Penguins On New Years Eve

We finally completed the crossing of the Drake Passage and woke-up to an incredible view in a massive cove (Cierva Cove) on the Antartica Peninsula.  The temperature today is 30 to 34 degree with broken cloudy skies.  Our Norwegian guide on the zodiac is named Rune.  The morning zodiac trip is an hour-plus cruise around this scenic cove.  In the afternoon, we take a second zodiac trip and go ashore with our first steps on the Seventh Continent at the "Bottom of the World".  

Today, we saw gentoo and chinstrap penguins - no seals, sea lions and/or whales in this cove, but lots of beautiful icebergs.  On average, the ice berg size you see above the surface of the sea represents 10% of the total iceberg "mass".  The colors also tell a story ie, the darker shade of blue means the iceberg is older and the color happens because the oxygen is squeezed out of the ice.  When you see what appears to be a black color iceberg that means it is really old and all of the oxygen is extracted from the ice.  

So, more scenery pictures than animals, but hope you enjoy the beauty of the area and appreciate the size of these icebergs. 

Happy New Years!!





































 


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