Trip Information

Dates: November 2 - 21, 2008 (20 days)

Optional Argentina Pre-tour October 30 - November 2, 2008 (4 days)

Leaders: Onboard resource staff and Richard Knapton*

Our Vessel: Clipper Adventurer (click here)

Price: Prices from $9900 USD, ~$10,395 CDN. Click here for more detail

Tour starts and ends in Ushuaia

Highlights
•Among the most amazing and spectacular scenery on the planet! Breathtaking vistas of icy waterways, glaciers, icebergs and rugged mountains
• The exhilarating and incomparable experience of being amidst penguin colonies and tame wildlife; a photographer’s dream!
• Fabulous wildlife – penguins, albatrosses, petrels, whales, seals, dolphins, and much more
• Fascinating and awe-inspiring human history

Featured Birds and Mammals
• Gentoo Penguin
• Adelie Penguin
• Chinstrap Penguin
• Magellanic Penguin
• Macaroni Penguin
• King Penguin
• Wandering Albatross
• Gray-headed Albatross
• Snow Petrel
• Blue Petrel
• Magellanic Diving-petrel
• Black-bellied Storm-petrel
• South Georgia Pipit
• Humpback Whale
• Leopard Seal

Trip Summary
• 18 nights onboard the Clipper Adventurer, one night in Ushuaia prior to embarkation
• Cabins and suites at different rates
• All meals included
• Varied international menu
• Maximum 122 passengers
• Stunningly beautiful, awe-inspiring scenery
• Exact route and activities variable according to ice and weather conditions

*an Eagle-Eye guide (Richard) will accompany the group as long as we have sufficient bookings.

Truly a cruise of a lifetime, our 20-day Antarctic Voyage focuses on the Falkland Islands, South Georgia, South Shetland Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula, home to some of the continent’s most impressive wildlife and dramatic landscapes. We start in Ushuaia, with one night in this very southern city. We then board our ship and travel through the sheltered waters of the Beagle Channel and into the south Atlantic to the Falklands, onto South Georgia, and then following Shackleton’s route to Elephant Island and the South Shetlands. The oceans here are renowned for the diversity of seabirds, from petrels, shearwaters and prions to diving-petrels and albatrosses, including the superb Wandering Albatross. Whales and dolphins ply these waters, feeding on the abundance of krill caused by the convergence of cold waters from Antarctica and warmer waters from the Pacific and Atlantic. Wildlife on the Falklands and South Georgia is abundant, with wonderful colonies of albatrosses and penguins, and several interesting endemics. Weather and ice permitting, we set foot on the South Shetland Islands, Paradise Bay and other localities on the Antarctic Peninsula, and along shorelines in the incomparably photogenic Lemaire Channel, making two landings per day. The scenery here is breathtaking, ice formations are fantastic, and wildlife astonishing. During our voyage, we encounter colonies of King, Adelie, Magellanic, Chinstrap, Gentoo and Rockhopper Penguins, possibly also Macaroni Penguins, three species of skuas, the immaculately-white Snow Petrel, Snowy Sheathbill, the handsome Imperial Shag, and Weddell, Crabeater and the sinister-looking Leopard Seals loafing on the ice-flows or along the shorelines. Our return journey back across the famous Drake Passage will turn up new sightings – no two crossings are the same – and then back to Ushuaia.

See detailed itinerary below.

Click here to see our five-day pre-tour extension to Buenos Aires and surroundings

Click here to download a list of birds and mammals seen on our February 2005 Antarctic Voyage

Click here to download a registration form for the Antarctic tour.

Itinerary

Day 1 – Arrival in Ushuaia
We start on our Antarctic Voyage trip this afternoon by flying to Ushuaia, the world’s southernmost city. After settling into your hotel, you will have time to walk along the shores of the legendary Beagle Channel on the Ushuaia waterfront. Both Kelp and Dolphin Gulls and South American Terns will be in the harbour, possibly being harassed by Chilean Skuas. Kelp Geese may be foraging along the shoreline, and perhaps a flock of White-rumped Sandpipers will be busily feeding on the exposed beach, with a Rufous-chested Dotterel among them, and Crested Ducks and Flightless Steamer-Ducks in the shallows. The superb Imperial Shag and Rock Shag are quite common in the harbour, and Dark-bellied Cinclodes dart around the rocks and boats along the waterfront. Night in Ushuaia.

Day 2 - Ushuaia and the Beagle Channel
In the morning, there is an optional excursion to picturesque Tierra del Fuego National Park, a land of stunted Nothofagus beech forests and rocky coastlines. In the afternoon, we embark upon the Clipper Adventurer, our home for the next 19 days. We set off on our voyage down the Beagle Channel, so named after the ship that carried Charles Darwin on his groundbreaking voyage. We will have our first introduction to seabirds – Black-browed Albatross, shearwaters, diving-petrels, and our first introduction to penguins – Magellanic Penguin.

Day 3 - At Sea
During the crossing towards the Falkland Islands, we have the opportunity to meet our guides, ship’s crew and lecturers. We’ll also begin the lecture and information sessions to learn about the extraordinary human and natural history of the Antarctic region. On deck we will be looking for pelagic birds such as Royal Albatross (Northern and Southern), Greater and Sooty Shearwaters, White-chinned Petrel, perhaps a Soft-plumaged Petrel or a Slender-billed Prion, and marine mammals – Dusky Dolphins, South American Sea-lions, maybe our first whales.

Days 4 - 5 - Falkland Islands
Remote islands lying about 500 kms off the South American coast, the Falklands have a surprising history of colonization and conflicts. The capital, Port Stanley, situated on East Falkland, one of two large islands in this archipelago, is a colourful little town with architecture reminiscent of a bygone age. These windswept islands enjoy a relatively mild climate and provide rugged, wind-swept vistas, expansive grasslands and dramatic seascapes. During our stay we make several landings to take in the abundant wildlife here as penguins, elephant seals and sea lions are numerous here.

The Falkland Islands have a remarkable diversity of birdlife. Over fifty species breed in the islands, from Rockhopper Penguins to Ruddy-headed Geese, Rufous-chested Dotterels to Correndera Pipits. Raptors include Variable Hawks, Southern Crested Caracaras and Striated Caracaras, or “Johnny Rooks”, scavengers at penguin colonies. We visit colonies of comical Rockhopper Penguins and superb Black-browed Albatrosses, as well as Gentoo and Magellanic penguins, often remarkably inquisitive. The increasingly rare Ruddy-headed Goose occurs here in fair numbers, and we have a good chance of finding the endemic Falkland Steamer Duck. Landbirds are often endearingly tame; Blackish Cinclodes (Tussock Birds) will likely approach us to inspect our footwear and Austral Thrushes, White-bridled Finches and Black-chinned Siskins can be quite confiding.

Days 6 - 7 - At Sea
Leaving these attractive islands we make the long sea crossing to South Georgia, and admire a long procession of wildlife from the decks - sealions and dolphins, albatrosses and prions, storm-petrels and skuas; there should be plenty to watch and photograph. We pass the Antarctic Convergence where cold polar water flowing north and warmer equatorial water moving in the opposite direction mix, creating nutrient rich upwellings that attract a diverse array of seabirds and marine mammals, including several species of albatrosses – Light-mantled Sooty, Black-browed, Grey-headed, Royal and the splendid Wandering. Both Northern and Southern Giant Petrels and several species of petrels and storm-petrels will cross the path of the ship, or decide to follow looking for scraps. Pelagic birding can be challenging, and we will need to be alert to perhaps find a Fairy Prion among the Antarctic Prions or an Antarctic Petrel among the very attractive Cape Petrels. Marine mammals should be well represented. Whales could include Fin, Minke and Humpback, and dolphins Hourglass, Peale’s and the stunning Commerson’s.

Days 8 - 11 - South Georgia
South Georgia appears like snow-capped mountains rising out of the ocean. The island sits on the northeast corner of the Scotia Ridge, an underwater geologic formation linking the Andes of South America with the mountains of Antarctica, and the islands are the tips of underwater mountains. The coastline is a series of deep fiords and huge glaciers with a backdrop of jagged, virtually inaccessible snow-capped peaks. South Georgia is steeped in history, of the whaling industry and early explorers, the site of the simple grave of Ernest Shackleton, a hero of Antarctic exploration.

We make several landings, including the abandoned settlement at Grytviken, which in its heyday was the centre for the massive whaling industry in these southern oceans. On land, we may walk amongst wildlife spectacles such as enormous colonies of the incomparable King Penguin, admire huge elephant seals and view superb Wandering Albatrosses, keep a watchful eye on Antarctic Fur Seals now making a remarkable recovery, as well as watch Southern Giant-Petrels, graceful Light-mantled Sooty Albatrosses, and comical-looking Macaroni Penguins. We will also look for the endemic South Georgia Pipit which ekes out an existence on these quite inhospitable islands, and the endemic race of the Yellow-billed Pintail, sometimes treated as a full species (South Georgia Pintail). In the inshore waters we could find both Common and Georgian Diving-Petrels, auk-like seabirds that the ship might disturb on the water.

Days 12 - 13 - At Sea
We turn south and sail for two days, retracing Shackleton's route backwards as we head towards Elephant Island and the Antarctic Peninsula - a stretch of ocean renowned for the diversity of seabirds, from petrels and prions to diving-petrels and albatrosses. We will have more opportunities to watch Wandering Albatrosses gliding effortlessly over the ocean, using air currents to cover vast distances with little expenditure of energy. Icebergs start to become more prominent, and we have our first exposure to the intense blue colour and the astonishing shapes of some of the older bergs. Occasionally the splendid Snow Petrel can be found perched on a berg, a classic Antarctic portrait. We pass Elephant Island, a harsh and dramatic rocky island where Shackleton's men survived for more than four months before Captain Pardo, master of the Chilean ship Yelcho, finally succeeded in reaching them.

Days 14 - 17 - Antarctica
A chance to step foot on Antarctica! We spend the next several days exploring the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands, an area of breathtaking scenery of icy waterways, glaciers, icebergs and rugged mountains. Conditions permitting we'll attempt two excursions per day. We attempt shore landings at Paradise Harbour, Neko Harbour or Wilhelmina Bay on the Antarctic Peninsula. We’ll navigate the astounding Lemaire Channel, and perhaps traverse Errera Channel or Neumayer Channel as ice and wind conditions allow. Scientific research stations and abandoned whaling stations will also be of interest. Birding will be exceptional – colonies of Gentoo, Adelie and Chinstrap Penguins, with perhaps a few Macaroni Penguins nesting in the colonies; Snowy Sheathbills, Southern Giant-petrels and Brown and South Polar Skuas looking for quick meals around the colonies; Black-bellied and Wilson’s Storm-petrels and Antarctic Terns crossing the wake of the boat; Antarctic Shags nesting on rocky slopes; and prizes such as Snow Petrel and Southern Fulmar along the stunning Gerlache Strait. We’ll also concentrate on marine mammals which can abound in these rich waters – Humpback Whales, fur seals, and Crabeater, Weddell and Leopard Seals.

Days 18 - 19 – Drake Passage
We begin our northward journey back to our home port of Ushuaia across the 400 miles of the Drake Passage, named after the sixteenth century English explorer Sir Francis Drake. No two crossing are alike, and maybe we will find prions, petrels and albatrosses that we have not encountered so far. Our crossing gives us time to reflect on our memorable adventure and review the highlights of our Antarctic experience.

Day 20 - Departure

Today we should see the rocky headland of Cape Horn looming ahead of us. This southernmost point of South America was named by the Dutch navigator Schouten after Hoorn, after his birth place in the Netherlands. We enter the Beagle Channel once more, perhaps finding Magellanic Diving-petrels or a shearwater not seen earlier, and then on to Ushuaia for a morning disembarkation and final goodbyes.

The onboard resource team will include expedition staff and naturalists with a great deal of knowledge about the birds and wildlife, and experience in the southern oceans. Aboard the Adventurer, we will enjoy the comfortable facilities and camaraderie of our modern ship, great food, daily lectures and discussion sessions. We’ll hear heroic tales of Antarctic adventure in the Age of Exploration. Explorers like Cook, Wilkes, Ross, de Gerlache, Scott, Amundsen, and Shackleton braved fierce winds, crushing seas and tremendous adversity to find and map the “fabled southern continent.”

What To Expect

A cruise to Antarctica requires a fairly good level of fitness and health. Most activities assume a relatively low level of exertion. Climbing into and out of zodiacs for excursions to land requires a moderate level of ability, although staff and crew members will be at hand to assist. Ashore, walks of moderate distances occur over rocky, uneven terrain and sometimes ice and snow on the Antarctic Peninsula and South Georgia. All zodiac landings depend upon sea and landing conditions, and landing spots vary from year to year. If one spot is inaccessible one year, the ship goes to another similar spot.

Sea conditions across the Drake Passage can be rough with high swells, causing our vessel to pitch and roll. The Beagle Channel should be fairly calm.

Food is good and plentiful and accommodations are very comfortable. Daily maid service is provided. All passengers have full access to facilities onboard regardless of room price.

Temperatures generally range from 5º - 15º C (45º –55º F) in the sub-Antarctic region, and 0º - 5º C (30º – 40º F) on the Antarctic Peninsula. Sunshine and low humidity creates a temperate atmosphere. Be prepared for cold conditions on the deck of the moving ship when watching birds and marine mammals. Good hiking boots are adequate on deck, although there are times when running shoes will suffice. Warm hats and gloves are necessary on deck. Parkas or another warm jacket are highly recommended. On shore and especially on the zodiacs, water resistant pants and waterproof footwear are required (rubber boots are provided onboard).

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