Antarctica Experience in 7 Words or Less...
Ann: Love it when life Exceeds my Expectations
Taylor: Astounding… Stunning… There just aren’t enough superlatives.
Most Memorable Moment
Ann: I expected the penguins, I expected the albatross, I hoped for the whales, enjoyed the dolphins and I knew there would be ice, but I never thought the ice would have such an impact on me. It was incredibly beautiful. All the different formations, the variations of blues, the size of the glaciers and free floating icebergs - Incredible, breathtaking and like nothing else I have ever enjoyed.
Taylor: This entire 3 weeks was an experience that was almost wholly unanticipated due to the mystery surrounding the continent. Every moment where there could have been an expectation, the reality was so much greater. Because of this, nearly everything we saw was a memorable moment. Although, to pick just one moment... On Jason Steeple in the Falkland Islands, I wore a penguin suit under my parka, and when the timing was just right I dumped my outer layer and ran around trying to become a penguin for about a half hour. I'd say that was pretty memorable, not only for me, but for the other guests on board who happened upon the scene as well.
The Highlights
- Seeing newly hatched penguin babies on our very first trip to land.
- Watching a feeding frenzy that involved both humpback whales and orca whales, all before breakfast.
- Celebrating New Year’s Eve in the Grandidier Channel, where it remained light until well after midnight, and then celebrating again with mimosas the next morning on the ice!
- Jumping into the 32°F water and pausing long enough to wave from the water before swimming back to the boat.
- Wearing bathing suits on the fast ice in the Active Channel, because it wasn’t that cold.
- Stepping foot on Elephant Island – twice.
- The wildlife on South Georgia Island – elephant seals at Gold Harbor, adorable baby fur seals everywhere, and the hundreds of thousands of king penguins at St Andrew’s Bay.
- Tracing the footsteps on Shackleton and his men from Fortuna Bay to Stromness.
- Grytviken. I don’t 100% know what it was about the abandoned whaling station, but being able to walk around the buildings on site with such a sense of history was incredible.
Final Thoughts
Visiting Antarctica was one of those once in a lifetime experiences and it not only lived up that standard, but it far exceeded it. It was our 7th continent, which was a highlight amongst itself. The classification of this trip being called an expedition was so appropriate. Our course and landings were dependent on the weather and the ice so it made each and every day an adventure. We were lucky enough to be able to explore off the ship in the zodiacs all of the days we were not at sea, because the weather and the ice cooperated the best we could have asked for. The animals and the beauty of the landscape is something we will remember for a lifetime. We also need to give a special note to the luxurious accommodations and excellent hoteling and restaurant staff, a wonderful chef, a superb expedition leader and excellently skilled and fun photography team from Lindblad Expeditions and National Geographic. It was truly top notch customer service each and every day. Although there were 100 other guests on board, the team made us feel like this experience was all ours. We would also be remiss if we didn’t comment on the other wonderful guests - we met a lot of wonderful well traveled and interesting people. It was a super experience from start to finish.