Our
morning was spent visiting the historic British Base A, or Bransfield House as
it’s now known, at Port Lockroy on Goudier Island. It was established as a scientific
outpost and deep-listening station in 1944 under the code name Operation
Tabarin. Our captain parked National
Geographic Explorer soundly into the remaining fast ice, allowing us yet
another opportunity to stroll or cross-country ski on top of the frozen ocean
surface. We also had the chance to visit the museum and post office maintained
by the United Kingdom Antarctic Heritage Trust after the British abandoned the
locale in the 1960s.
By the afternoon, we had sailed the relatively short distance to Paradise Bay, an incredibly scenic bay surrounded by countless glaciers and towering peaks. We admired the picturesque skyline, between snow squalls that swept in, adding an extra Antarctic feeling to the scene. Situated in the bay sits an often-unoccupied Argentine research base called Base Brown from which we had easy access to the shore as well as to a short climb up a snowy slope with excellent views. The bay itself is a wonder to explore by Zodiac, so we set out to make it a two-fold experience.
