Yesterday we were supposed to visit the Ukrainian Research Station here in Antarctica, but as always, the weather rules the roost here. 15-20′ waves and very low visibility forced the captain to take shelter for the day instead.
Though disappointed (but nothing you can do), we watched the film “20 Days in Mariupol” about the Russian invasion in 2022. We also got to hear Jose Hernandez speak about his incredible journey as a migrant US farm laborer from Mexico to a NASA astronaut (check out the movie about his life story–truly awe-inspiring–“A Million Miles Away.” Unbelievable!)
Today we begin our journey back north through the Drake Passage to Ushuaia. Hopefully we will encounter “Drake’s Lake” and not “Drake’s Shake”. This video is not from our ship, but just like the waves we experienced yesterday before we took shelter. You really cannot even walk, and things fly off the shelves. Pretty wild.
The captain announced yesterday that there is a medical emergency aboard one of the other ships heading south to Antarctica, so we are going to make a detour back to Elephant Island (our first stop) to pick up a passenger off the other ship there to bring him back to Ushuaia. One of the “rules of the sea” and the right thing to do.
Onward! -JB
A typical research station in Antarctica. Life is VERY tough here (and this is summer – 24 hours a day of sunlight. Winter is dark almost all the time)
We hiked this mountain with NASA astronaut Jose Hernandez (2nd from left) and one of his sons. His incredible life story was made into a movie. An AMAZING guy with an amazing life story. Check it out!
This is the peak we climbed with him.
The blue in some of these icebergs is incredible. The camera does not really do it justice.
Glaciers are everywhere.
Glaciers are just rivers of ice, Slowly flowing down the mountains to the sea. They break off and become icebergs.
With Mariia (yes 2 i’s in her name) and Nava. They were both Ukrainian soldiers captured by the Russians and held prisoners after the fall of Mariupol in 2022.
Neil deGrasse Tyson and Charles Duke