Escapeseeker

One-hundred years later, against all odds, my ESCAPESEEKER team and I find ourselves miraculously stepping onto the same continent that drew one of the world’s greatest explorer, Sir Ernest Shackleton.

How does one prepare for an expedition to ANTARCTICA?

If you can truthfully sign the following One Ocean Expeditions form, then you are definitely a solid candidate to embark on one of the most extraordinary voyages of your life.

I am in good general health, and capable of performing normal activities on this expedition. I further attest that I am capable of caring for myself during the expedition, and that I will not impede the progress of the expedition or the enjoyment of others on board. I understand this expedition will take me far from the nearest medical facility and that all expedition members must be self-sufficient. With that understanding, I certify that I have not been recently treated for, nor am I aware of, any physical, mental or other condition or disability that would create a hazard to myself or other members of the expedition.

Signature: ______________________

After researching the various entities that offered Antarctic adventures, we selected One Ocean Expeditions because we wanted to have an authentic up-close and personal Antarctica experience–not merely a “drive by”–or should I say, “cruise by.” I was also particularly moved by the sentiment expressed by One Ocean Expeditions‘ Founder and Managing Director, Andrew Prossin, “My Mother told me to work hard. She told me that the world is made of guts and grits and spirits, that you get out what you put in.  And, if you bring this into what you do, you can know about joy.”

I believe our Mothers are “cut from the same cloth.”  I knew that if I was going to venture for 21 days to the world’s coldest, windiest, highest continent on the planet, I wanted an organization that aspires to “knowing joy” and, is not afraid of hard work. As Sir Ernest Shackleton said, “Difficulties are just things to overcome, after all.” Our due diligence and research of One Ocean Expeditions revealed they possessed the “guts, grits, and spirits” to overcome any difficulty that may arise.  And, with our Antarctic-approved cold weather gear, we landed in Ushuaia, Argentina–our expedition’s embarkation port one day before our embarkation date of December 30, 2015.  To say our team is filled with anticipation would be an understatement! Thus, with the following dispatch by our ESCAPESEEKER team member, John Hempelmann to friends and family back home, we were on our way to making our lifelong dream come true–to set foot on Antarctica:

“We have started our adventure to the bottom of the World.  We left the beautiful Argentine capital, Buenos Aires, and flew another 3 hours due south to Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego, the southernmost town in South America. Many on our flight had packs and walking sticks and they were clearly headed to backpacking to experience the exceptional beauty of the National Parks within Argentine Patagonia.  It was 85 degrees F.  yesterday in Buenos Aires and it is 40 today in Ushuaia. As I write this report, the sun has just set and it is 10:30PM. Tomorrow we board the Akademik Ioffe, our “ice hardened” expedition ship. The Ship is named after a famous Russian physicist who helped invent radar to detect German warplanes early in WW II. We can’t believe it is really happening.  What an amazing way to close 2015, and welcome 2016.  Our Seventh Continent–Antarctica, here we come!”

January 1, 2016 ~ Happy New Year!

We woke up this morning approaching the Falkland Islands and, as John was making the cafe mochas, Mary McGill, the 4th member of our ESCAPESEEKER team took advantage of photo opportunities of dolphins and albatross outside the port window of our cabin. Did you know the albatross has the largest wing span, 5.5 to 6 feet, of any bird in the world, and it can fly and glide hundreds of miles because, among other capabilities, it can fly while most of its brain is sleeping?

The wandering albatross, snowy albatross, white-winged albatross or goonie (Diomedea exulans) is a large seabird from the family Diomedeidae, which has a circumpolar range in the Southern Ocean.

Yesterday we left South America and headed NE.  They say the Falklands and South Georgia are incredible and most expeditions head straight for Antarctica because they have less time allocated for use of this research ship. On board to provide passengers with daily briefings,  we have One Ocean Expeditions’ historians, geologists, naturalists, botanists, and those studying the ice and the sea. Two researchers are doing a census of various species of penguins. There are also three professional photographers, one of whom is a young Israeli, Roie Galitz, a world famous wildlife photographer, and his videos are amongst the most spectacular we have even seen. If you’re like us and thrive on mind-expanding experiences, well, we’ve found just the right “land and sea continuing ed.” One can never learn too much!

As an added bonus of the One Ocean Expeditions, we have an opportunity to continually improve our photography skills by learning from the pros.

The Akademik Ioffe is an amazing ship crewed entirely by Russians. It is based in Kaliningrad in the Baltic. It was specifically designed for polar exploration and research and thus we can go places the “cruise ships” cannot go near. There are “rumors” this ship was designed to locate other “boats” like the USSB Henry M. Jackson but the Ohio Class boomers run so deep, so fast and so quietly that even the US Navy cannot find them. Apparently, this ship gave up trying. Now this ship takes scientists of all kinds to the polar regions to study the sea, the ice, the geology, the birds, mammals and other creatures.

We had two spectacular shore landings today in the West Falkland Islands. Except for our visit to Stanley (Pop: 2220, half of whom are British military), which has a pier (weather permitting), we go ashore in Zodiac inflatables. We are outfitted in complete water/wind proof expedition suits and boots.

Our first shore landing is on West Point Island:

There is a resident couple who are “Island Sitting” and have been on the Island for 3 years. They have already sailed their 30 foot sailboat 300,000 miles (that is NOT a typo). We hiked about two miles across the Island and encountered an incredible colony of thousands of rock hopper penguins nesting with black browed albatross. As you’ll note, they all had little ones.

Images captured by Mel Gee Henderson at West Point Island, The Falklands.Before we left for the Ship, the local couple invited us to join them for tea and cookies in their little English cottage where they receive provisions by boat from Stanley every few months.

After returning to the Ship and lunch, we landed on Carcass Island. The winds had increased to 30 knots so we had a wild, wet and bumpy trip into the beach. It was worth it! We had marvelous encounters with Magellinac penguins (named by Ferdinand Magellan) and the classic Gentoo penguins (the waddling guys in dinner suits).

Magellanic Penguins on the Falkland Islands. [Image by Roie Galitz]

We are safely returned to the Akademik Ioffee by our skilled One Ocean Expeditions’ zodiac navigator, Ian Peck.

The anchor has been hoisted and we now prepare for what would become one of many unforgettable evenings of story-sharing as we break bread with our new found friends from around the world.

Wow, this is definitely a New Years Day we will never forget!

Stay tuned as we continue on our epic ESCAPESEEKER expedition to the bottom of the world!

ESCAPESEEKER…Tracing the amazing footsteps of Sir Ernest Shackleton.

    Image captured by Mel Gee Henderson

You too, can follow in our ESCAPESEEKER adventure:  www.oneoceanexpeditions.com