So last night they posted the kayak schedule for today, and I was on the early list.  I went to the gym first thing and rode the bike to loosen things up and then got talked into a Yoga Class by the Chinese woman who has finished the 50 States twice and the 7 Continents twice.  She has run 173 marathons and did not start running until she was 52…you figure it out!  I did my usual feeble attempt at yoga and did okay until it got to some of the ones that your legs are supposed to bend up behind your ears and around to pick your nose.  I hate to admit it did feel good to stretch the back and some of the legs stretches.  I just now got roped into tomorrow’s class.

We then had breakfast and off to get into the dry suits for kayaking in Hope Bay.  I was told they call it Hope Bay because you “hope you don’t fall in” as it is mostly ice.  I am not sure if I have ever been in a dry suit, but I can guarantee you I have never been in one with the mandatory two layers of clothes.  We had to get the two layers on and then head down to the mud room.  By the time I got the dry suit halfway on I was drenched in sweat.  I could not believe how good it felt to get outside into the snow.  I forgot to tell you it was snowing, but not windy.  The ice was caked to the zodiacs and kayaks as well as the gangway.  We boarded 16 people onto one zodiac with paddles and some dry bags for the ones who were going to go swimming.

Once we got about a mile from the ship and about a half mile off shore we were instructed what to do if you fell overboard while trying to get into the kayak and how to get out of the kayak if you tipped over.  Please understand there was more ice than water and even the ice was blue.

I decided it may be a good idea to not be the first one in the kayak and see how this operation as going to work.  Even with the dry suit my feet were numb and my fingers hurt from the wet and cold.  Even with the gloves and the hot-patches inside, once your hands got wet from the snow and ice getting in there was just no way to warm up.  When about half of the zodiac had safely made it onto the kayaks I figured I may as get on with it.  I was in a single kayak and it was very stable and easy to move around.

Just as I got away from the zodiac an iceberg started to sandwich me in between it and the zodiac, so I decided to paddle around the iceberg and wait for the rest of the people to be loaded into their kayaks.  Just as I rounded the iceberg a leopard seal (the only ones that eat people) surfaced and snorted at me.  It was apparent that this was his iceberg and he was not going to share it with anyone.   Everyone else came over and he put on quite a show so that everyone could see his teeth and hear his snorting sounds.  We then spent about an hour paddling around the icebergs.  It was nice to get moving and the paddling actually warmed you up.  Our guide was a young man named Jimmy who is from Tasmania.  This is the first person I met from Tasmania.  He was as hard to understand as my New Zealander roommate.

We then got to go ashore and see some penguins before heading back to the ship.  We had to get into the zodiacs from shore and the waves kept coming into the back of the zodiac until we had about a third of the craft filled with water and we pushed off.  Once up to speed, the water drains and it was fine the rest of the way.

It took almost half an hour to get out of the dry suit.  Once again I was soaked with sweat by the time I could get down to one layer of clothes in the mud room.  A quick shower and I was ready for lunch.  During lunch the anchor was raised and we were heading for Browns Bluff that is further down the Antarctic Sound.  We were told we had two or three hours to get there and that there would be spectacular cliffs and glacier ice.  Halfway there it started to snow and within an hour it was whiteout conditions.  They decided to abandon the afternoon excursion and head for the next day’s destination.

So, since I have a little time, I want to tell you about OneOceanExpeditions.  They are the company that owns and operates the ship I am on – and the other ship that the other half of the tour is on.  The ship is operated by an all-Russian crew.  It was explained that two other companies had tried to run the ship, but because of the cost of the crew, they could not afford it and went bankrupt.  They really are determined to make sure you see the Antarctic – not just from the ship – but to get you on the water and the land.  The two ships are in the Antarctic for the summer (November through March) and you can book your cabin on the website.  So, you may not want to run a marathon, but if you ever wanted to see the Antarctic – this is the way to really see the Antarctic.

The ship was built in the 1980’s for the Russians who never took ownership. The ship is old, but spotless, including in the cabins and the common areas.  They invite you up to the bridge day and night to see what is going on.  The whole crew is Russian, so you have no idea what they are talking about, but I go up each night before bed.  It is dark on the bridge and all you can see is the spot light into the mist, fog, snow or darkness.  There are always two guys on the bridge looking at the radar for icebergs.  We go real slow (about 15 knots is the fastest I have seen) and is dependent on visibility from what I can tell.  Last night at midnight we were traveling at 7 knots.

The food is the biggest surprise because it has been very good!  The soup is homemade and different every day.  Every night, except one, I have had the fish and it has been excellent.  The only issue I can see is the lettuce and fruit today is starting to look tired, and by the end of the week I think that it may be nonexistent.  In my opinion, they feed you too much!

Probably the hardest part of planning a trip would be getting your flights to and from Ushuaia in Argentina.  If I was planning to go to Antarctica again, I would go on December 21st.  That is the longest day of summer here and probably the warmest.  The crew today was telling us that everything is so different from just last week because most of the mountains had little or no snow at that time.

Well it is still snowing and you can only see about a half mile, so I am going to sign off for today and go put my computer on the charger so I can try to figure out how to download my GOPRO pictures onto my computer.  Everything is different when you don’t have constant access to the internet.

So, until tomorrow………