14 Jan 23 - The Antarctica Trip - Cruising Down The Beagle Channel

By late afternoon, we were all boarded on the Plancius. I was sharing with Bill, an American traveller, Steve Preddy, a Welsh based Birder & Alexi, a Russian born, but American based traveller. Bunks agreed & bags stowed, it was time to head to the top deck to watch our departure.

The Plancius: At 90 metres long, she isn't a small expedition ship, until she is moored alongside one of the large cruise ships

It wasn't long before we were called to the lounge for the first of several briefings. We started with the safety briefing of what to do in the event of an emergency. If there is an emergency, we were expected to head to our cabins, grab lots of warm clothes and the non-inflating life jackets before returning to the lounge. We were then taken to the lifeboats, so we could see what we could expect if things went seriously wrong. All this is very important as accidents do happen. There is a good YouYube video from the well-known Scillies Birder, Bob Flood, who described the sinking of the MV Explorer in Antarctica in 2007, which is well worth watching to understand the seriousness of an emergency in the Southern Oceans.

Preparing to head to the lifeboats

Next was the introduction to the Captain and the expedition staff, followed by the call to dinner. I ended up enjoying a leisurely dinner with Steve, Bill & Alexi, before being one of the first to head up to the top deck: as it was still light outside. I was greeted by the news that I should have raced through dinner, as Barna, a Hungarian wildlife guide was first up and had seen and photographed a Spectacled Porpoise that evening. Sadly, it was the only one that was seen.

The Argentinian mountains in the fading light

There were good numbers of Southern Giant Petrels and Black-browed Albatrosses in the late evening light.

Black-browed Albatross: I didn't get any worthwhile photos that evening, so here is a photo from my previous visit to Argentina taken between Ushuaia and Estancia Harberton (27 Mar 18)

Southern Giant Petrel: They can be separated from the dark phase Northern Giant Petrels by the pastel green tip to their bill, which is a dull red in Northern Giant Petrels. Sometimes the green can be hard to see, while the red contrasts with the rest of the bill, even if the colour isn't obvious

Southern Giant Petrel: They are happy to scavenge anything they can, so here is a photo of their more gentle side

Further down the Beagle Channel, a pod of Dusky Dolphins put on a nice performance for those passengers who were on the top deck, with some of the pod repeatedly jumping close to the Plancius.

Dusky Dolphin: The white flanks are split and have a thinner line curving up to the dorsal fin. This separates Dusky Dolphins from Peale's Dolphin which also occur along our route. The white flanks on Peale's Dolphins curve up towards the dorsal fin in a broader stripe which doesn't have a split

Dusky Dolphin: Dusky Dolphins occur in the Southern Oceans off the coasts of South America of Peru, Chile, Argentina, the Falklands, Tristan da Cunha & Gough Island, Namibia & South Africa, Prince Edward & Marion Islands, Crozet Islands, Saint Paul & Amsterdam Islands, Australia & New Zealand

Dusky Dolphin

Dusky Dolphin

Dusky Dolphin

Dusky Dolphin

All too quickly, the light was fading. It had been a good start to the trip in the calm waters of the Beagle Channel. I knew it would be a few days before we saw similar calm conditions again.

The Plancius flag showing the wear from the last trip to Antarctica