Date of Entry: February 18th 2016
Date of Writing: April 2nd 2016, Bla Hostel, El Calafate Argentina
We wake up at a decent hour and enjoy a tasty breakfast of egg, cheese and avocado sandwiches, the avocado’s having kept extraordinarily well on board. After breakfast sans the mexicans and Josh who are off camping, we decide to head out to wander around in some more penguin poop, but first we take a short zodiac ride over towards the mexican embassy (our name for the campsite) and two big icebergs which have clearly collided in the night. We’ve been gifted another beautiful day with bright blue skies leaving us all thrilled to be outside in paradise bay, which is like… well… paradise.
Eventually we motor back past our anchorage alongside the Chilean Antarctic base, making a landing near a posturing fur seal and countless more penguins. This is also our first close encounter with Sheathbills, little white birds that Darrel hates with a fiery passion. He calls them shit hawks (Trailer park boys anyone?), since the main part of their diet is shit. To me they seem harmless and pretty enough, but man does he hate them.
Once we’ve landed Darrel takes off to find a place to beach the zodiac and we fan out. The land on which Gonzalez Videla sits doubles as another Gentoo Penguin rookery. There’s less penguins than on Cuverville but there’s still over a thousand of them and the soundscape and action all around us is, as always a pleasure to soak in.
We keep spreading out and I end up on top a rocky outcrop where I find a single parent with two tiny chicks nuzzled in close to it’s belly, shivering from the cold wind and watching me with the impossible to replicate curiosity of youth.The adult watches me with trepidation so I make sure to give them plenty of room as I watch this beautiful scene, which will undoubtedly quickly turn tragic as there’s no way these tiny little babies will survive through their first winter, they’ve been born too late, which probably signals first time parents. The sad harsh realities of life, in a difficult place to live.
Eventually I leave these tiny little babies behind and head down to a little enclosed tide pool where a few penguins are swimming around and cleaning themselves before heading up to some abandoned sheds and down the hill along a beach impressed by the huge glacier off to my left. Penguins are everywhere, as are the shit hawks, and I can’t help but take more photos while watching their antics in amazement.
As we head closer and closer to the actual Chilean base buildings, one by one wandering that way, I come across a lazy fur seal who wants me to know just how aggressive he is, but doesn’t seem very interested in moving. As well as more penguins, always more penguins.
Darrel joins us here over on the backside of the beach and we approach a huge collection of Gentoo chicks under the Chilean flagpole at the end of the base, finding the buried remnants of an old whaling boat. We stand there watching the gentoo chicks mill about as Darrell tells us about a little history of the station before heading back to the zodiac. We’ll be visiting the base proper later in the evening, for now though we’re heading back to the boat and very much expecting to find the campers back on board. On the way back to the Spirit of Sydney we find a wallowing crab eater seal but no campers. They’ve evidently decided to have a slow morning/day and looking at their campsite I can hardly blame them.
We prepare some lunch and then head out for another zodiac ride, grabbing a few granola and chocolate bars to deliver to our campers before heading out into the wider sections of Paradise bay in search of whales. The clear blue sky and bright sun beaming down on the pure blue waters and reflecting off the countless icebergs makes the scene absurdly beautiful. Something that seems to be fairly normal in Antarctica.
As we head over towards the Mexican embassy Darrell spots a dinner plate type of small iceberg and asks us if we want to get out. At first we’re sure he’s joking but turns out he’s not, and in different groups we take our turn riding a small iceberg, just hoping it doesn’t crack or flip.
Eventually we all climb back on to the boat and head out towards the more open waters further still, all watching for whales. None present themselves unfortunately but we do get treated to lots more seals as we motor out towards what looks to be a truly massive iceberg.
We keep watching for whales but none show and our attention quickly turns to the King of icebergs before us. I want to call it the castle, because really with all the tunnels, jagged peaks, crenelations and crannies in the glowing blue ice, it really looks like a castle. And an epic one, quickly enough I find my mind wandering to fantasy realms. Seriously this thing is the perfect iceberg and though we spend a solid chunk of time around it, I’m yearning for more.
And just in case the photos don’t do it, here’s a brief video of what is likely the most boring side of the berg.
As we wave goodbye to the berg we do get a special sight, and a first on this trip to Antarctica. Ahead of us, on a much smaller iceberg, we see a leopard seal catching some rays and looking very relaxed. Leopard seals are vicious predators and an animal I’ve really been hoping to see. Truth be told they look less different than other seals than I expected, though the lithe body reminds one of a sports car in comparison to a crab eater which might be more an old volvo sedan. Either way it’s beautiful and only snorts softly as we approach for a closer look, too focused on resting in the sun.
From here we head back to the boat and though it’s almost 4 pm we find our campers only just getting back. We see some bad weather coming in and so are forced to pull up the anchor and move around to the more sheltered bay behind the Chilean base, me getting a more active roll dropping the anchor as we also run out shorelines. It takes me a few goes to do it on my own, but we get it done, and I’m slowly but surely becoming a better sailor.
On board we relax for a few hours and cook up a small dinner before heading over to the chilean base around 830. None of us seem sure what we’re going for, if it’s a tour, or some food, or… well the possibilities seem endless, and the night turns into all those things and way way more.
We get a quick tour of Gonzalez Videla from some very friendly Chileans who instantly make me miss Chile. And then we’re shown up to their second story bar/living room karaoke chamber. They bring up an absurd giant disk covered in meat and onions diced into small pieces, firing up the grill and preparing it for us.
As we wait for the food to be ready and chat to various military and naval officers a cry goes up. Just outside, in some driving rain, someone has spotted something very rare. A white penguin!
Now of course Albino jumps to mind, but as we watch from the window Darrel reminds us that it’s not albino, it’s feet and beak are still bright orange with pigment, this is rather a leucitic penguin. Here’s the difference according to National Geographic “leucism is a mutation that prevents any melanin at all from being produced in feathers. Albinism occurs when an animal produces no melanin at all throughout its entire body.” At one point there were several making their home in this rookery but for the past couple of years only one has reappeared.
It’s miserable outside, a driving rain falling from the storm filled ever darkening sky. I don’t really care though, excusing myself from the company and heading outside for some photos. Getting out the door which locks from the outside is difficult, but I do, and am surprised to see it being chased by a normal looking chick. apparently the gene hasn’t been passed on. So here they are, my poor quality photos (thanks rain!) of a rare white penguin.
I eventually head back inside where the karaoke is just about to kick off (with videos to come once I can get them uploaded). At any rate I had not expected to enjoy the night but it turns epic, and is actually my first time fully participating in karaoke. The first song I drop? Where is the love by the black eyed peas and it devolves from there, with Tash a willing partner for any song be it bad modern hip hop (milkshake by kelis) To boy band classics (backstreet’s back-the backstreet boys). Of course there’s lots of chilean music too, tons of conversation, way too many drinks, a limbo contest and good times had by all.
When we finally decide it’s time to leave it’s approaching 4 am and the chilean’s object heartily wondering why we would leave so early. We promise to come back on the next day and radio Josh who has stayed back with the boat so that Darrel could party with us, then comes the most interesting part of the evening, getting back to the zodiac which is parked at the other end of the penguin rookery.
I won’t go into details as we did our absolute best to avoid disturbing the sleeping penguins screeching, pooping and blundering around in the darkness (that middle one was just the penguins, not us… i hope). Mistakes are made, but nothing serious. We do eventually make it back to the zodiac, some of our drunker members having fallen in penguin poop multiple times, which leads to most of us stripping down in the cockpit before stumbling to our bunks and passing out leaving the clean up for the morrow. Of course we do wash our boots to keep them clean and uncontaminated as is required by Antarctic treaties, and nothing made it into the boat.
As we fall asleep my mind replays images from the long night behind closed lids. The king of all ice bergs, a leopard seal, a white penguin, so much karaoke and party time, and of course Matt, covered in penguin shit, swearing at me in french Canadian to bring the zodiac closer to him, rather than him move towards it. I’ll just say this. Tabernac!
