Part 8: Antarctica

9417

Penguins

10

meter high waves

100

knots of wind (= 185 kmph)

1

Seal

Trip overview

Part 8 of Eddie’s Great Overland Adventures is done and dusted: We all made it to Antarctica and back!

The expedition to the 7th continent had it all: giant icebergs, penguins, whales, birds, historic settlements and breathtaking scenery. What made the expedition extra special was the unpredictable Antarctic winter conditions with 10 meter waves, winds reaching 100 knots and lots of snow and ice. And yes, we all did the freezing polar plunge and can brag about it for the rest of our lives!

Before leaving Ushuaia in the southernmost part of Argentina, we joined the naming ceremony of the good ship “World Voyager”, drank lots of champagne and ate the first of many great meals – before the maiden voyage to the Antarctic Peninsula began.

We first had to endure the 48-hour journey through the Drake Passage – one of the world’s most treacherous bodies of water where three oceans meet. The crossing can be turbulent (“The Drake Shake”) or calm (“The Drake Lake”), and we sure got to try the infamous “Drake Shake” with waves reaching 10 meters. We’re not sure how many glasses and plates were broken after large waves hit our ship, but there were quite a few…

On the 3rd morning we emerged out of the Passage and could finally set foot on Deception Island in the South Shetland Islands. The following days we made landings in the Antarctic Peninsula, with the southernmost point being at Danco Island at 64°43 degrees south.

Eddie had been looking forward to meeting the local wildlife, and as the Don Juan he is, he is always looking for new opportunities to find true love after it didn’t work out with the blue-footed bobby in Galapagos. With high hopes he embarks on the World Voyager and cannot wait to go on a penguin date. He has even done a proper bath to show himself from his best side (and make sure he does not bring any foreign species to Antarctica). During captain’s dinner (yes, he was invited!) the captain gave his blessing to enter Antarctica – as long as he only flew and didn’t set foot on the continent – and always kept a 5 meter distance from all wildlife at all times. Even for Eddie (believe it or not), finding true love with 5 meters distance is impossible, so after being soooo close but still soooo far during his landings in Antarctica, he ended up in the bar drowning his sorrows in champagne instead of going on penguin dates. But hey…. at least he learned how to fly!

Map

Planning

A trip to the 7th continent had been a dream for many years and our goal was to tick it off in 2022. Normally these tours need to be booked well in advance due to capacity, but a well known pandemic put it on hold so in July 2023, during a warm and sunny Sunday stroll, the crazy idea popped into our head: Antarctica? This November? Why not? Let’s Go! YES!! (was it a heat stroke?) The Sunday stroll turned into a power walk as we couldn’t get home to our PCs fast enough to start searching for an expedition cruise to Antarctica to see the penguins and all the icebergs!

After a few hours, with comparing different cruise lines, expedition boats etc., we had singled out the best offers, where we had one demand: The ship should be as sustainable as possible to preserve the fragile and pristine ecosystem which Antarctica is.

Short story made even shorter: 3 days later, after a few WhatsApp messages and emails with an agency in Argentina, a 9 day cruise to explore the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands including roundtrip flights from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia was booked.

We arranged our own flight tickets and since Montevideo in Uruguay is just a short swim from Buenos Aires, we decided to add this country to our itinerary and flew into Montevideo and home from Buenos Aires.

Visa: On arrival in both countries (Booooring!)

Permits to Antarctica: Not needed

Self-declaration form: Yes (To check if we are fit enough to travel and not planning to die of age)

Covid-19 restrictions: None! (That is sooo 2022!)

109 days after our sunny Sunday stroll/power walk, we boarded our flights and headed towards the 7th continent!