Our last full day in Antarctica would be one to remember. The ice conditions along the peninsula were such that our planned visit to Port Lockroy, the most visited place in all of Antarctica, was not possible. Instead the captain and expedition leader hatched a plan to go to a rarely visited island in the South Shetlands—Snow Island. This small island, dominated by ice and snow, has a small seasonal population of Southern elephant seals. These largest of the pinnipeds have made a comeback after having been hunted during the peak of seal hunting in Antarctica. The conditions this morning were wet and wild. The wind and rain increased throughout the morning, but it was all worth it as the young elephant seals were curious as to our arrival and a few even made advances towards our boots to see what we were.
Midday had National Geographic Explorer make her way to the only active volcano along the Antarctic Peninsula. Deception Island was named for its deceptive appearance to the sealers of the 19th century who did not realize that a large protected bay was present inside the island. Once found, shore based whaling stations were set up in what is now called Port Foster to take advantage of the large numbers of cetaceans that came to Antarctica to feed every summer. The volcano last erupted in the early 1970’s and has been quiet ever since. The captain took the ship into the caldera and the many layers of volcanic rock mixed with ice could be seen along the inner shores of the island. It was a fitting end to our visit to Antarctica. A place of impressive extremes.
