Weddell Sea Emperor Penguins with Helicopters

Your expedition will begin in Ushuaia, Argentina, where after having arrived independently you will embark your ship in the afternoon. As you settle in to your cabin on this brand new polar vessel, your ship will sail through the scenic waterway of the Beagle Channel. You may want to spend some time on deck capturing the sight of the city fading into distance behind you and looking out for the seabirds that follow the ship.

During these two days we will sail across the famous Drake Passage, encountering a variety of seabirds along the way. You may want to spend some time on deck in search of bird sightings including wandering, grey-headed, black-browed and the beautiful light-mantled sooty albatross, southern fulmars, Wilson's storm, blue, Cape and Antarctic petrels. There may also be whale sightings, and your programme of entertaining and informative lectures and presentations will begin, along with safety and bio-environmental briefings for your time in Antarctica. As we sail towards the Antarctic Sound we will spot the first of many icebergs.

Welcome to the awe-inspiring Antarctic Sound! Huge tabular icebergs will herald our arrival to the eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula as we sail into the Weddell Sea. Our time here will be spent seeking out unrivalled wildlife encounters and scenic opportunities, with our main focus being on our search for emperor penguins. Using the ship, Zodiacs and helicopters we have great chances of finding them!

Our exact itinerary here will be determined by ice and weather conditions and each day your captain and expedition leaders will choose the best course for optimal experiences. The use of helicopters will open up a number of possible landing sites and, if conditions allow, the areas we may visit include the western slopes of the Antarctic Sound. A scenic flight over this rarely visited area will astound with landscapes of layered sandstones, lava flows, glaciers, icebergs, and pack-ice extending as far as the eye can see. There are often individual emperor penguins and Adélie penguins to be found on the ice floes, as well as kelp gulls, skuas, and various breeds of petrel.

We may make a helicopter landing on the rocky hillock of Duse Bay for an enjoyable walk over the frost-shattered rock covered with lichen of all shapes and colours, and visit Seymour Island to discover its sedimentary rock, fossils, and expansive views.

If conditions allow we will venture further into the Weddell Sea to enjoy Zodiac cruises around many of the islands to discover their unique landscapes and wildlife populations. Places we may visit include Devil Island which is home to a large colony of Adelie penguins. This is also an excellent spot for hiking, with a walk to the top of the hill rewarding with magnificent views. Regarded as one of the most scenic locations in the entire northern tip of the Antarctic Continent, Brown Bluff may be our next stop as we visit here to discover its sheer canyon walls, fallen boulders and beautiful volcanic creations capped with ice. There is also a large Adélie penguin rookery here and gentoo penguins and nesting snow petrels also likely to be found.

Other areas we may visit include Gourdin Island which is home to countless Chinstrap, gentoo, and Adélie penguins, as well as the Esperanza Base, an Argentine research station which is one of only two civilian settlements in Antarctica.

As we sail out of the Weddell Sea area there is time for one last adventure as we land on Deception Island in the South Shetland Islands. We will land at either Pendulum Cove or Whalers Bay and spend some time discovering this area. The island is home to an abandoned whaling station that is the habitat of a wide variety of bird species including cape petrels, kelp gulls, brown and south polar skuas, and Antarctic terns, Wilson’s storm petrels and black-bellied storm petrels. After a day of exploration your ship will start its journey back across the Drake Passage.

As our exhilarating time in Antarctica comes to end it’s time to head back north through the Drake Passage where again the ship will be followed by a vast array of seabirds. Enjoy the last presentations from your team of noted naturalists and take the time to dissolve all of the unforgettable memories you will have made on your once in a lifetime expediton.

As we sail back through the scenic Beagle Channel and arrive in Ushuaia in the early morning it’s sadly time to say goodbye to your crew and fellow shipmates. After breakfast you will disembark and a group transfer will be provided to the airport for onward or homeward journeys.