Tuesday 14 December 2010

in the name of the panda...

Well this was a day in the sun, thus in the name of the panda, as i look like one due to being red like Rudolf the red nosed reindeer. the sun has been very strong the last two days and today it was very strong, so i had to use factor 50 sun-protection to avoid further panda-looks;0)
we had a very good landing at Half Moon island, because last time the rain was pouring down. There was a colony of some thousand gentoo penguins, some occational chinstrap penguins and some snowy sheathbills, spread around on the small island, surrounded by white and heavily glaciated mountains. the abandonned Argentine station, Teniente Camara lies close by, but a visit was not on the "menu".

After lunch we saile a short distance to Yankee Harbour, a small outcrop of rocks surrounded by glaciers and a protected bay with a large spit, blocking anoying waves and swells from making our life misserable at the landing zone. The sun was really baking here, cooking everyone, both penguin and mankind. a few penguin chicks were already born, but still too small to be walking around...i have to come back another time for that;0)

This was my last landing in Antarctica and now only the journey over the Drake passage is left...

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