Antarctica is visited annually by approximately 8,000 tourists. It may be a long way to go to see animals one can encounter in a zoo, but the feeling of being at one of the ends of the earth and the beauty of the icy landscape more than compensate for the travel time.
We first flew to Buenos Aires, where we spent two nights then flew to Ushuaia at the southern tip of South America. After two days there we boarded our boat for the two-day trip south. The Beagle Channel was serene when we departed, but unfortunately a few hours later we entered the infamous Drake Passage. For the next day and a half we just managed to get around the wildly rocking boat for lectures and meals. A number of the passengers became quite seasick. Once out of the Drake, however, the sea reverted back to calm, and so did we.
During our six Zodiac landings on Antarctica over the course of three days we visited some of the bases and met the people who work there. We were ecstatic with our first (of many) sighting of penguins. We also had close encounters with four different types of seals, killer, humpback and minke whales, and more birds than I can remember. On the return trip, the most memorable moment was passing within two miles of Cape Horn with a spectacular full-horizon sunset.
Our two-week trip was organized by Marine Expeditions, a Canadian company (tel. 800-263-9147). We traveled on a small Estonian research vessel which accommodated a total of 34 passengers. Trips booked six months in advance receive a 10% discount off the basic price of $2,900 a person which includes airfares, hotels and a double room on board with shared bath. The travel season runs from November through March. See our Antarctica Reading List for more information ($2). ---Sandy