Antarctica! Today was the day for the much-anticipated continental landing, and Orne Harbor delivered a spectacular welcome. Our expedition team surveyed the area thoroughly for crevasses and established a safe route up to the ridge. Sweeping views of the Gerlache Strait and nesting chinstrap penguins were the reward for those who trekked up the switchbacks.
Crossing the Gerlache Strait, we kept company with type B killer whales and the afternoon was spent Zodiac cruising among the Melchior Islands, a small cluster of rocky islands between Brabant and Anvers Islands located in the channel connecting the Gerlache Strait to the Drake Passage. Bright sunshine and blue skies illuminated the surrounding mountains.
The final highlight was drifting with a lunge feeding humpback and looking into the water around our small boats and seeing the krill swarms upon which they were feeding.
Antarctica behind, Cape Horn ahead!
