We made it! After two full days crossing the Drake Passage on National Geographic Explorer we finally arrived in Antarctica. Our first landing was Jenny Island. South of the Antarctic Circle, this island served as a wonderful introduction to Antarctica and afforded us our first encounters with some of the Southern Ocean’s iconic denizens—elephant seals and Antarctic fur seals. These animals lay scattered about on the beach, periodically raising their heads to watch as we meandered by.
Later in the afternoon, we visited nearby Pourquoi Pas Island, where we walked among hundreds of Adélie penguins and hiked up to an incredible glacier. We also had the opportunity to kayak among icebergs that had recently calved from several of the nearby glaciers. From this vantage point, we observed porpoising penguins and lazy crabeater seals. It was a full day that did not disappoint.
