{"id":192,"date":"2014-02-26T16:46:59","date_gmt":"2014-02-26T16:46:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.swoop-antarctica.com\/?p=192"},"modified":"2014-02-26T16:46:59","modified_gmt":"2014-02-26T16:46:59","slug":"dorothys-antarctic-peninsula-cruise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swoop-antarctica.com\/blog\/dorothys-antarctic-peninsula-cruise\/","title":{"rendered":"Dorothy’s Antarctic Peninsula Cruise"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Dorothy and her husband returned in February from an 11 day\u00a0Cruise to the Antarctic Peninsula.<\/a> Here she tells us about her experiences on the trip<\/a>…<\/p>\n

Was the Plancius a good base for your expedition?<\/b><\/p>\n

Yes definitely. We originally booked on the\u00a0Ortelius<\/a>\u00a0but were asked to switch to\u00a0Plancius<\/a>\u00a0(as Ortelius had been completely\u00a0booked by a large group.)<\/p>\n

While on the boat we were told by one of the Expedition Leaders that Plancius is generally a better boat as the dining room has large oblong windows while the dining room on Ortelius only has portholes. Also the lecture room on Ortelius is below deck with\u00a0no windows.<\/p>\n

Our lectures were alternated between the dining room and the Observation Lounge which was a clever move to keep you\u00a0moving and change the environment.<\/p>\n

How were your expedition team and leader?<\/b><\/p>\n

Superb. Jim Mayer, the leader was amusing, gentle, pleasant, highly experienced. All the team interacted well with the clients.<\/p>\n

They were real enthusiasts and specialists and we really enjoyed the variety of lectures. There was definitely something\u00a0for everyone and we attended all but one each. I missed one on mammals and Pete missed one on Poetry and the Polar\u00a0explorers.<\/p>\n

The team came from a number of different nations so occasionally there can be a small barrier if someone has a very heavy\u00a0accent. They worked so well together and were always extremely pleasant and polite to one another. Everyone seemed to\u00a0know what they were doing and were able to turn their hand to whatever was required. Before we went we hadn\u2019t really thought\u00a0about that side of things and we were really impressed.<\/p>\n

We were often reminded of safety procedures. We felt that everything was done with safety in mind and to give us a good time.<\/p>\n

An example was that for every Zodiac landing the advance party took the safety equipment \u2013 eg tents just in case there was a\u00a0sudden change in the weather conditions.<\/p>\n

How was the Drake Passage crossing?<\/b><\/p>\n

We were prepared with our Stugeron tablets. They make you drowsy but we did not experience nausea. On the way out a\u00a0number of people were sick but we were not. The ship\u2019s doctor was kept very busy! It was not rough on the way out but we\u00a0were conscious of a rolling swell. The journey back though was a full on Force 9 gale. Dinner was absolutely mad with people\u00a0sliding off bench seats, and chairs physically moving into other people\/tables. Dishes were going flying. It was crazy. Once\u00a0again though the staff are very experienced at dealing with such events and various moves are made to lessen the impact \u2013 ie\u00a0no self service from a buffet at lunchtime, tumblers instead of wine glasses etc.<\/p>\n

We went straight to bed after dinner as it seemed prudent to lie down. (We watched a film about Shackleton.) The night was\u00a0dreadful and I felt as if I did battle with the ship all night. However other people we talked to were able to sleep so I guess that\u00a0is a personal thing.<\/p>\n

Did you see much wildlife?<\/b><\/p>\n

Silly question! Loads and loads. Pete loves birds and his count for the whole time in Chile, Argentina and Antarctica was\u00a064. Obviously most were land based but he added to his tally in Antarctica. We can both now identify three different types of\u00a0penguins and three different types of seals. The whaling excursion was amazing and we were within feet of a whale which was\u00a0between our Zodiac and another Zodiac. We saw a number of whales mainly hump back.<\/p>\n

What was the highlight of your trip?<\/b><\/p>\n

For me the snow and mountains, the icebergs, the night ice camping with the sunset there. Also a very moving time was\u00a0at Paradise Bay which proved to be a paradise indeed. A snow shoe walk up a hill, sun lighting up the bay, the boat in the\u00a0distance, a panoramic view \u2013 it just took my breath away and even now as I recall it, it brings tears to my eyes. I also loved\u00a0anything to do with the history of the polar explorers.<\/p>\n

For Pete, the birds, wild life, whales etc also the Gin and Tonics on the\u00a0boat and he loved the ice camping too! Watching a discreetly filmed video of the dozen, mainly younger, people who did a\u00a0Polar Plunge into the icy waters was another awe inspiring experience.<\/p>\n

Do you have any tips for future visitors to the Antarctic Peninsula?<\/b><\/p>\n

Good camera? But be careful not to only observe through a lens. It is good to just watch, feel and experience what is\u00a0happening. Also I think I would spend longer sitting and watching the Penguins. Focus on a few and really notice their\u00a0behaviour\/character.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dorothy and her husband returned in February from an 11 day\u00a0Cruise to the Antarctic Peninsula. Here she tells us about her experiences on the trip… Was the Plancius a good base for your expedition? Yes definitely. We originally booked on the\u00a0Ortelius\u00a0but were asked to switch to\u00a0Plancius\u00a0(as Ortelius had been completely\u00a0booked by a large group.) While […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,4,5],"tags":[11,18,27,32,34,35,44,52,55,57],"class_list":["post-192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-antarctic-cruises","category-antarctic-vessels-reviews","category-reviews-2","tag-antarctic-peninsula","tag-birds","tag-lectures","tag-ortelius","tag-penguins","tag-plancius","tag-sea_sickness","tag-vessels","tag-whales","tag-zodiac"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nDorothy's Antarctic Peninsula Cruise - Swoop Antarctica Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.swoop-antarctica.com\/blog\/dorothys-antarctic-peninsula-cruise\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dorothy's Antarctic Peninsula Cruise - Swoop Antarctica Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Dorothy and her husband returned in February from an 11 day\u00a0Cruise to the Antarctic Peninsula. 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