During the night our stout little ship slipped silently southward down the sheltered waters of the Gerlache Strait. The islands of Brabant, Anvers, and Wiencke lay to our west and the mountains of the Antarctic Peninsula’s Danco Coast, our east. Early morning risers were treated to that special light that comes with the dawn when the rising sun illuminates snow-capped peaks with alpine glow of rose and pink. At 6:30 we were passing Cape Renard, the entrance to what is arguably Antarctica’s most scenic passage—the Lemaire Channel. Several thousand feet of near vertical rock of Booth Island bound this narrow waterway on one side and equally impressive mountains separated by tidewater glaciers make up the other. The foredeck, bridge, and observation deck were the posts of choice to witness this spectacular transit.
Shortly after breakfast we began the day’s first set of activities. Expedition leader Lucho divided the ship’s complement of guests in two. Half of us went off on a Zodiac cruise among the giant grounded icebergs to the south of Booth Island, while the others went ashore to visit colony containing the three species of brush-tailed penguins or to hike to the top of a hill offering an outstanding panoramic view of the surrounding landscape. Almost two hours later the two groups were swapped at the landing so that all could enjoy both experiences.
In the early afternoon two rounds of kayaking were organized to take advantage of this extraordinarily beautiful windless day. The kayak platform was set up at the port side-gate and 117 guests took to the water to explore around the bay. When the paddling terminated, delicious barbecued Argentinean lomito sandwiches and beer were served on the sundeck. When all the kayaks were stored safely back aboard and the anchor weighed, National Geographic Explorer turned to head further south down a passage known as Penola Strait.
During supper we continued southward through mirrored seas and pans of sea ice with the rugged snow-capped mountains of the distant peninsula for a splendid backdrop lit up by the setting sun. We were making our way toward 66 degrees, 33 minutes south latitude, the Antarctic Circle!
