Abercrombie & Kent Travel Logs
Read about the experiences of Abercrombie & Kent travellers in their own words, and learn what makes an A&K journey so uniquely satisfying.
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 15 – January 18, 2012
During the night, the wind decreased considerably and along with it the swell. We awoke to grey skies, with the occasional albatross making a close pass by the ship before banking off into the distance. It was quite peaceful looking out over the great expanse of sea, listening to the sound of Le Boreal [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 14 – January 17, 2012
We awoke to the gentle rocking of the Southern Ocean. Some of us slept in a little extra, just because we could. It had been quite a stretch of very active days of landings in Antarctica, so a low-key day to relax and recuperate was very welcome. After a leisurely breakfast and some good [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 13 – January 16, 2012
Our final day in Antarctica began with fog and light snow, but by breakfast the weather had quickly morphed into the most brilliant sun and blue sky imaginable. As our rubber chariot sliced through the glassy sea en route to Port Lockroy, huge mountains with wisps of cloud perched on top towered overhead. We [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 12 – January 15, 2012
Under a perfect blue sky with spectacular mountain scenery all around, Captain Patrick Marchesseau dropped anchor off of Halfmoon Island in the South Shetlands. The zodiacs landed in calm conditions on a cobble beach with several chinstrap penguins in attendance to greet us. The decaying remains of an old wooden boat was laying slightly [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 11 – January 14, 2012
From the 3:20am sunrise onward, hardy souls began to appear on the bridge and outer decks to take in the beautiful scene in the western reaches of the ice-choked Weddell Sea. Several hours later, in a line of pack ice off the port bow of the ship, two large black dots were spotted on [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 10 – January 13, 2012
As we pulled back the curtains on a slate grey sky this morning, it became evident that the wind had died back considerably during the night. Residual swell was still present, but alas it seemed that our right of passage for entering Antarctica itself had come to an end. We lingered over breakfast before [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 9 – January 12, 2012
The storm peaked during the night. With sustained winds above 40 knots, and gusts to 60 knots, the ocean swell intensified with the largest waves topping out at 10 meters. We tried to sleep through all the rocking and rolling, with some of us succeeding more than others. With the time change during the [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 8 – January 11, 2012
A light rain fell as the sky brightened over our early morning coffee and croissants. The zodiacs were lowered into calm waters, and soon we stepped ashore at Gold Harbor, easily one of South Georgia’s most beautiful beaches. We headed up from the landing, carefully dodging a huge pile of elephant seals, and began [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 7 – January 10, 2012
We awoke at anchor in the glassy waters of Cumberland Bay, with South Georgia’s highest peaks looming above us in the distance. Grytviken, a place soaked in history from the age of Antarctic exploration and exploitation, could be seen just ahead of the ship, tucked away in a quiet cove with a stunningly beautiful [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 6 – January 09, 2012
After fueling up on a light breakfast, we donned our layers, our parkas and our boots for our first outing in South Georgia, Salisbury Plain in the Bay of Isles. This large glacial outwash plain is fronted by a broad black-sand beach, and is home to one of South Georgia’s largest king penguin colonies. [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 5 – January 08, 2012
With a time change forward the night before, most of us opted for a late breakfast before gathering in The Theater for Ornithologist Patricia Silva’s introduction to penguins entitled, “Birds in tuxedos: Why do they look different?”. Patricia highlighted some of the species we may encounter on this trip including the Adelies, which march [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 4 – January 07, 2012
Well rested from a good night sleep, we socialized over scrambled eggs before embarking on what was to become a day of learning and wildlife watching. The first lecture of the day, “Fur-lined, web-footed wonders of the Antarctic: An introduction to the seals of the Southern Ocean”, was presented by Marine Biologist Charley Wheatley. [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 3 – January 06, 2012
A brisk wind greeted us when we stepped out on deck this morning. Captain Patrick Marchesseau had found some shelter from the ocean swell on the west side of Bleaker Island, but the wind continued to howl. Expedition Leader Larry Hobbs and Assistant Expedition Leader Marco Favero took a zodiac ashore to scout the [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 2 – January 05, 2012
We awoke to a new world, one defined by an ocean view in all directions, with the last remnant of the South American continent now just barely visible off in the distance behind us. Even though Le Boreal had left the shelter of the Beagle Channel during the night, we could scarcely feel the [...]
Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands
Day 1 – January 04, 2012
We converged on the small city of Ushuaia, all of us arriving from distant reaches of the planet for the same reason: to embark on an expedition to experience the wildlife and landscapes of the Falklands, South Georgia and the magnificent continent of Antarctica. As our flight approached Ushuaia, the majestic clouds parted at [...]
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