Video of our first sighting of Antarctica:

So many preview photos for an entry this time… simply because our first day in Antarctica just that stunning:

Antarctica just got served

We caught our first glimpse of Antarctica and its pack ice at around 10pm on our 2nd day of sailing:

By 4am we were sailing through the photogenic Lemaire Channel:

At 9am we got in our zodiacs:

Off for our first landing in Antarctica…

We initially landed at a Gentoo penguin colony at Pleneau’s, seeing hundreds of female penguins nursing their eggs and males stealing pebbles from other nests for their own. For the males, the ability to make a nest is a measure of your desirability as a mate.

After about an hour, we cruised more around the area in our zodiacs:

 

Then we had lunch back on the ship before setting out again for Peterman’s, another part of Antarctica. Upon landing, we did a trek up a ridge to get some great views:

Antarctica just got served, again

 

Took a few panoramas: 

 

 

 

 

Nearby, a couple were taking advantage of the backdrop:

 

We then hiked back down to the zodiacs:

Then it was back to the ship and some sightseeing on the bow:

 

Our ship sailed back through Lemaire’s Channel, the mountainous passage over a sea of ice scattered like Parmesan Cheese:

 

- At time of posting in Lemaire Channel, it was 30.2 °F -

Humidity: n/a | Wind Speed: n/a | Cloud Cover: overcast