Friday January 26th 2024
Port Charcot & Petermann Is.
Antarctic Peninsula
Expedition Morning
05:45 Wake-up call
07:00 Depending on weather conditions, join us out on deck as we ship transit through the spectacular Lemaire Channel!
This morning, depending on wind, weather and ice conditions, we plan to have a landing at Port Charcot.
Expedition Afternoon
This afternoon, depending on wind, weather and ice conditions, we plan to have a landing at Petermann Island.
If conditions permit, we hope to go CAMPING!
The driving winds pelted us with a mix of hail and penguin guano as we headed toward the Gentoo Penguin colony on Port Charcot, giving us our first real taste of Antarctic summers. Bundled up against 45-knot winds and sub-zero temperatures, we trudged through a foot of snow, battling the elements until we finally reached the colony.
Upon landing, our first view was of a procession of Gentoo penguins waddling toward us along a well-worn trail. These “penguin highways” which criss-cross the terrain allow the penguins to commute efficiently from their nests to the water. No remote work for these guys. There was a minor traffic jam getting off the zodiac as people stopped to rubberneck at the adorable scene, myself included. It wasn’t until someone yelled at us to move on that we reluctantly continued towards the penguin colonies.
At the colony, we found Gentoos huddled on rocks, some shielding their chicks from the bitter cold. Higher up the mountain, there were trails of tiny black and white dots making their way down to the water.
Gus Conquering Rock Cairns Hill
After the penguin colony, we made our way up the hill to visit the Rock Cairns, basically a pile of sticks and stones dedicated to the French explorer, Jean-Baptiste Charcot. By this time, the winds picked up making going up a challenge as things got slippery and windy. Once we reached the top, it was so cold that we didn’t bother walking the extra 10 feet to check out the monument. John, our Marine Biologist Extraordinaire and who doubled as our sentry, urged us to quickly take our pictures and head down to shore before the weather worsened.
Penguin Traffic Cam
Attention please! Attention please!
Jonathan’s voice blared over the ship’s PA system as he made an important announcement. A medical distress call from a nearby research station was received and we were turning back to provide assistance. This detour meant that our planned excursion to Petermann Island was cancelled, missing out on potentially seeing the Adele Penguin colony. Although we were disappointed, we used this time to journal and rest up while wondering what awaited us. An hour later another announcement informed us that another ship was responding to the distress call and we could proceed with our expedition. The new plan was to head to Paradise Bay, our original anchorage for the night, and where the campers would setup camp on Leith Cove.
A Whale of a Tale
Jonathan’s voice boomed over the ship’s PA system yet again. This time, he interrupted our nap with news that orcas were nearby, sending us into a mad dash to the deck. We saw multiple pods, including a mother and calf swimming near the ship.
Baby Orca & Mother
Then, a lone humpback whale appeared, and things suddenly got real. The orcas began their chase, and the humpback responded with desperate dives to evade the orcas. The humpback thrashed its tail violently, flashing its underside in a last-ditch effort to intimidate the relentless orcas. At one point, we were certain the humpback was doomed when it vanished as pods of orcas closed in, only to resurface much later. After what felt like an eternity of this intense back-and-forth, the orcas finally backed off. The exhausted humpback swam away, victorious.
It was due to incredible luck that we got to see such an extraordinary interaction between the orcas and the humpback whale. If it wasn’t for our unexpected detour, we would have missed this thrilling sequence of events.
We later learned that these were Type B orcas—not your typical whale-hunting predators, but rather fish and seal gourmands. So, whale sushi was never on the menu for these guys. We were told that what we just witnessed was attempt by both groups to intimidate each other to establish dominance in the channel.
On our way to Paradise Bay
The rest of the afternoon was spent being entertained as we watched our fellow passengers take the Polar Plunge into the icy Antarctic waters as they froze their ass off.
Later in the evening, we enjoyed music from Jeff and Jacinthe while 45 brave souls went camping on a block of ice at Leith Cove. We decided to skip the camping adventure when we found out there wouldn’t be any roasting hotdogs or s’mores, and that bathroom breaks were strongly discouraged. No thanks—we prefer our adventures with a side of snacks and a restroom nearby!
It's Opener There 
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