also includes Gibbs, Cornwallis, Clarence, and Aspland islands.



About a century after Powell's pass-by Elephant Island became the refuge for 28 other seamen who first lost their ship, the Endurance, after it was wrecked by sea ice and then rode those ice floes with what they could save from their ship to the island for their survival. The men were part of Sir Ernest Shackleton's expedition and they established a camp at a place they called Point Wild. Shackleton and five of his crew members then set off in a lifeboat to find a rescue ship for the remaining crew members. Four months later they returned aboard a Chilean navy tugboat and all the men were rescued. Shackleton returned home and, after a period of lecturing, grew bored and organized the finances and crew for one last trip back to Antarctica. He never made it though, dying of a heart attack on the island of South Georgia in the South Atlantic.


Beyond this iceberg is Point Wild.

Highlights
One of the striking features about Elephant Island is its glaciers, always on the move and always presenting great photo ops. It's not uncommon to find a flock of penguins prowling the slope of a glacier, dancing with the cliff-like edge but never falling overboard. What's particularly striking is that when the ice does tumble into the sea, it's a resonant shade of blue, a great contrast to the island's stark brown rocks and endless white snow.

Antarctica Log Book: Cape Horn

Navigational Information: At approximately 7:00am, Celebrity Infinity will be reaching the Southern tip of Cape Horn. The duration of viewing will be influenced by prevailing weather conditions.

Position: 55*20 S, 0'65*45 W
Temperature: 46*F, 8*C Sea Temp: 45*F, 7*C
Weather conditions: Overcast
Wind: N 10 knots, 20 mph, Waves 4 ft
Depth: 547 fathoms/1,000 meters/3,280 feet
Speed: 20 knots, 23 mph NE 0'49*
Distance from Cape Horn @ 12:00pm: 66 NM (76 mi)
Distance to Puerto Madryn, Argentina: 792 NM (911 mi)
Pass Strait of Magellan at 1:30pm, going through/between Los Estados Islands and Tierra del Fuego



We were really lucky with the weather today because the water was so calm - these seas are known to be the roughest in the world (famed for many shipwrecks.) Cape Horn is a pretty cool rock, a big crag sticking out of the water ... but it is just a rock. The Isle de Hornos also has a little station, house and a chapel - apparently one family lives there year-round. I don't think I could take it, it's so desolate and removed from civilization. The neat part would be seeing whales ... but we didn't even see those! The terrain is really rough, I have no idea how it would be possible to dock a boat there!



Cape Horn, Chile
A Brief History (as read in Celebrity Today):
In the 1500s a handful of explorers, including Francisco de Hoces and Sir Francis Drake, sailed close to Cape Horn, but it was not until the 17th century that the cape was successfully navigated. As part of the search for an alternative to the Strait of Magellan, a Dutch merchant and his shipmaster friend pooled their money and purhased a pair of ships, the Eendracht and the Hoorn. They left Holland in the summer of 1615 for South America and became the first to sail around the southern tip of the continent in early 1616.
Clipper ships soon became the vehicle of choice for rounding the Horn, albeit not without some trepidation due to the extreme wind and weather conditions. By the late 19th century the Germans had devised a steel hull for their commercial ships that took the treachery out of navigating the Horn, and continued to use the passageway even after the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914.
Ironically, despite the heavy sea traffic that followed in the wake of the Dutch discovery, it took another 200 years for the continent of Antarctica to be discovered, even though it lay just 400 miles to the South.


Strait of Magellan

Antarctica Log Book: Puerto Madryn, Argentina

High: 68*F/20*C Low: 57*F/14*C
Distance to Montevideo: 720 NM

A Brief History (as in Celebrity Today):
So, just how did a city in a country predominantly influenced by Spanish and Italian culture come up with a very British-style name? Thanks to 150 Welsh immigrants, who landed at what's now Puerto Madryn in 1865 and named their settlement Porth Madryn, after the trip's principal financier Sir Thomas Duncombe Love Jones-Parry, who'd dubbed his own Welsh estate Madryn.
While Jones-Parry didn't stick around Port Madryn very long (he returned home and gained fame as a member of Parliament) the settlement itself blossomed with the debut of the region's "iron horse" (the Chubut Railway) financed by Spanish, Italian, and some of those pioneering Welsh settlers. The railway, which opened in 1888, ran south of Port Madryn to Trelew and eventually stretched well inland to Los Palmas before closing in 1961. The original Puerto Madryn train station has since been partly restored and is now used as a bus terminal.


Puerto Madryn is a very small town without much to do - there's a little boardwalk along a beach, but you really need to do a tour. In the right season you can see orcas grounding seals on beaches to eat them... yummo. One of the best tours I've been on is Punta Tombo Penguin Rockery. It's about a three-hour drive, but I had a good tour guide who told us a lot of useful information about penguins - I was at the front of the bus so we had time to talk - it wasn't exhausting like talking to guests for hours, he was pretty easy on the eyes ;-). Punta Tombo was amazing because there are penguins EVERYWHERE! They burrow in little holes but will come right up to the path to look at you. You have to stop and let them cross the path, and sometimes they stop in the middle and look both ways at the people who've stopped - sometimes they run/waddle back the other way, it's so cute. Some of them are noisy lil buggers, too! One of my favorite penguin sights was seeing a lone penguin off in the distance walk up a hill and then disappear down... okay and I can't forget to mention the penguins in the surf, trying to make it to shore, but being take back out again with the retreating waves. Sigh, I love penguins.

Antarctica Log Book: Drake Passage

Position: 57*53 S, 0'62*48 W
Temperature: 45*F, sea temp 45*F
Weather conditions: partly cloudy, barometer 1014 mb
Wind: 40-50 knots (50-57 mph) - yeah, yikes!! waves 14 feet
sea depth: 1914 fathoms (3500 meters, 11,480 feet)
Distance travelled from Elephant Island: 373 NM (429 mi)
distance to Ushuaia: 272 NM (315 mi)
speed 15 mph

"I now belong to a higher cult of mortal, for I have seen the Albatross" - Robert Cushman Murphy

Second Antarctic Journey, Paradise Bay unable to reach: So today was supposed to be Paradise Bay and the Gerlache Strait, but since the weather was so bad we turned around yesterday - hence the Sea Day today. Was a little chaotic because we had to move the auction up a day. As usual auction days are busy, so I'm pretty tired. Didn't have a chance to look outside much, but the waves for sure are rough - whole ship's been rocking all day, which made for a nerve-wracking auction set-up, hoping that nothing fell off easels or hurt anybody. So there weren't as many people as we hoped at the auction. Good thing I was able to see the Strait and Bay on the last cruise!

The Drake Passage:
The Drake Passage is the body of water that separates South America from Antarctica. From Cape Horn to the South Shetland Islands, it connects the waters of the Pacific Ocean in the West, to the Atlantic Ocean in the East. This 800km (500 mile) wide passage is the shortest crossing from Antarctica to the other continents. Its waters are known as the roughest in the world. In severe weather, waves can reach over 10 meters - 33 feet. Here, the cold, humid subpolar climate starts changing into freezing, dry Antarctic climate.
While crossing the passage, it is possible to spot whales, dolphins and a diversity of sea birds, such as the Giant petrel and the albatross. One of the most exciting moments of the crossing is when the first Antarctic icebergs are spotted, signaling the proximity of the White Continent.
This passage was named after Sir Francis Drake, the English privateer. In 1577 Drake became the second man to circumnavigate the world, after Ferdinand Magellan's expedition, and is said to have sighted the passage. However, the Spanish navigator Francisco de Hoces was the first European to sight the passage in 1525. That is why the Spanish Armada and som Latin-American navies call it Mar de Hoces (Sea of Hoces.) -Antarctic Log Book - Velazquez, Aranda

Antarctica Log Book: 20 Facts

20 Facts: 1. Antarctica has a surface of 13,661,000 sq km (5,247,542 sq miles), which is about the same size as the United States and Mexico... combined!
2. Although Antarctica holds 90% of all the world's ice, and therefore 70% of its freshwater, it is the driest of all continents and the largest desert on Earth.
3. The coldest temperature on Earth, -89*C (-128.6*F) was recorded at Vostok station on July 21st, 1983.
4. In June, during the long Antarctic winter, there is 24-hour darkness. And in December, in the short Antarctic summer, there is 24-hour daylight.
5. No other continent has as high an average elevation as Antarctica.
6. The Vinson Massif, located in the Ellsworth Mountains, is the highest elevation, with its summit, Mt. Vinson rising 4,892 meters (16,050 feet) above sea level.
7. The largest glacier in the world is Lambert Glacier, located in East Antarctica. It is 96 km (60 mi) wide and over 400 km (250 mi) long.
8. One of the biggest icebergs that ever broke off the Antarctic ice shelf was 295km (183 mi) long and 37 km (23 mi) wide.
9. Antarctica has no official language, no capital, and no currency.
10. Antarctica has no native population; before the 20th century nobody inhabited the continent.



11. Antarctica has no permanent residents. The maximum population of Antarctica during the summer is around 4,000 people, which is reduced to 1,000 in the winter.
12. The Argentine Orcadas Station, on the Orkney Islands, is the oldest research station, continuously in operation since 1904.
13. The first wedding in Antarctica took place in February 1978, at Argentina's Esperanza station.
14. The first tourist ships left for Antarctica in the 1960s.
15. The Antarctic Treaty was signed on December 1st, 1959 and came into force on June 23rd, 1961.
16. Antartica is the only home in the world for the Emperor penguin, which breeds during the winter. (how ridiculous is that, breeding in the winter, psh)
17. Many Antarctica sea creatures, like the ice fish, have an "antifreeze" substance in their bloodstream which enables them to survive in extreme weather conditions.
18. The Southern giant petrel, the Chatham albatross, the Southern Right whale, and the Blue whale are some of the endangered Antarctic species.
19. The name krill comes from the Norwegian word for "young fry of fish". The Antarctic krill has an estimated collective weight of over 500 million tons, about twice as humans.
20. The largest land animal in Antarctica is an insect, a wingless midge, less than 1.3 cm (o.5 in) as seen in Antarctica Log Book; Velazquez, Aranda

Antarctica Log Book: Paradise Bay and Gerlache Strait

"It is not the strongest of species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change." - Charles Darwin

BRR! Sunny and clear out! Another early morning, especially since I didn't want to miss anything! It was much more scenic today than yesterday because we were totally surrounded - land on one side (Antarctic peninsula) and ice and icebergs on the other. Saw penguins swimming in the wake again, sea lions were just laying on the icebergs sunbathing, some people even saw whales later in the day - I missed it, of course.


The icebergs and mountains covered with snow and ice were incredible! Looks so beautiful and serene, but this is one Paradise I wouldn't want to be stranded on! It was super-cold again, but depending on which side of the ship you were on you had the sun to warm you. We could see old whaling stations and bases from a distance. I wish I could've stayed out all day just to see it all, but sadly, I had to work... and there aren't windows in the Art Gallery!



Research Stations:
Antartica has over 40 permanent research stations which belong to 30 nations, all signatories to the Antarctic Treaty. In general, each station is operated by one country, but there are stations which are shared, like Concordia Research Station which is jointly-operated by France and Italy. A curiosity is Patriot Hills, the only private camp in Antarctica, established in 1987.
Antarctica has no indigenous inhabitants or permanent residents. Its population consists of the people who are involved in research or support activities on the continent. Men are still majority but the number of women working and living on the continent is constantly growing. On average, the scientific population varies from 4,000 inhabitants in summer to 1,000 in winter. During the summer many stations set up a series of tent camps and temporary facilities in support of research.
The only civilian populations on the continent are located on the Argentine Esperanza Station and the Chilean Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalvo Staton. Whole families live on the stations and there are schools for the children. However, it is always a temporary home as most people do not stay longer than two years on the continent.
- Antarctica Log Book; Velazquez, Aranda

Antarctica Log Book: Elephant Island, Antarctica

If you can zoom in, there are penguins sliding around on the iceberg!!

Cruising Schedule:
7:00am - 10:30am: Elephant Island After leaving Elephant Island the ship will enter the Bransfield Strait. We will pass several islands appearing on our starboard side, beginning with Gibbs Island at approximately 12 Noon, King George Island 4:00pm, Nelson Island 5:00pm, Robert Island 6:00pm. and Deception Island 8:00pm.
Position: 61*07 S, 55*07'00 W
Weather conditions: partly cloudy
Wind: N NW 23 mph
sunrise: 5:17am sunset: 8:57pm



Woo! We made it to Antarctica!! It is so cold outside - the temperature may not sound so bad, but the wind chill makes it unbelievable! Your hands freeze in seconds - which makes it impossible to take pictures with heavy gloves on! Now as this entry is from the second cruise, I will tell you a bit about the first, too, since today we don't have such luck with the weather - it is so foggy that visibility is extremely low, so we didn't go outside and brave the cold to take pics today (have great ones already!) First trip the weather was perfect - cold and windy, yes, but the sun was shining and weather was clear. We went out on Deck 4 and took some amazing pictures! There were tons of Chinstrap penguins "flying" through the water, playing in the ship's wake. All of a sudden I went from seeing dozens of them to seeing none ... then a few seconds later I spotted a seal or sea lion. So those poor little penguins were probably swimming for their lives. They came back after awhile, though. We also spotted a rare fin whale! Only for about three seconds, so fast we didn't even get a picture - but I don't care, at least I saw it =)



Now today, second Antarctic journey, the weather is not good and visibility is very low - we could barely see Elephant Island. The captain has made several announcements about the weather because tomorrow's destination is where the rough weather is forming. There's a low pressure system coming in, and it's raining, snowing, and crazy windy in the Paradise Bay station - crazy that we see the almost non-existent rain and snow on the biggest desert on Earth. We may not be able to make it to the bay, the seas are already pretty rough, the ship's really shaking. Sad that you can barely see anything, in my head I pictured Antarctica as penguins hanging out on icebergs (I do have an awesome picture of a big group of them on a giant iceberg!)

Update: okay, Paradise Bay is a no go :-/ Weather is too bad and directly in our path. Changing tomorrow to an auction day and sea day instead... lots of guests pretty angry, but if I shared some of the horror stories I have heard from other crew members...

Note: make sure you also bring chapstick! it's windy and DRY! It is the largest desert in the world, don't let the ice and ocean deceive you!



The land just behind the iceberg is where Shackleton's men set up camp: Point Wild.

Antarctica Log Book: Day 4

Position: 77*0'14 S, 0*56'12 W
Temperature: 50*F (10*C) Sea temp: 41*F (5*C)
Wind: N 20 knots (23mph) wave crests 7-8 ft
Weather conditions: cloudy, barometer 1011 mb
Speed 18 knots Heading 170*S
Distance travelled from Falkland Islands: 331 NM (381 mi)
Distance left to Elephant Island: 240 NM (280 mi)
Depth: 1,640 fathoms, 3000 meters
Today is the Sea Day of travel to Antarctica! First sight will be Elephant Island at around 7am ... early day, ick! Had a Masters Seminar today in the Art Emporium. Was hoping to see some whales today, but didn't get to spend too much time by windows. Nothing to report, still thinking about the adorable penguin yesterday.

Note: only 1/8 the total volume of an iceberg is above the surface of the sea (as can be learned in Titanic)

Antarctica Log Book: Falkland Islands

Position:
Falkland Islands
Temperature: 52*F (12*C)
Weather conditions: Partly cloudy
Wind: E 5mph
Sunrise 4:54am, sunset 7:15pm

"The ice was here, the ice was there, the ice was all around. It cracked and growled and roared and howled like a noise in a swound..." - Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
A Brief History (as found in Celebrity Today)

English is the official language of the Falkland Islands and the currency is the Falkland Island pound (equivalent to the British Sterling.) The Falkland Islands consist of 2 main islands and a group of small landmasses located 300 miles east of the Argentine Patagonian coastline and 480 miles northeast of Cape Horn. With a population of approximately 2000, 2/3 of which live in Port Stanley, Falkland Island is the smallest most remote capital city in the world.

This very British island was invaded by Argentina in 1982, but a counter-invasion by Britain led to reclamation of the island. Its pubs, neat gardens, British 'bobbies', red mailboxes and the Union flag flown over the Government House leave no doubt that British roots run deep. This very unique port is built on the north facing slope of the island to catch the sun year round and overlooks Stanley Harbour. This very small harbor town is navigable by foot and shopping is scattered about the three "downtown area" streets, where penguin paraphernalia and the Falkland Island wool products, particulary the "Falkland Sweater", are available for purchase.


The lone King Penguin laying on its egg

Today we arrived in the Falkland Islands and docked just outside Stanley. I was SO lucky to be put on a tour as an escort! They even ran out of spots for guests but had one spot on each tour for a crew escort for insurance reasons. Don't know why - I don't ask questions, I just go with it! The tour was awesome. Fifteen minute boat ride to where a few 4x4s were waiting to take us on a 20 minute ride to Sparrow Cove, where a large Gentoo penguin population resides. There was no road and it was very rugged terrain, but the vehicles were so good that you barely felt it. When we arrived we had an hour to walk among the little penguins. There were a ton -there was even one (yes, one) King penguin!! Kind of out of place, but I was so happy to see him (I think it was a him, not sure, but it was guarding its egg.) Gentoo penguins are much cuter than the Magellans. Some of them were molting - feathers flying everywhere.



There was this one adorable penguin that followed us around - he would come right up and sniff your pants and go around you in circles. When we left down the hill to the pick-up spot where there were no penguins, he followed us. Then when we drove off, he started running after us, it was THE cutest thing ever - almost sad! So sweet... so funny watching them run! I could spend all day just watching penguins run/waddle!


Run, penguins, run!
(SO funny, all running in a single file line!)

Antarctica Log Book: The Ultimate Journey Day 1 and 2

My first Antarctic Voyage: January 30, 2011, the second February 13, 2011 Home port: Buenos Aires Temperature: 87 Fahrenheit, sunny day, winds SSW 5-10mph We had an overnight in Buenos Aires, Argentina - the perfect city to explore during the day and experience the nightlife. During the day you can see all the touristy spots - the Pink Palace, Eva Perone's grave and amazing cemetery, street dancing and markets, Florida Street (designer shops, souvenir shops, McDonalds and Burger King galore) - just make sure you stop and admire the architecture wherever you are! If you have a couple days in BA you have to take a short flight to Uguazu Falls - right on the border of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay - it is absolutely breathtaking and surreal. On to Antarctica!!! Sea Day 1: Position: 36*40' S, 0*55' W Temperature: 73*F Weather Conditions: sunny Wind: 15 knots, wave crests 4-5 feet Speed: 20 knots (23 mph) Heading 182* South towards Falkland Islands Distance travelled from Buenos Aires: 260 Nautical Miles, 300 miles Distance to Falkland Islands: 910 NM, 1046 miles Note: If you take a trip to Antarctica, make sure you bring sunscreen! The sun is bright! And the ozone layer thinning thus offering less protection. Oh, and sunglasses! Today is a beautiful clear and sunny day, not a cloud in sight - which is a good sign, hopefully no bad weather in the future! (Probably just jinxed myself.) It's the first sea day out of two on our way to the Falkland Islands. It's also Valentine's Day, and I just had some delicious heart-shaped desserts. We had an art seminar today, but the big day is tomorrow: first auction: Mimosa Mania Art Auction - complimentary mimosas all around! So we're hoping the calm weather holds, otherwise the auction will be rough (artwork falling off easels, etc). I'm in my cabin right now, and Harry Potter is on TV, so I'm a happy camper... rather, a happy sailor. Valentine's Day party for crew later, should be fun! Sea Day 2: Position: 45*15 S, 0*56'30 W Temperature: 68*F (20*C), ocean temp: 59*F Weather conditions: clear Winds NNW 25 knots, waves 5-6 ft Sea depth: 5,300 meters (17,400 ft) Heading 185* S towards Falkland Islands Distance travelled from Buenos Aires: 777 NM (894 miles) Distance remaining to Falkland Islands: 393NM (452 miles) Headline on HLN: "Beware of 'Klepto the Cat,' cat burglar swipes bathing suit, toys... "Dusty" goes on the prowl, steals stuff at night" Another beautiful day, we've been lucky - especially since it's an auction day. Auction was a lot of fun today, a few sales, but we're all so tired because we stayed out late at the Valentine's Party. Lots of drinks, music, friends. They had a giant heart-shaped chocolate mousse cake - even a heart-shaped pizza, I got a rose ... all in all a fun party. We'll all sleep well tonight! Some new excitement, just got back from the auction and there's leaks in our rooms (it's so Antarctic-expedition-ish, makes me feel like a real sailor!) This is troublesome to us because our rooms are directly beneath the galley (which often keeps the entire hallway awake at night from the noise,) and a couple months ago these exact same rooms were totally flooded - luggage and anything on the floor was ruined... Now the joiners are here and are in the ceiling, yep... Apparently it's just an AC problem ... Nope, was some other pipe. Fixed (temporarily) 2/15 7:00pm. "Indeed the stark polar lands grip the hearts of the men who have lived on them in a manner that can hardly be understood by the people who have never got outside the pale of civilization." - Sir Ernest Shackleton