Day 12 - Moltke Harbour and Drygalski FjordThe morning of the 12th day of the trip was rougher than normal. This was evidenced by the appearance of sick bags on the handrails throughout the ship and the bigger roll of the ship as I partook in a game of pinball with the walls of the ship's corridors. After carefully getting my coffee (and biscuits) onto its usual spot at Deck 4 Aft prior to breakfast, I set about checking to see what was around. What was noticeable was the apparent drop in temperatures. It was frickin' freezing. The sea spray was freezing on the deck of the ship and icicles were being formed along the railings. This was the coldest yet. Time went by and soon it was necessary to grab breakfast prior to our morning excursion to Moltke Harbour. I quickly made a beeline for the dining room for a massive mug of hot coffee and the Chef's Special omelette.
Sea spray freezes on the railings of the MV Sea Spirit as we headed further south
One of the many glaciers scattered along the coast of South Georgia. Having warmed up during breakfast, I headed back up on deck for more
Pintado or Cape Petrel or Cape Pigeon floats over the surface of the Southern Ocean. I love these birds.
Snow Petrels through the blizzard...in their element.
Snow Petrel
Wilson's Storm Petrel
Antarctic Prions
Antarctic Prion
Blue Petrel
Antarctic Prion (left) and Blue Petrel (right). Easy to distinguish these species from each other by the pattern/colouring on the undertail and uppertail feathers.
Moltke Harbour...one could smell the Fur Seals from here! Some rare blue sky peeking through the cloud. When we reached Moltke Harbour, the smell of the Fur Seals was very obvious on the wind. It was also soon apparent to those of us out on deck that there was no way we were going to land Zodiacs here. It was just too rough. The wave heights were too big at the back of the ship where we would get into the Zodiacs. And this was soon confirmed over the tannoy when a recon team went to suss out the landing. Time to drive on. It was the first time that a landing/Zodiac tour had been cancelled on the trip. Quite incredible really, when one considers where we were and the conditions that usually prevail. We were very lucky in that regard. However, I think some passengers looked slightly relieved as it was very, very cold out there. As Moltke Harbour was out of bounds, we headed for Dyrgalski Fjord earlier than planned. We were not sure if it was going to be possible to access the Fjord as it had a tendency to be ice-bound due to ice shed from the Risting Glacier, which sits at the end of the Fjord, and from sea ice coming up from the Ross Ice Shelf in the Antarctic. The birds continued to appear. My first Chinstrap Penguins of the trip were seen porpoising out of the increasingly rougher seas, and Albatrosses swept along in total control, accompanied by Prions and Petrels.
A Blue Petrel following a Black-browed Albatross in worsening conditions
A Gentoo Penguin porpoises behind 3 Chinstrap Penguins...my first Chinstraps of the trip! Antarctic Prion and Blue Petrel are in the background.
Grey-headed Albatross Soon the icebergs started appearing as well. My jaw dropped when I saw my first. I have seen plenty of sea ice before in northern Japan during the winter months, together with frozen harbours, but I had never seen an iceberg before. This was epic. We really were heading towards Antarctic waters now. The richness and depth of the wildlife we had experienced so far from Ushuaia to St. Andrew's Bay, was suddenly being usurped and replaced by the bleak and barren landscape of south-east South Georgia being brushed by a massive tabular iceberg from Antarctica. Things were changing on the horizon.
National Geographic Photographers Paul Nicklen and Cristina Mittermeier take the first Zodiac out to test the waters of Drygalski Fjord. What we did not expect to see as we puttered around on the Zodiacs was a feeding flock of about 40-50 Snow Petrels. I was in a Zodiac with Dave "Danger Dave" Riordan (great guy), whose family originally came from Cork and Italy! Dave brought us gently towards the feeding flock. They were calling and bickering on the water, as well as roosting up on the brash ice that had broken off the Risting Glacier found at the end of the Fjord. They were truly mesmerising, sitting on the cobalt blue waters. Another aspect of the fjord was the colour of the water. It was the richest of blue, and most mineral-rich sea water I have ever seen.
After leaving the Snow Petrels to do their thing, we toured around the Fjord, listening to the glacier creak, groan and moan. The cracks were loud and echoed around the Fjord, signalling a potential calving event at the front of the glacier. On one occasion an event occurred after such a crack and it was such a wonderful thing to witness, seeing a massive chunk of ice fall away into the sea from the face of the glacier. The Antarctic Terns, Snow Petrels and Pintado also feed along the front of the Risting Glacier, where the meltwater cascades into the sea. The Risting Glacier is 4.5 nautical miles long, lying north of Jenkins Glacier and flowing southeast into the head of Drygalski Fjord.
The face of the Risting Glacier.
Damian Caniglia (http://damiancaniglia.com.au/) at the bow of the Zodiac being driven by Emma, leading his photographic tour group around the fjord. Great guy.
Pintado (Cape Petrel)
The face of the Risting Glacier, with the MV Sea Spirit there for scale. A Zodiac can be seen on the left, with a few more near the front of the glacier.
The blue glacial ice floating in the blue glacial waters. A handful of Gentoo Penguins were dotted around, looking lost and forlorn. Brown Skuas and Kelp Gulls also quartered the skies looking for food. A handful of Antarctic Fur Seals were hauled up along the steep edges. But it was a few Weddell Seals, our first of the trip, that got the most attention. Although they are the most numerous seal in Antarctic waters, we only saw a dozen at best. We casually drove around, seeing some more Weddell Seals, Brown Skuas and a couple of King Penguins, also looking a bit lost on the steep-sided shoreline. Dave skilfully navigated the glacial ice in the water, being careful not to get too carried away as we sped over some brash ice. The sound of the ice off the base of the Zodiac was a bit unnerving! Great fun though. South Georgian Shags also hung around the rocks and scree. It was so quiet. When the engine was turned off, the quietness of the place was overwhelming. The snow kept falling and we were finally called to shore. It was time to leave one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited.
Weddell Seal
Antarctic Tern
Gentoo Penguin
Paul Nicklen drives the Zodiac in the background, while my cousin Peter Wilson drives the Zodiac in the foreground. It was quite cold now, having been out on the sea for 3-4 hrous in the snow and facing the wind coming off the Glacier. We did get some hot chocoloate and Bailey's delivered via Zodaic though! That was a nice touch. This was, hands down, the best and most moving of experiences on my trip. I think the knowledge that we were leaving behind the mind-boggling mass of wildlife on South Georgia and heading towards the desolate and sparse Antarctic continent added to it. Dyrgalski Fjord gave an idea of what it would be like but the beauty and peacefulness I felt in the Fjord will stay with me forever.
Keywords:
Albatross,
Antarctica,
Canon,
Canon Professional Network,
Carmody,
Drygalski,
Drygalski Fjord,
Fjord,
Jim Wilson,
Mark Carmody,
Moltke,
Moltke Harbour,
Penguin,
Photography,
Quark,
Quark Expedition,
Snow Petrel,
South,
South Georgia,
ice
Comments
Damian Caniglia(non-registered)
As always Mark...Inspirational
Bernie Carney(non-registered)
Hi Mark,
Just caught up with the bits I missed of your blog today and have to say it is thoroughly adrenalin rousing and amazing all round. I think its fantastic that it so clearly portrays your gratitude and sheer disbelief at having experienced so much of what the majority of people never will. Love the photos, descriptions, words, emotion and of course the anthropomorphisms :) Regards, Bernie
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