After a wonderfully sunny day yesterday, National Geographic Resolution cruised overnight to the west side of the Antarctic Peninsula. We traveled south to avoid some weather, enjoying talks by naturalists about the importance of Antarctic krill and explorers of Antarctica. By the afternoon, we made it to Mikkelson Harbor and hopped into Zodiacs to cruise around on a very wet afternoon. We saw a gentoo penguin colony on D’Hainaut Island and enjoyed observing nearby icebergs. We returned to the ship for a wine and cheese tasting and some beautiful cruising through iceberg-filled waterways.
11/18/2024
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National Geographic Resolution
Kinnes Cove, Antarctic Peninsula
After an adventurous night of attempting to make it through lots of sea ice and into the Weddell Sea, we ended up turning back and spending our morning exploring an area a little further north. This turned out to provide stunning scenery and wildlife encounters as the morning unfolded. After breakfast, we deployed the Zodiacs and cruised around Kinnes Cove, enjoying excellent views of a resting leopard seal, crab eater seals, and gentoo and Adelie penguins swimming and walking across the fast ice. Antarctic shags were active in the cove, as the whole flock dove over and over, feeding on something underwater. Snow petrels were flying about, and two emperor penguins showed up and played in the water around the Zodiacs. We were all delighted with this perfect farewell to our incredible voyage to Antarctica. As we set sail northward to cross the Drake Passage again, we enjoyed a special Filipino buffet dinner, followed by a festive evening of entertainment from the renowned crew of National Geographic Resolution .