The latest edition of this series offers personal insights into an adventurous expedition cruise by our Polar Specialist Ben Rowley, who enjoyed his amazing 12-day journey with AE Expeditions sailing from Ushuaia to the Antarctic Peninsula.
Ben in Antarctica
WHAT DESTINATIONS DID YOU VISIT?
The Antarctic Peninsula.
Icebergs around the peninsula
HOW DID YOU GET THERE?
I flew from London to Buenos Aires and on to Ushuaia, before boarding Greg Mortimer and crossing the Drake Passage.
Ben’s view from the Greg Mortimer
FIRST TIME OR REPEAT TRIP?
First time!
Vista from the Lemaire Channel
FAVOURITE LOCATION?
Neko Harbour – the huge glacier looms close and the backdrop is immensely beautiful. Paradise Bay is a very close second!
Neko Harbour glacier reflections
MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT?
We came across a female blue whale with her calf on the Drake Passage on the way south. The marine biologist on our expedition was over the moon with this sighting and said she’d never seen a blue whale calf in this area. In truth, there were many highly memorable moments on the trip.
Weddell seal on an ice floe
BEST HOLIDAY EXCURSION/EXPERIENCE?
Again there are many – but camping overnight in a bivvy bag near Port Lockroy was incredible. Overnight a huge piece of the glacier calved off fairly nearby and the noise was like a loud rumble of thunder.
Ben’s icy dugout view for the overnight camp
WHAT DO YOU MOST RECOMMEND PACKING OR PREPPING FOR?
Always bring lots of different layers, as the weather changes quickly even in a very short space of time. It can be warm and sunny one minute, and then very cold, snowy and windy the next.
The Antarctic sun sets over the mountains
FAVOURITE FOOD AND DRINK ON YOUR TRIP?
This is hard to pick on a ship like Greg Mortimer, as there really is a huge amount of excellent food! As a big seafood fan, I do remember a fantastic seafood marinara on the final evening. It was so fresh and tasted incredible – always a big achievement on a ship.
The Greg Mortimer will float your culinary boat
FAVOURITE PHOTO YOU TOOK?
I took lots of images on my phone and camera but my favourite is a video of two humpback whales cruising just past the shore we were on, and a group of porpoising penguins swimming alongside them. All this just 50ft from where we were standing, it was incredible!
Ben captures local penguins having a whale of a time!
This expedition is perfect for your first trip to Antarctica, seeing the continent at its most pristine. Witness the spectacle of penguin colonies building their nests, and seals basking on the ice flows, cruise around spectacular icebergs aboard Zodiacs, visit working research stations and gain a unique insight into Antarctica. You’ll be amongst the few to set foot on the least visited continent on earth!
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