Antarctica Getting Wild Again

From our briefing the night before, we knew that it was very likely that the weather would not work out in our favor today. We knew that the captain and crew would do all they could to get us off the ship exploring, so all we could do was cross our fingers and hope. 

Surprisingly, we were greeted that next morning with brilliant sun, and it was announced pretty quickly that the first two zodiac groups would be getting off the ship right away to check out Damoy Point. Being in the third group, that meant we would likely have about a 20-minute wait, but neither of us could contain our excitement so before long we were fully dressed, taking in the crisp, sunny air on the ship waiting for our group to be called next. 

Unfortunately, the weather started to turn (familiar phrase?) right around this point, and while we were still taking hope in the blue skies, the choppier waves and increasing winds seemed to disagree. After some slight delays while they assessed the situation, it was then announced that no other groups would be disembarking that morning, so we took in a few more views of the “lovely” day, then returned to our room to take off all the extra clothing. 

We never did get off the ship that day, which was the one time that this happened during our days in Antarctica. It’s never a welcome development, but it is also not an uncommon one; Antarctica weather can be super unpredictable no matter when you go down. However, the day was still pretty epic as we were able to pass closely by Neko Harbor, take in ice formations from the ship, and again see scores of whales. I began to equate seeing whales in Antarctica in March much like seeing shooting stars during a meteor shower: if you have the patience just to look at the sea (or sky) for a few minutes, you seem to be rewarded with near constant sightings. We even saw a pod of humpbacks protecting a fur seal from a pod of orcas, which we were able to take in for nearly an hour. This was something that even blew the expedition team’s minds!