PLEASE NOTE
All itineraries are for guidance only. Programs may vary depending on local ice and weather conditions and in order to take advantage of opportunities to see wildlife. Flexibility is paramount for expedition cruises.

Day 1  In the afternoon we embark in Ushuaia and sail through the Beagle Channel.

Days 2-3  In the Drake Passage we witness a multitude of albatrosses, petrels and fulmars.

Day 4  At Hope Bay and Brown Bluff we hope to set foot on the Antarctic Continent. In this area chances are good for encounters with Gentoo Penguins, Weddell Seals, Leopard Seals and Orcas.

Day 5  From Devil Island at the tip of the Weddell Sea is surrounded by huge table icebergs of the Larsen Ice Shelf. We will climb a hill with a gently slope from where we have a great view on the surroundings. At Paulet Island we will observe the last individuals of a large Adelie Penguin colony near the ruins of the Nordenskiöld Expedition from the beginning of the 20th century.

Days 6-7  At sea we will probably sail along the sea ice drifting north out of the Weddell Sea. On the floes we may see some juvenile Emperor Penguins. On our way north we plan to visit South Orkneys, where the Scotsman Bruce once wintered and where we now may visit the friendly people of an Argentinean base.

Day 8  At sea, on our way to South Georgia, we witness a multitude of albatrosses, petrels and fulmars.

Days 9-11  In South Georgia we will pay visits to the abandoned whaling settlements Grytviken, where now the penguins walk through the streets, and King Edwards Point with the grave of Shackleton. We will walk near the big King Penguin colony on Salisbury Plain and the breeding Wandering Albatrosses on Albatros Island in the Bay of Isles. The last day in South Georgia we will spend in Cooper Bay where we will observe Chinstrap Penguins and Macaroni Penguins and breeding Light-mantled Sooty Albatrosses. Later we intend to sail to Gold Harbour to visit another King Penguin colony and to see many Elephant Seals and Fur Seals. It is a good area for long walks. We conclude our visit with zodiac excursions in the magnificent Drygalski Fjord and Larsen Harbour.

Day  12  Our vessel now takes us to the South Sandwich Islands.

Days 13-14  In the rarely visited and uninhabited South Sandwich Islands (British), we will try to land on Zavadovski Island, on the steep-sided Candlemas Island and Saunders Island. These volcanic islands, discovered by James Cook in 1775, with an ice cap on the top, are windswept and often shrouded in mist and fog, but do offer subtle pleasures. There is a nice variety of flora (mosses, lichens and flowering grasses) and fauna, such as Gentoo Penguins, Chinstrap penguins and Southern Giant Petrels. Elephant Seals and Fur Seals also haul out at the beaches.

Days 15-17  In the westerlies we have a pleasant tailwind. Near the Antarctic Convergence, we observe many species and great numbers of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic seabirds.

Days 18-19   Due to the unpredictability of landings at Bouvet, we are allocating 48 hours to be able to have multiple opportunities to land at Bouvet Island (Norwegian territory), another volcano in Antarctic waters topped by an ice-cap, with a rich fauna of seabirds and seals near the coasts. At the southwest side of the island we should have the best opportunities to land at Larsöya and Kapp Norvegia, which have some protection from the swell from the west. A third possibility is at Nyröysa, but this area is more exposed and partly out of bounds; as it is a nature reserve. We will allocate these two days for landings at Bouvet Island.

Days 20-23  In the westerlies we have side winds and tail winds. On both sides of the Antarctic Convergence, we observe many species and great numbers of Antarctic and sub-Antarctic seabirds. We also get now in more temperate waters with their own brand of species as we approach South African waters, where we meet wintering seabirds from the North like long-tailed Skua’s and Sabine Gulls.

Day 24  Arrival and disembarkation in Cape Town, Republic of South Africa.