Okay, yes. Now we are getting to the exciting part! The dreaded Drake. Your biggest question to me would probably be, “did you get the Drake Shake or the Drake Lake?”. I would argue we had mostly the Drake Lake, with a bit of shake. Luckily Molly and I survived with our motion sickness patches. Neither of us felt the seasickness, but many of our fellow travelers did, especially on the way down. The waves weren’t large but they were odd directions. The stabilizers on the Akademik Ioffe were fabulous, but when the waves are coming in all directions, there’s only so much those stabilizers can do. I have to say, half the battle is even fighting through the medication. Molly and I napped most of the way on the Drake. That stuff makes you sleepy and very, very dehydrated. I felt bad for our fellow shipmates who were seasick, but none of us really knew each other at that point. There were a few presentations to keep us busy, meals (for the ones who felt good enough to show up) and the brave souls who journeyed out on deck when it was safe to do so. The highlight of the way down was seeing the creature I wanted to see most – orcas. Now, me being from the northwest-ish part of the US, you may be surprised I had never seen an orca. Well, I haven’t! Not until the Drake Passage. And did you know there are different types of orcas? There are 10 types! Some in the northern hemisphere and some in the southern hemisphere.
Day 2 of the Drake was so flat, you could see blows from whales all across the horizon. It was incredible. When they announced that there were orcas at the bow, I ran faster than I ever knew I could. I may have slammed a door in Molly’s face, I was so excited. I didn’t have my camera with me, just my phone, and in my excitement took many pictures of the sky. Luckily, our photographer on board was much more prepared and had a fantastic shot of these beauties. Some travelers argue that it’s best to skip the drake and do a fly-cruise. I would try to convince every person not to skip the journey of the Drake. It is a right of passage as you earn your way to Antarctica, that’s the most argued point. But, what I really appreciated were the two days on the way home to say goodbye to the friends I’d made onboard. You share an incredible experience with about 90 other humans and that’s a big deal. The last day in Antarctica was super sad. But what made it bearable was knowing that I had two more days to enjoy with all of the people I grew to love on my journey. Do the Drake. It’s worth it!
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.