Last Antarctica Landing

Sunday January 28th 2024

Portal Point & Mikkelsen Harbour
Antarctic Peninsular

Expedition Morning

06:15 Wake-up call

This morning, depending on wind, weather and ice conditions, we plan to have a landing at Portal Point.

Expedition Afternoon

This afternoon, depending on wind, weather and ice conditions, we plan to have a landing at Mikkelsen Harbour.

---

This was our last excursion day before the dreaded two-day rollercoaster ride across the Drake Passage to Ushuaia, marking the end of almost three weeks of non-stop adventure, spectacular scenery, and wondrous wildlife encounters.

This morning, we visited Portal Point, another continental landing awaiting our exploration. Once we landed, we spotted a lone Weddell seal lounging on a snowbank, our first close-up sighting of this species. They say the Weddell seal has a face like a cat, with its large wide eyes, whiskered snout, and upturned mouth, I could definitely see the resemblance. It rolled around, exposing its plump belly and I couldn’t help but think of our own kitties back home lounging on the bed after chasing each other, knocking things over and shredding what’s left of our furniture. Who knows what destruction we will find when we finally get home. I’m terrified just thinking about it.

One Final Landing

It was snowing hard at Mikkelsen Harbour, blanketing the landscape in a thick veil of swirling flakes that reduced visibility to almost nothing. We were determined not to miss our last landing on the Great White Continent, so we braved the elements and landed on D’Hainaut Island. The snow fell heavily, pricking our faces like tiny ice daggers. The beach was strewn with icebergs and whale bones, and penguins stood with their backs turned against the wind and snow, futilely trying to shield themselves from the relentless elements.

Gus, at this point, was all penguined-out and stayed on the shoreline to photograph whale bones and icebergs instead. A penguin, however, showed him up and photobombed his picture.

Meanwhile, I went up to visit a couple more rookeries. We had 45 minutes to explore, which was more than enough. The area was somewhat bleak, littered with discarded oil drums, and a giant, rickety Tinker Toy structure looming over the penguin rookery, teetering as if it might collapse at any moment on the poor penguins’ home. Don’t get me wrong, there were still many cute penguin moments. You can check them out!

Once on board, we started our journey north to Ushuaia via the Drake Passage, bracing ourselves for the inevitable queasy farewell to the Antarctic.