Castro, Isla Chiloe, Chile

Visited UNESCO World Heritage sites on the Island of Chiloe, three different churches, and also a museum where we learned about the life of the people here.  One of the most interesting parts of the tour were the palacitos, wooden houses built on stilts along the Gamboa River. The folks harvest shellfish and clams when the tide is low, and go fishing when the tide is high.  Yesterday we visited Puerto Chacobuco, Chile where we hiked a trail to a waterfall on a nature preserve, enjoying the beauty of the perennial rainforest.

Punts Arenas, Chile

Another early morning with an excursion to Magdalena Island Penguin Reserve where we saw thousands of Magellan Penguins with their downy young.  These penguins make burrows in the ground for their nesting, and we thought this quite appropriate because the wind was so strong it was difficult to walk!  There were also Kelp Gulls nesting here with their young, and hundreds of South American Terns.  The Penguins were entertaining to watch as the fed their young or waddled to shore to swim or fish.  One was especially so as he pulled on a man's trousers with his beak. Most of the time the Penguins completely ignored their human admirers, but who knows what that penguin was attempting to do?

Ushuaia, Argentina

Early start this morning, took the End of the World Train to Tierra del Fuego National Park, visiting Ensenada Bay.  Upon returning, we walked along the harbor at Ushuaia and enjoyed the scenery and waterfowl.  In the afternoon, there was scenic cruising on the Beagle Channel with the snow covered peaks of the Andes Mountains.  The numerous peaks, waterfalls and glaciers make it the most spectacular mountain scenery ever.

Cape Horn, Argentina

Arrived at Cape Horn, the southern-most tip of South America after another rough passage over the Drake.  Going outside we soon learned the meaning of the Roaring Forties.  The weather did not seem to bother the many albatross though.  We are scheduled to arrive at Ushuia, Argentina tomorrow.

Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica

An overcast grey day at Palmer Archipelago where we had visitors to the Vaandam from the Palmer Research Station.  These folks told us about the research being conducted in the Antarctic as well as the logistics of life there.  We cruised the Le Maire Straight enjoying spectacular vistas.  In the morning it was comfortable enough be outside, but the visibility became poor and there were snow flurries by mid-afternoon.  The folks from Palmer Research Station left the ship at one PM.  We will not soon forget the sight of those two small boats passing a giant iceberg as they entered the bay on their way back to the station.  The white landscape and grey-blue ocean framed the folks aboard, who looked like small red dots.  It is difficult to imagine the life they must lead in such an isolated and inhospitable frozen landscape.

Cuverville Island, Antarctica

Began the day at Cuverville Island where we saw a huge colony of nesting Gentoo Penguins.  Opposite the island are the shores of the Antarctic Peninsula with rugged snow-covered peaks and glaciated valleys.  The sky was overcast most of the day, and it was as if everything was in black and white.  We have been fortunate to see many whales on the trip, the Right Whale, Humpback Whales, Minke Whales, but today we had one of the highlights of the trip, a pod of 12-15 Killer Whales.  As an expedition team member pointed out, we didn't see any penguins in the water at that time (photo is of an Adele Penguin).  We were unable to cruise the Le Maire Chanel today because there were too many icebergs.  The Captain plans to take an alternate route to Palmer Archipelago and Palmer Station, our destination for tomorrow.

Admiralty Bay, Antarctica

Awoke this morning to calm waters and sunshine after a rough passage over the Drake yesterday. Looked out the window and saw our first iceberg. We were outside early to see the beautiful landscape of Antarctica at Admiralty Bay.  Saw several research stations on the coast, and also two large penguin colonies one Adele and the other Chinstrap penguins.  Lots of ice floes, some with penguins or seals on them.  After several hours in Admiralty Bay, we headed for Hope Bay.  There were many huge tabular icebergs blocking the bay, so no hope of viewing Hope Bay, and traveling to our next destination.