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| Ice arch in the centre of the view, kayaks on the right. |
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| The light here was extraordinary. |
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| You can see the ship poking out behind the hill. |
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| The snow sparkled pleasingly. Shadow self-portrait. |
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| Random penguins. |
A regular feature of the day was the evening briefing which took place in the main bar on the ship. This typically took place at around 6 pm, after everyone had time to get back aboard, change and shower. If the landings were taking longer than usual, it would be delayed.
The primary function of the briefing was to keep everyone up-to-date with conditions in the region and how they might affect our plans. For example, the general plan for this expedition was to work our way down the peninsula and cross the Antarctic Circle at 66°S. How quickly we would proceed there would be dictated largely by the weather. If the weather was good where we were - and it was at the time - but worse further south, it made sense to hang around in the good weather for a while longer. Stephi would liaise with Captain Harrison to plan their route over the coming days, based on interesting landing spots and avoiding bad weather. Bad weather would generally mean a ship-bound experience, which nobody wanted.
However the previous evening's briefing had some important news for us. Someone on the ship had fallen ill. We weren't given the specifics, but the upshot was that we couldn't risk moving further south when they may require medical attention beyond that which the ship could provide. The ship did of course have a doctor on board, in addition to a clinic and paramedic, but there's only so much they could do.
The plan was to wait and see whether the passenger recovered. If things took a turn for the worse, we could head north to the South Shetlands, where there is a landing strip. From there they could eventually be evacuated back to the mainland. It would be a long and difficult journey for anyone, let alone someone who's seriously ill.
This had the potential to stop us getting to the Antarctic Circle, but I'm happy to report that there was no grumbling when this was announced. Someone's life was at stake, and 66°S is just a number. There was also still a chance we could make it there. The journey itself wouldn't take too long in good conditions, so we could always make a break for it later. For now, there were further considerations. The weather where we were was wonderfully mild, while further south it wasn't looking so good. So it made perfect sense to stay in the area for the time being.
That's why we spent the next morning at Cuverville Island, in the bright, crisp light instead of being further south. Cuverville Island is named after Jules de Cuverville, who was a vice admiral in the French navy, but never went to Antarctica himself. His name was chosen by Adrien de Gerlache, leader of the politically complex Belgian Antarctic Expedition of 1897 - 1899, which encountered many difficulties and was responsible for a lot of the names in the region. I'll touch on this expedition again later. It is, like many of its age, a fascinating tale.
The island itself consisted of pebble beaches and snow-covered hills. The former were a little easier to walk on, although they were frequently wet and slippery. The latter weren't too bad going, but going uphill in the snow in all your gear was always hard work. And on a bright, sunny day like this you find yourself breaking into a sweat. I had to undo my huge expedition-provided parka to cool down, which wasn't something I'd imagined when putting on all my layers that morning. I will add that it’s a testament to the power of well-selected layers that I was dry by the time I got back to the ship. I'll detail all the clothing I took in a later post.
Bonus selection of digital 3D and 2D shots on Flickr
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