After sailing out of the Beagle channel from Ushuaia (so called after Charles Darwin’s ship The Beagle), we were soon faced with the challenge of crossing the Drake Passage. This body of water stretches from Cape Horn at the southernmost tip of Chile to the South Shetland Islands in Antarctica. Quite simply put, it is the most treacherous body of water in the world.
By all accounts, the Drake Passage is somewhat unpredictable and there’s no ‘perfect time’ to cross it. For some lucky travelers, it is most blissfully experienced as Drake Lake. For others not so lucky, it is the Drake Shake (or even the Drake Quake). Apparently, we were somewhere between The Shake and The Quake, with swells of six to eight meters and wind up to 50 knots. Enough to simulate a maritime ouija board experience – wine glasses sliding effortlessly across tables with Swan Lake-like grace.
Never a dull moment on the ship as we waxed and waned and rocked and rolled. After five years at sea, Darren’s sea legs still stood him in good stead. Knowing that mine wouldn’t get me any further than the bathroom, I at least had the forethought to get some seasickness patches prescribed from the doctor in advance. The penny sized disc tucked in right behind my ear and was enough to keep the worst of the nausea away. Didn’t stop us weaving side to side across the corridors like drunken sailors though.
As we continued our southbound voyage, there were jacket swaps for those that didn’t quite fit. And boot fittings for all. Some of the landings we’d be doing would be direct from the zodiac into the icy water. So you want to make sure you’ve got well fitting wellies for every eventuality.
They allow two days to cross The Drake. So imagine my surprise when Darren threw open the curtains on day two and hollered “ICE!!!” Bleary eyed and half asleep still, I said “What’s nice?” To which he responded with more excited yelling “ICE, ICE!!!” I immediately leapt up out of bed and without a second thought about the windy cold conditions, I headed straight out onto the balcony in my PJs and bare feet to get a shot. I came back in just as quickly!
After that, we spent much of the day on the open decks (togged up properly this time, I’d learned my lesson!), checking out the scenery as we made our way into the Weddell Sea. Especially exciting was forging our way through pack ice, as only an icebreaker ship can do.
When we fancied a change of scenery or a coffee and pastry, we relocated to the cosy Seabourn Square lounge. It was also here where we joined Daniel Fox, the professional photographer, for his iPhone School. I was expecting hints and tips for photographing penguins and tweaking your white balance when photographing ice with your phone, but it was really just how to use your iPhone camera. What was even more surprising was the number of people who genuinely didn’t know the most basic basics of using their iPhone.
After lunch, there was an exciting announcement that we had orca swimming alongside us. Sure enough, not one not two but three pods of killer whales in our vicinity. A rare sighting indeed, eked out as ship and whales kept pace with each other.
As we made our way into the Weddell Sea, on a large isolated section of free-floating sea ice, was a group of Adelie penguins and their two Emperor penguin friends. Seeing our first penguins of the trip was another high. We didn’t even expect to see Emperors at all as they are generally found in the heart of the continent, way further south than our trip would be taking us.
After all the unexpected Antarctic wildlife sightings, we enjoyed our evening in style, befitting our luxury cruise experience. Starting with Dido-like crooning in The Club, a delightful chef’s dinner and a mix of opera and west end classics, courtesy of the Cruise Director, Lupi.
