Half Moon Island

December 29 – First Day in Antarctica

At 0330 the ship’s horn blew loudly and we stopped at King George Island to pick up a scientist they had left two weeks before. The ship then went to Half Moon Island, which is in the lee of Livingston Island and anchored about 0700, in light snow. The temperature was about -4 C. By 0815 the first passengers were on the beach. The snow increased for a while, but then we ended up with partly cloudy skies by the time we boarded the zodiacs at 1100. We were able to see Chinstrap Penguins, a few Gentoo Penguins, Gulls, Arctic Terns and a few Weddell Seals before returning to the ship at 1230. Unlike the Magellanic Penguins of Punta Arenas, these penguins build nests of pebbles raised above the ground to provide drainage.  The rock formations on the island were covered with the colored lichens that provided relief from the stark black and white of the landscape under the cloudy skies.  The winds remained calm the entire time we were anchored. As the skies cleared the views of the glaciers on Livingston Island continued to improve.

The Chinstrap Penguins had just begun to hatch, and we were fortunate to see a few chicks covered in gray down.

After everyone was on board about 1630, the Seabourn Quest raised anchor and set a course for Cuverville Island, passing close by Deception Island, an active volcano and former whaling station in the South Shetland Islands. As we continued down the Palmer Archipelago the shoreline of the Antarctic Peninsula loomed on our left, right out of our suite windows.

Approaching Half Moon Island

Our first shore landing with the Seabourn Quest

The Chinstrap Penguins scattered on the hillsides

Another view of the Seabourn Quest at anchor

Guarding the egg

Miriam with her camera at the ready

Trudging to the beach for fishing and a bath

The rock formations are really rugged

This penguin is guarding an empty egg

While thisone stands guard over an old whaling boat

As we leave, the penguin "runways" are really evident

The red lichens on the rocks bring some color, Livingston Island glaciers in the background

Large tabular bergs standing just outside the island

The rookeries extend clear to the top of the hills

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The chinstraps are often in pairs

But sometimes solo

Too bad we could not get the sound effects