Heading South

It is now two weeks since I jetted off on my adventure South, and as I write this is feels like I’m going through a patch of turbulence again.  However I’m not on a plane - I am being jolted about as our ship, the JCR (James Clark Ross) makes her way through sea ice around the South Orkneys.  It is breathtakingly beautiful here. 

 

As the JCR pushes floes aside, krill is thrown up from ice shelves below the water and pure white Snow Petrels swoop down to pick up an easy meal.  They are silhouetted as they climb against the low dark clouds as flecks of darting bright white.  The scene around is monochrome, with the water an inky black and the ice floes glowing blindingly white even in the gloom of the clouds.  The snow flecked black ranges of the South Orkneys rise majestically from the ice but the peaks are truncated by the clouds.  Whispers of colour are provided by blue glacial ice in the mountains and icebergs.

Coronation Island, South Orkneys.  It really was black, white and blue!

Up on the Monkey Island (the highest accessible part of the ship outside) the sea ice stretches as far as the eye can see.  It will take us almost 24hrs to crawl our way out to open seas again and onwards to South Georgia.

The journey to KEP began with a flight from Heathrow to Sao Paolo, Brazil, and thence to Santiago, Chile where we stayed the night.  The hotel had a unique wake up call for our 0530 check-in: a small earthquake!  The next flight to the Falklands (with a brief stop off in Punta Arenas) was packed with tour-makers joining a photography cruise in Stanley.

It is an hour’s drive along a dusty unsealed road from Mount Pleasant Airport to Stanley.  The view was of endless rolling yellow/brown peat and tussock with occasional rocky outcrops and various peaks rising to the North of us – rather bleak in the bright sun.

We immediately joined the JCR moored in FIPASS – a port created from some old cargo barges.  I’ve been assigned a 4-bed cabin, which I’m sharing with two scientists.  These 4-bedders are actually roomier than the 2-bed berths, especially with only 3 of us in.  There is a large desk, two chairs (one of which I’ve christened the snooze chair as I seem to want to snooze every time I sit in it!), and with the table stowed plenty of space to move around.  Our bathroom is ensuite.  I’m in the upper bunk, but can’t be bothered with stowing/unstowing the ladder resulting in some creative moves to get in and out of bed with minimal disturbance!

Life on the ship is pretty good, especially the food.  It is possible to have a full cooked breakfast, a three course lunch and a five course dinner every day, all with table service from the stewards! I’ve had to start skipping courses else I’ll have to be rolled off the ship.  That said, we do have a gym on board…cycling whilst the ship was rolling heavily was an interesting experience.

 

Lady Elizabeth Wreck, Falkland Islands

Before we sailed south, I had the chance to explore around Stanley.  The Lady Elizabeth wreck is on the way to Gypsy Cove, where a colony of Magellanic Penguins can be found – my first penguin sighting.  Next door is Yorke Bay, where the Argentinians first landed in the 1982 conflict and whose mines still litter the pretty white sand dunes.  

Magallenic Penguin, Gypsy Cove, FI

Mines still at Yorke Bay, FI - in the last few years many beaches have been cleared

First stop on our journey was a short sail round the corner to re-fuel, and another chance for a trip ashore.  Bertha’s Beach is a windswept sweep of white sand with Commerson’s dolphins playing in the waves.  An hour’s walk up the beach was a colony of Gentoo penguins, sitting incongruously amongst the sheep.

Gentoo Penguin in a Sheep Field, Bertha's Beach, FI

As we started to sail south, the boat was followed by an array of birds including the aptly named Giant Petrals, and the below Black-Browed Albatross.  Standing out on deck, the birds seem almost in touching distance.  It wasn’t long until the wind began to pick up and the swell increased, giving the ship some impressive rolls.  Sea sickness was mostly kept at bay by tablets – although after managing an hour in the gym one day, I was rather ill on returning to my cabin.

Black-browed Albatross seen from the JCR nr FI.

Sea sickness hasn’t been a problem in the ice though as swells can’t build, and we are down to a speed of less than 5 knots.  Many of us were up on deck when the ice was first spotted just south of 60 degrees.  Icebergs floated by, increasing in number and size.  Then several spurts were spotted, and at least 4 whales passed near the ship, though not close enough to identify.  It is difficult to adequately describe the change on the horizon that hinted at the sea ice – a just perceptible band of bright white between the sea and the clouds.    At the same time, out of the gloom the Inaccessible Islands loomed into view.

Photogenic Iceburg, somewhere in the South Atlantic north of Inaccessible Islands!

People stood at the front of the ship (the Fo’csle) as we entered the ice, and so began the slow juttering/banging crawl to Signy.  The JCR isn’t an icebreaker, only ice-strengthened, so cannot just ram her way through.  Paths of least resistance are found, floes nudged out of the way, and sometimes some butt-wiggling action creates a route.  Occasionally we found ourselves reversing when no path was clear.  After a few hours we were surrounded by ice and you couldn’t make out where we had sailed through.  At night, spotlights were turned on and shone on the ice, which looked pretty ethereal. 

Entering the Sea Ice nr 60 degrees South

Surrounded by Ice for over 24hrs

We had pushed our way through the ice for 24hours before we reached Signy Island in the South Orkneys but we didn’t know if we could access the station to complete ‘relief’ (opening up the winterised station, including cargo resupply) until the very last moment.  A party was sent out in a RIB in the snow and blowing winds to investigate, and a plan hatched to send out the cargo tender to an appropriate shore (the jetty was iced in) the following day when the weather would be better.

I had to wait a further two days until I got my chance to set foot on the southernmost bit of land I’ll get to.  I checked and re-stocked the medical supply before joining in some general digging.  Signy is a beautifully bleak spot where there are ongoing penguin monitoring studies and scientists are often hosted from other nations.

Me on the iced-in jetty at Signy Research Station, South Orkneys, ANTARCTICA!

On the original itinerary I would have been at KEP, South Georgia by now…we may yet head further north to Bird Island first.  Meanwhile, I’ll have another cup of tea and enjoy the cruise!

(PS I’ve taken LOADS of pics already.   Uploads of pics to this blog will be limited in number and quality due to satellite bandwidth.  As ever, get in touch if you have any questions/queries/special requests - and don't forget you can write to me in South Georgia...I may even send a letter back!)