Group B was to be the first Zodiac Landing at 8:30am. Because of this, we had breakfast delivered to the room early. At the designated time, we reported to the Atlas Lounge then headed to the Mud Room to don our winter gear. The landing took us to Hydrurga Rocks where the Chinstrap Penguin lived. Hydrurga Rocks was covered with snow, and the snow continued to fall the entire time that we were there. The penguin were in different stages of growth – young babies still being fed by their mother, young penguin maturing and molting adults.
The penguin are very instinctive and return to the same
location yearly to breed and hatch the babies.
The Sheathbill Bird could be found amongst the penguins. These birds feed off penguin dung. Penguins do not always absorb all of the
nutrients from their food. The Sheathbill
Bird then eats the leftover nutrients. Very lazy but also very efficient.
Being part of the first Zodiac group meant that we were the
first group to return allowing free time.
We gathered in the Dome to relax and play cards before lunch. The ship repositioned itself during lunch; relocating
to Cierva Cove which is in the Palmer Archipelago in Hughes Bay.
After lunch, Melanie, Jenna, Jerry, and I prepared for
paddling. Paddling was in the blow-up
kayak style “Duckies”. A waterproof suit
and boots were provided. There is a
specific way to put the suit on without damaging the material. The process was to put our feet in first,
then our arms, put the neck over our head, zip the suit shut then “burp” the
air out of the suit so it is suctioned on to the body. Life jackets were then placed over the entire
outfit.
We loaded into two Zodiacs which were pulling the Duckies
behind. After moving into the cove away
from the ship, we carefully loaded ourselves into the Duckies. We spent nearly 90 minutes paddling around
the Cove through ice and around icebergs.
There was an Argentine research center across the bay. Gentoo Penguin were ashore and popping around
us in the water.
While we were paddling, the rest of the passengers were
cruising the bay in the Zodiacs. A
Leopard Seal followed our friends’ Zodiac for a time. And the Leopard Seal caught a penguin and proceeded
to demonstrate how it kills the penguin to prepare it for eating! As paddlers, we did not see the Leopard Seal
which may have been a good thing.
A briefing was held before dinner which highlighted what we
had seen and to prepare us for what would be seen the next day. The Guides also answer random questions from
the passengers which allow us better understanding of Antarctica and the
animals of the region.
Dinner was Japanese theme followed by bedtime.
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