Antarctica Travel Blog Nov 15: Calm seas in the Southern Ocean
NOVEMBER 15TH TUESDAY -- SOUTHERN OCEAN 7AM
Last night we were warned to expect the worst and to secure our items in our cabins. Surprisingly, most of us, I believe, slept well through the night to awake to very calm seas. The Southern Ocean has been flat like a lake nearly all day. We are ahead of schedule and should be in the pack ice by tomorrow at 10.
November 15th 7pm
Lectures about albatrosses and geology kept most of the travelers busy all day. While others conversed with the staff, edited images and wrote in their journals. By dinner we were in the shrieking sixties, an area that known for having some of the roughest waves and highest winds in the world. Instead, the water continued to calms us with its gentle rolls. The best announcement of the day is that the icepack is a mere 417 miles away!!
(This is Laurie’s fourth visit to Antarctica. She is blogging her way through this epic month-long Antarctica trip; the Kapitan Khlebnikov’s Ross Sea Centennial Voyage. Tune in for daily updates from the field. Pictures from Laurie’s past Antarctica travels are found on her website.)
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.