We woke to the sound of heavy rain. Not the brief tropical kind that blows through in twenty minutes, but the sort of steady downpour that settles over the rainforest and refuses to leave. Water hammered the roof hard enough that spending the morning in the open-backed birdmobile sounded considerably less adventurous than it had […]
Our transition from Antarctica to the Canopy Tower started with almost no sleep in Buenos Aires, followed by an email from Avianca informing us that our connecting flight had been cancelled. The replacement itinerary helpfully rebooked us for December 3. But it was November 29. Were we about to embark on an unplanned trip to […]
We woke up to the ship anchored off Palaver Point, home to a large chinstrap penguin colony along the Antarctic Peninsula. After landing, we followed the marked path to the left of the beach, climbing a broad snowy slope that overlooked the colony below. From there we watched the daily routine unfold as penguins carried […]
The plan for the day involved arriving at the Lemaire Channel around sunrise. Remember how we shifted the ship’s time zones earlier in the voyage? This was a perfect example of why. I understood the strategy now. Sunrise was closer to 5 a.m. instead of 3 a.m. For reasons neither of us can explain, we […]
Andy headed up to the Panorama Lounge early that morning. The day started with Beaked Whale sightings, followed by several humpback whales surfacing among the swells. Winds pushed close to 40 knots, and the seas bounced around enough that Zodiac cruises were cancelled for the morning. For a while we simply watched whales and waves […]
After days of uncertainty, shifting plans, and watching the weather, the opportunity to reach the Snow Hill emperor penguin colony suddenly felt very real. Neither of of could sleep, so we went up on deck to watch the sunrise. At 4:32am. Helicopter Flights to the Emperor Penguins Helicopter operations began around 7am so the expedition […]
We woke to sustained winds around 60 knots, with gusts pushing close to 70. Fun fact: A knot is a unit of speed used in aviation and maritime navigation that equals one nautical mile per hour (about 1.85 km/h or 1.15 mph). The term comes from early sailors who measured a ship’s speed by counting […]
We woke up to pouring rain. Normally that would have dampened the mood, but we were still glowing from the day before. Penguin number thirteen, the Fiordland crested, had delivered in spectacular fashion. Now the focus shifted. The entire trip had been built around Snow Hill. But first, we had to find a Humboldt penguin […]
Lake Moeraki Wilderness Lodge From Fox Glacier, it was a short drive to Lake Moeraki Wilderness Lodge. We traveled here for one reason. The Fiordland crested penguin. We had booked a garden view room and were assigned Room #10, which overlooked the river and felt like an unexpected upgrade. The lodge had this warm, slightly […]
Crossing to the West Coast If you aren’t familiar with South Island geography, Akaroa sits on the east coast. Our next destination, Lake Moeraki, is on the west coast. And in between? A rather inconvenient mountain range. This stretch became one of the most memorable parts of our South Island wildlife road trip experience. Google […]