MS National Geographic Endeavour
Cuverville Island and Neko Harbor (continent of Antarctic)
Friday, January 23, 2009

    Up early again this morning and for good reason. The sun was out and we were cruising by incredible scenes of rock and ice just everywhere you looked. At about 09:00, we dropped anchor off Cuverville Island and made our way to shore via Zodiac. This was our first encounter with Gentoo penguins. They are a little larger and have a distinctive orange beak. As with all the penguins we’ve seen so far, these were raising the recently hatched chicks. It is impossible to describe the experience of sitting on a rock at the edge of a rookery. The sounds and smells are unique. That, plus you are in the midst of hundreds-of-thousands of flightless birds. Many are waddling by only a foot or two away. Just like people, some are curious about you, some are extra cautious, and some just ignore you completely.

    The island has high, steep hillsides covered in snow and ice. There are white and blue ice formations floating in the surrounding water. Nesting penguins are feeding the chicks in the stone-circle nests. The non-sitting parent is swimming in the adjacent water. Brown skua are stalking the nests, looking for an unprotected chick to prey upon. So many of these formally-attired penguins just seem to be walking this way and that. There were lots of picture opportunities, especially if you didn’t mind getting down in the mud, ice, and lying on guano-coated rocks (and everything else).

    After Cuverville, we returned to the ship, had lunch, and sailed further south to Neko Harbor, where we set foot onto the Antarctic continent itself. Up until now, it has been islands only. Neko Harbor is another magnificent locale. There is a colony of Gentoo penguins here, too. They have trampled a series of highways in the ice leading up and down the mountain side and form lines walking up and down from the high nesting locations to the sea. They travel the same routes enough that the ice melts to the underlying soil forming trenching that they can more easily use.

    There were also two Weddell seals sleeping on the beach. The seals and the penguins ignore each other. The penguins are more concerned with the skua population. The whole colony goes into an uproar when a skua looks like it might be about to attack. There is a distinctive call that is taken up by the penguins. Even the young chicks are alert and staring up at the sky at these times.

    Leaving Neko Harbor, we continued to sail south and make our first pass through the awe-inspiring narrows called the Lemaire Channel. We will make a second pass in the opposite direction in a few days.

    We learned tonight that we might try to make it south beyond the true Antarctic Circle, if we can maintain our present speed and don’t have to slow too much for ice. If we make it, it would be the first time this season for Endeavour.

    This was a very busy day with lots of exercise, but the time just flew past. Most on board agree that we can rest when we get home. This has been a strenuous trip, but a rewarding one and with the luxury of great food, a hundred new friends, and a terrific bunch of naturalists and other staff that clearly love teaching and sharing.