Arriving In Antarctica: An Unforgettable Thrill

For two days we’ve travelled across an ocean with no land in sight. It’s the longest sea voyage we’ve ever embarked on.

I’ve been scanning the horizon for hours, watching for a break in the relentlessly flat skyline. Suddenly, forms start to take shape: icebergs, the advance guard that heralds our proximity to one of nature’s true unspoilt wildernesses.

As our expedition ship pushes further south, hunks of ghostly blue ice begin to drift by, silent witnesses to our impending arrival. Fellow passengers begin to congregate on deck in excited anticipation.

A vast-winged albatross glides in to ride the air currents behind the ship. The welcoming committee soon swells to include petrels, shearwaters, fur seals, penguins and humpback whales.

I have to pinch myself. This is really happening.

It feels surreal, almost overwhelming in fact, standing on the deck of our ship with so much going on around us. There’s still no sign of land.

We’ve raced across an unusually calm Drake Passage to reach this point. We’re almost there. The suspense is razor sharp.

Then, a glimpse of land shimmers into focus on the horizon. A thrill races through me and a small cheer breaks out on deck.

A couple of bleak, rocky outcrops slide into view. But then slowly, like a painter pulling a sheet from a newly painted canvas, a vast and beautiful snow-covered landscape reveals itself.

Dark, rugged mountains appear, showing the extent of the summer melt, while sweeping expanses of snow and ice leave us in no doubt that winter never really leaves this place. It’s the harshest environment on the planet.

Our smooth sailing conditions have not only helped us dodge the dreaded seasickness often associated with a crossing of the Drake, but we’re arriving in Antarctica in the afternoon, instead of after dark as expected.

The timeliness leads to a surprise treat, with the announcement that we’ll be making a landing today, at Half Moon Island, one of the smallest and most photogenic of Antarctica’s South Shetland Islands.

After scrambling excitedly into multiple layers of clothes, waterproof pants, a parka, wellington boots, scarves, neck warmers and gloves, we throw on our life vests, check and recheck our camera gear, pop on our sunglasses and make for the ship’s stern.

We’re ready to take our first steps in Antarctica.

Half an hour later, I climb from the zodiac and set foot on a rocky beach. The sun is shining, lighting up a scene so beautiful I’m lost for words.

Around me, young male fur seals rough-house on the beach, while chinstrap penguins stumble across the snow. Skuas and terns watch us carefully from the rocks. An old whaling boat, relic of another era, lies abandoned on the shore.

We hike up past the clamouring penguins to take in views over the snow-capped peaks of the islands around us. There, the reality finally sets in.

We’re in Antarctica.

The thrill of this moment is a feeling that will stay with me forever.

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Check out our other posts on Antarctica for tips, pics and insights from our trip to this incredible destination.