Location

Antarctica

Dates

26.02.25 – 08.03.25

Places remaining

0 out of 17

Cost of the program

€10 900

Not the route that is easier to organize, but the one that we once dreamed of taking ourselves

All inclusive: This is the best deal for an expedition of this level with a flight via Drake

Small group. The atmosphere is like traveling with friends.

Landings in all important locations of the White Continent

Ocean and land. Balance of sails/watches/sunsets-sunrises and landings/penguin encounters/swimming

Why with us?

Experienced crew of sailors and coordinator. You won't have to worry about anything

Bienvenido or welcome to Chile! We meet in the city of Punta Arenas.

In the pre-Columbian era, the territory of modern Punta Arenas was inhabited by the Tehuelche Indian tribes, who were engaged in hunting, fishing and gathering. The first whites to visit these lands were the Spaniards from Ferdinand Magellan's round-the-world expedition in 1520.

It is from this glorious city that we depart on a direct flight to King George Island, where the Bellingshausen station and our sailing schooner ELSI await us.

Here, before the start of the expedition, we will walk through the picturesque surroundings of the station, which borders the Chilean station Frey. If we are lucky with the weather, then we will open the resort season on King George. The thermometer here rarely shows a temperature below −7 °C. If you wish, we will visit the only Russian Orthodox 15-meter church in Antarctica, built in 2004.

The Antarctic station "Bellingshausen" was founded in 1968 by members of the Soviet Antarctic expedition. The station was built in just a month. And from February 1968 to the present day, scientific research activities have been carried out here throughout the year.

The picture of the "resort" is beautiful because in the Antarctic summer the land here is almost completely free of snow. In addition to all kinds of mosses, lichens and coastal algae, there are many representatives of the fauna here. We will look for sea lions and fur seals, and along the way, we will probably see seals lazily lounging on the shores of the island. For avid ornithologists, this is, of course, paradise! There are incredible numbers of albatrosses and gulls, and in season petrels, terns, skuas and cormorants appear.

We are heading to Yankee Harbour and Halfmoon Islands.

Yankee Bay was discovered by the American navigator Nathaniel Palmer. He described this amazing place in 1820, when he traveled on the ship Hero along the polar latitudes, around the South Shetland Islands, in search of secluded beaches for his seal-hunting fleet.

The shore of the bay is covered with pebbles. Here we will be greeted by several thousand Papuan penguins. Next to the bird colonies, there are rookeries of elephant seals and fur seals. Also, the remains of whale bones have been preserved here as a reminder of the historical era of the flourishing of whaling in the Southern Ocean (1906-1925).

Half Moon Island, in the form of a crescent, is located in the eastern part of Livingston Island, a group of South Shetland Islands. Weddell and elephant seals often bask on the shore here, and higher up on the hill nests a colony of police penguins — about 3,300 breeding pairs. Seabirds also love the area: Antarctic terns, skuas, blue-eyed cormorants, gulls, and Wilson's storm petrels can be found here. In the southwest part of the island is the Argentine station Cámara.

We spend the night in the flooded caldera of one of the active volcanoes on Deception Island. The caldera is about 10 kilometers in diameter. The island hid the inner harbor-caldera for a long time - sailors saw only the rocky shores of the island. In 1820, the American navigator Nathaniel Palmer called it Deception Island — "Deception Island". And he gave this name exactly when he found a narrow passage into the harbor, which had been hidden from the eyes of sailors for a long time. It is believed that the volcano continues to be active to this day, although the last major eruption occurred in 1970. It damaged several polar stations.

From 1913 to 1921, the island was a real mecca for whaling. About 5,000 whale carcasses were processed here per year. The destroyed remains of the industrial base remain to this day. Today, this historical site is under protection.

On the outer side of the island is Bailey Head, home to the largest colony of Antarctic penguins on the peninsula. It is a place of incredible beauty and incredible difficulty in landing. To visit it, the weather must be calm and the ocean very calm.

The island can be called the "house of icebergs". It was also discovered by the navigator Palmer on November 16, 1820. Here, as a rule, we do not land on the shore, but ride on a "dinghy" between huge icebergs and arches in the rocks protruding from the water.

We moor for the night to a sunken ship near Enterprise Island. The small island was discovered by the Belgian Antarctic Expedition led by Adrien de Gerlache in 1898.

Whaling was active here between 1915 and 1930, and some remnants of fishing activity are still visible on the island's beaches. The island holds the secret of the sunken whaling ship Gouvernoren: only the bow of the ship rises above the water. In 1915, the captain of the whaler deliberately ran it aground — a fire broke out on the ship and the crew had to be rescued.

During the day, we will look for whales. If you are lucky, you will be able to observe one of the most amazing phenomena of wild nature — bubble net feeding, when several whales emerge from the water at once, swallowing krill driven into a bubble trap. From above, these bubbles look like a smooth spiral. An incredible, breathtaking sight.

We are heading for Orne Harbour, an island with a colony of Gentoo penguins and blue-eyed cormorants, and Weddell seal rookeries.

Orne Bay was first described by the Belgian Antarctic Expedition in 1898. It is a rocky harbour with steep mountain slopes, the tops of which are heavily covered with snow even in summer.

If the water is clear, you can climb a higher hill and watch whales and seals. Those who dare to climb to the very top will have a panoramic view of the neighbouring group of islands and a bay with icebergs.

Next, we will disembark in Cuverville Island and Neko Harbour, which are located not far from each other. Cuverville Island is a dark, rocky island, the bay of which is filled with icebergs. Cuverville Island was discovered in 1897 by the Belgians. It is named after the French Vice-Admiral Cavalier Cuverville. It combines high elevations and a long beach. It is home to a colony of Gentoo penguins, which numbers about 6,500 breeding pairs, making it the largest nesting colony of these birds on the entire Antarctic Peninsula. And in the coastal waters, you can easily see seals resting on ice floes.

From here, you can see a "gallery" of icebergs, and Minke whales come to feed in the nearby Errera Channel.

Neko Harbour is also home to a colony of penguins, but we come here to admire the huge glacier from which chunks of ice constantly break off and crash into the water with a deafening noise, raising a huge wave.

One of the most exciting moments of our expedition is passing through the Lemaire Strait. The strait separates Booth Island from the mainland of the Antarctic Peninsula. The strait is only 300 meters wide at its narrowest point — on both sides of the schooner there are steep cliffs reaching 400 meters in height. Killer whales and humpback whales often swim into the strait.

A complex system of currents often brings a large number of icebergs and sea ice into the channel, so it temporarily becomes impassable for ships. Seabirds, killer whales, humpback whales, and Minke whales often appear on the surface of the water. Curious animals can accompany the ship along the strait for a long time. Gentoo penguins, Adelie penguins, and crabeater seals live on the shores.

The Lemaire Strait is one of the best picturesque places in Antarctica for photography. The strait was jokingly nicknamed the "Kodak Gap" because of its "photogenicity". It is said that polar explorers spent at least 600 km of film in the bay every year.

Yalour Islands are a group of rocky low islands near the Akademik Vernadsky station. One of the few places on the Antarctic Peninsula where a colony of Adelie penguins lives. The island itself is surrounded on all sides by icebergs and ice floes with seals resting on them.

Time to send postcards from Port Lockroy Station. In the early 20th century, it was a whaling base, then a British Antarctic research centre, and since 1996, it has been a museum and the world’s southernmost post office.

Scientists collect data for the British Antarctic Survey, monitoring the impact of tourism on penguins. Half of the island is open to tourists, while the other half is reserved for gentoo penguins. A staff of four typically processes 70,000 pieces of mail from the 18,000 visitors who arrive during the five-month Antarctic cruise season.

The museum is only open during the tourist season, from November to March. You can send a postcard or letter from here, or buy a souvenir. Cards are accepted.

Our expedition has come to an end. We are returning to the Bellingshausen polar station, saying goodbye to the crew and the schooner, and flying to the continent, to the Chilean city of Punta Arenas!

In the pre-Columbian era, the territory of modern Punta Arenas was inhabited by the Tehuelche Indian tribes, who were engaged in hunting, fishing, and gathering. The first whites to visit these lands were the Spaniards from Ferdinand Magellan's round-the-world expedition in 1520.