Below the circle

When you move below the Antarctic Circle, lots of things change. The type of penguins we see, for instance: Gentoo penguins you will mostly see above the circle, on the rocky beaches of the Antarctic Peninsula – below the circle, you will not run into many of them. Instead you’ll meet their adorable relatives, the Adélie penguins, the furthest-south breeding of the brush-tailed penguins. You are more likely to see the great tabular icebergs down here, or come across some pack ice.

The one change that has been very noticeable, however, has been the fact that we don’t have an internet connection down here. No exchanging messages with friends or family, no writing blog posts, checking social media accounts and no checking work emails. So now you now why you’ve not heard from me for so long – we are only gradually making our way back northwards after spending a numer of days in Marguerite Bay, with landings and cruising in some amazing places where we were the only ship for miles and miles and miles.

It is hard to describe the otherworldliness of the places we have been to: Red Rock Ridge, Horseshoe Island, Stonington, through the Gullet, around Blaiklok Island, along Pourquoi-Pas Island and into Bourgois Fjord and Blind Bay. We have seen both the stunning beauty and harsh brutality of nature. We have seen abundant wildlife in a place where not even the hardiest of weeds can grow. We were charmed by the adorableness of chubby penguins and lazy seals, and witnesses to an apex predator hunting scene. We listened to the sound of pack ice being crushed by a huge ship or the thundering noise of glaciers or icebergs calving.

Words can’t do the magic of this place justice, not even photos can convey the awe these places inspire. Which, obviously, will not keep me from trying, so enjoy the photo dump!