A gentoo penguin and the Sea Spirit
Greg and Kyle - Continent #7
Zodiac unloading
mother gentoo feeding her chick
Aitcho Island - South Shetland Islands -- our first zodiac stop
'molting' gentoo
Starting to see some ice on the shoresSaturday, February 26th
Today we did it - we stepped foot on Aitcho Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. Awesome!!!! My buddy Greg and I completed the 7 continents today, a couple years shy of age 40. My very first international trip was in Year 2000 when my buddies and I went to Australia. I remember talking to a couple people in an airport bar at some point during that trip. They had recently completed all 7 continents. I remember thinking that their achievements were not obtainable - impossible for the 'common folk'. I guess all you need is an idea and a will -- anything can happen.
Things started getting serious today. During the morning, we had 2 separate briefings and seminars. The first briefing was done by the Quark Expeditions crew. This crew is made up of 9 people who are in charge of our adventure while on the boat. We discussed the pristine nature of Antarctica. There are numerous precautions that must be taken to eliminate the possibility of leaving any trace of us on land. This means no food wrappers, no cans, no eggs or nut products. We can't touch any animals, or step on any vegetation. We can't go inside any building. No bathrooms except on raceday where they'll have 4 porta-potties placed on land.
The second seminar of the morning was given by the Marathon Tours Group - the travel group responsible for our complete journey. They gave a brief history of the marathon. This was truly amazing to hear. So many different challenges. One year the conditons were so bad, they had to run the race on the ship. They ran 422 laps around the ship to complete the race. Really - 422 laps. Wow!! Another year, they had the 50+ foot waves on their return to Ushauia. They said that the worst conditions for sailing were at Level #12. During that trip, they reached Level #11 -- even the crew were getting sick.
After lunch, it was time for disembarkment. We first had to bring all our gear that we would be wearing as potential outer layers to the main deck to get vaccuumed and checked. We had to take our shoes to a location on the deck of the boat to be scrubbed with special chemicals. The general idea is that we absolutely cannot introduce a foreign species to the pristine environment in Antarctica.
Finally, we signed up into 4 groups and were given times of disembarkment. Our group (Chicago), was set to release in the first wave. We put on rubber boots and our gortex outer layers in preparation for a wet landing. The ship can only get so close to shore. Therefore, we had to take these zodiac boats (large rubber boats that can hold 11 people) to land. We jumped out into ankle deep water and walked ashore.
When we reached the Aitcho Islands - the site was incredible. Penguins - everywhere. We saw large colonies of the Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins. They have no fear of humans - why would they. It was amazing as they just walked around - often times coming up to you and pecking on your boots. We were allowed on land for 90 minutes before returning to the ship. We saw a seal just before boarding the zodiac for our return.
In addition to the animals, the glaciers, the mountains, the water ---- the sites were unbelievable. The crew mentioned during their lectures to make sure you stop for a few minutes and just take in the sites. Just look around. There's truly a feeling of peace and calmness that one may never get to experience again.
After dinner, we had a race protocol meeting on Level #3. We watched a movie in our room before calling it a night. I think I mentioned incorrectly before that the marathon will be on February 27th. It's actually set for Monday, February 28th. Tomorrow we'll have another disembarkment on a different island and do final preparations for race-day on Monday.
The churning in my stomach tells me that that the real stuff will be going down in just over 24 hours.
Today we did it - we stepped foot on Aitcho Island, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica. Awesome!!!! My buddy Greg and I completed the 7 continents today, a couple years shy of age 40. My very first international trip was in Year 2000 when my buddies and I went to Australia. I remember talking to a couple people in an airport bar at some point during that trip. They had recently completed all 7 continents. I remember thinking that their achievements were not obtainable - impossible for the 'common folk'. I guess all you need is an idea and a will -- anything can happen.
Things started getting serious today. During the morning, we had 2 separate briefings and seminars. The first briefing was done by the Quark Expeditions crew. This crew is made up of 9 people who are in charge of our adventure while on the boat. We discussed the pristine nature of Antarctica. There are numerous precautions that must be taken to eliminate the possibility of leaving any trace of us on land. This means no food wrappers, no cans, no eggs or nut products. We can't touch any animals, or step on any vegetation. We can't go inside any building. No bathrooms except on raceday where they'll have 4 porta-potties placed on land.
The second seminar of the morning was given by the Marathon Tours Group - the travel group responsible for our complete journey. They gave a brief history of the marathon. This was truly amazing to hear. So many different challenges. One year the conditons were so bad, they had to run the race on the ship. They ran 422 laps around the ship to complete the race. Really - 422 laps. Wow!! Another year, they had the 50+ foot waves on their return to Ushauia. They said that the worst conditions for sailing were at Level #12. During that trip, they reached Level #11 -- even the crew were getting sick.
After lunch, it was time for disembarkment. We first had to bring all our gear that we would be wearing as potential outer layers to the main deck to get vaccuumed and checked. We had to take our shoes to a location on the deck of the boat to be scrubbed with special chemicals. The general idea is that we absolutely cannot introduce a foreign species to the pristine environment in Antarctica.
Finally, we signed up into 4 groups and were given times of disembarkment. Our group (Chicago), was set to release in the first wave. We put on rubber boots and our gortex outer layers in preparation for a wet landing. The ship can only get so close to shore. Therefore, we had to take these zodiac boats (large rubber boats that can hold 11 people) to land. We jumped out into ankle deep water and walked ashore.
When we reached the Aitcho Islands - the site was incredible. Penguins - everywhere. We saw large colonies of the Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins. They have no fear of humans - why would they. It was amazing as they just walked around - often times coming up to you and pecking on your boots. We were allowed on land for 90 minutes before returning to the ship. We saw a seal just before boarding the zodiac for our return.
In addition to the animals, the glaciers, the mountains, the water ---- the sites were unbelievable. The crew mentioned during their lectures to make sure you stop for a few minutes and just take in the sites. Just look around. There's truly a feeling of peace and calmness that one may never get to experience again.
After dinner, we had a race protocol meeting on Level #3. We watched a movie in our room before calling it a night. I think I mentioned incorrectly before that the marathon will be on February 27th. It's actually set for Monday, February 28th. Tomorrow we'll have another disembarkment on a different island and do final preparations for race-day on Monday.
The churning in my stomach tells me that that the real stuff will be going down in just over 24 hours.
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