Antarctic Adventure

February-March 2005

This is an article from WaveLength Magazine, available in print in North America and globally on the web.
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by Hayley Shephard

We boarded the Russian ship, the Professor Multanovskiy, in Ushuaia, on the Island of Tierra del Fuego in Argentina. She stood 150 feet long, carrying 49 passengers and a crew of 23 Russians, including the captain, officers, sailors, catering and housekeeping staff.

Once settled in our cabins and about to begin our eleven-day journey, the passengers were briefed on ship’s operations and itinerary, and were introduced to the expedition staff. The doctor on board offered his advice on the personal preparation required for a crossing of Drake Passage, and passed on a helpful hint to avoid hurting ourselves and our belongings: “What you don’t put on the floor will surely end up on the floor.”

Named after explorer Sir Francis Drake, this mighty stretch of water has a well- earned reputation as being one of the most Antarctic Adventure Hayley Shephard treacherous seas in the world. Here, the southern ocean waters pass around the globe unhindered by land masses, and are named by the latitude, from the ‘roaring forties’ to the ‘screaming sixties’. Storms frequently whip the ocean into a dark, gray, turbulent mass of heaving water. But as dramatic and uncomfortable as it sounds, I think back to Sir Earnest Shackleton and his crew who experienced these very waters not in summer, but in winter. And not in a 150 foot ship either—they were in a 22 foot open row boat!

Paddlers enjoying the surreal landscape.

Named after explorer Sir Francis Drake, this mighty stretch of water has a well-earned reputation as being one of the most treacherous seas in the world. Here, the southern ocean waters pass around the globe unhindered by land masses, and are named by the latitude, from the ‘roaring forties’ to the ‘screaming sixties’. Storms frequently whip the ocean into a dark, gray, turbulent mass of heaving water. But as dramatic and uncomfortable as it sounds, I think back to Sir Earnest Shackleton and his crew who experienced these very waters not in summer, but in winter. And not in a 150 foot ship either—they were in a 22 foot open row boat!

“One hand for the ship,” we called out to the people who were still up and about, the ones with good fortune (good stomachs) or good drugs. Those few were enjoying the educational lectures on wildlife they would soon be encountering. Some were out on the aft decks watching the Wandering Albatross, a bird that can only lift off in winds 20 knots or more, as its wing span is 12 feet.

When journeying to the Antarctic, you might be lucky and encounter something locally known as ‘The Drake Lake’ where seas are uncharacteristically calm and smooth, and subtle ocean-swells rock your ship gently from side to side. But more often than not, the weather and seas are less forgiving, as on this trip.

The passengers on these voyages choose to spend their vacation enduring rough, treacherous seas, experiencing temperatures that may drop to -15 degrees Celsius in a matter of a few minutes, surrounded by the potent, overwhelming odor of penguin guano, all for the sake of hanging out on the frozen edge of the largest continent in the world—Antarctica.

“Why on earth do you go there?” I’m asked. “What is there to see?”

Hayley demos an assisted rescue on deck.

I answer that Antarctica is like nowhere else on the planet, and teeming with life—from the tiniest krill at the bottom of the food chain, to leopard seals, chinstrap penguins, and humpback whales—all surrounded by rugged peaks, mountainous fjords and spectacular ice sculptures. What’s more, these ship journeys offer activities such as diving, camping and kayaking, going ashore in zodiacs, meandering among the wildlife and cruising by icebergs.

After two days, the good ship Multanovskiy slipped into the lee of Cuverville Island, taking shelter from the NW gale force winds. As we entered this protected channel, we passed between two enormous, grounded icebergs and the winds lessened. As we dropped the anchor, we made the judgment call: let’s go kayaking! The day was spectacular, with huge peaks reaching into blue sky and penguin calls drifting from the surrounding islands. The kayak group was the first to set foot on the shore of Cuverville Island and we took time to acquaint ourselves with the local crowd of gentoo and chinstrap penguins, stretching our ship-bound legs.

Cuverville Island lies in the entrance to the picturesque Errera Channel that separates a collection of islands from the continent. Often this channel is cluttered with towering icebergs where the glacial edges are continuously carved away, sending enormous chunks of turquoise blue ice plunging into the sea. It can create quite an obstacle course for our ship, as well as a ‘bergy bit’ slalom course for kayakers. The mountainous backdrop and dramatic, rugged peaks dwarf even the largest of icebergs, let alone the kayaks.

Encountering a humpback whale at close range.

The next morning the sun rose in clear skies, with just the odd cloud wisping across the crimson horizon. The air was still and the ocean silent: not one breath disturbed the ocean’s silky surface. We launched our kayaks from the north end of Cuverville Island and glided effortlessly in the direction of an intriguing ice tower. It stood strong and deliberate, like a statue, yet its sides were vulnerable to the scouring winds and currents. Feeling the unusual heat from the Antarctic sun, we removed our paddle pogies and woolen hats to soak up this welcome warmth. As the morning advanced, the heat started taking a toll on the fragile fringes of the glacial edge that surrounded us. Soon enough, with thunderous claps, the ice began falling from the shelves, filling the air with explosive sounds, as the pent-up forces burst the ice open, releasing its frozen grasp.

Porpoising penguins joined us, surfacing frequently to watch our progress. We tried to capture these aquatic visitors on camera, but they were just too quick for us. We drifted past a sleeping leopard seal on an ice floe. The seal’s rumbles, rattles, shakes and shudders drew us nearer. We watched and listened for some time and then moved on.

Eventually, we stopped paddling, rafted up, and I brought out a bag of chocolate treats to share with the group—a good old sugar rush to keep us warm and toasty. Then we saw another iceberg and went to explore. The size of this berg wasn’t as impressive as the first one, but the textures were fascinating. The direct sunlight emphasized its erratic grooves and gouges—deep pockets of emerald blue between perfect frozen valleys which had gouged themselves through the ice, displaying the berg’s history of tormenting seas and heavy weather. How many shapes does one iceberg take in its life?

After paddling for nearly two hours, we made it through all the arms of the Errera Channel, the first time for a Quark Kayak group—wahoo! Two zodiac drivers from the ship soon approached, followed by the ship. In a matter of minutes we were back on board, enjoying a well- earned lunch and looking forward to the next kayaking excursion.

© Story and photos by Hayley Shephard. Hayley was born and raised in New Zealand, and has been a kayak guide for over eight years, mainly in the Inside Passage waters of the British Columbia coast, as well as Baja, Mexico and New Zealand. She has piloted zodiacs and driven various vessels on marine and wildlife tours, educating people on grizzlies, orca and humpback whales. In the summer of 1999, she completed a solo sea kayak expedition around Vancouver Island, BC, followed by a road trip throughout North America to present a slide show of the journey (including some fundraising for the Georgia Strait Alliance marine conservation group). When not guiding or gallivanting around islands in her kayak, she has traveled to Africa, the Middle East and Nepal. She now lives on her 31-foot sailboat in Victoria, BC. In the fall and winter of 2005/06, Hayley will be presenting a series of slide shows of her recent solo sea kayak journey around the Queen Charlotte Islands, BC, as well as a slide show on ‘Adventuring in the Antarctic’. Keep an eye out for dates and venues in upcoming issues of WaveLength. Her Antarctic trip was with Quark Expeditions: www.quarkexpeditions.com.