Whalers's Bay....................

January 25, 2013 - Deception Island, So. Shetland Islands
Good visibility, mostly sunny
Wind SW 3; Sea: rippled; Air Temp. 8C (46F)

After lunch, M/S Expedition passed through Neptune's Bellows to drop anchor in the middle of Deception Island, our last stop in the South Shetland Islands. This horseshoe-shaped island is a volcanic caldera and steam rising off the water shows that the volcano remains active. The brave souls who signed up for the Polar plunge had reached their destination!

A large resting leopard seal welcomed us ashore.

Volcanic black sand beach......quite inviting for 

that quick dip - and if you forgot 

your swimsuit that was OK - some folks wore their 

undies, but no skinny dipping permitted. 

These brave, and mostly younger, passengers were grateful 

for the sun, lack of wind, volcanic steam, and the warmish 

sand under their feet. 

Next time I'll join the brave group - it looked like fun!

The rusting remains of a former Norwegian whaling 

station, always a sad sight - memories of so many 

beautiful whales taken from the surrounding ocean - 

and later a British war-time listening station, abandoned 

after the last volcanic eruption in 1970.

Chinstrap penguins sharing pebbles.......an important 

game when building nests for their eggs......

.......having a chat, perhaps even flirting......

......several dancing on their 'happy feet'......

....and then deciding to go for yet another swim for want of 

something more exciting to do at the beach! 

Love, love, love all penguins - neatest birds ever.

That night at dinner while celebrating Robbie Burns Day - 

for any and all who had a drop of Scottish blood in 

their veins - the sea decided to heave, roll and churn just 

as the bagpipes heralded the arrival of the haggis! 

Yes, thousands of miles from bonnie Scotland, the chef had 

conjured up an authentic culinary delight, hmmmm!  

You know I was not going to get anywhere near that haggis, 

being a vegetarian.

It was difficult keeping much on the tables, glassware 

filled with fine wines, cutlery and china, all went 

flying, as well as several people. 

Paula and I were tossed from our chairs to the floor, 

she sustaining a formidable cut on her leg requiring a 

visit to the ship's doctor - yours truly sliding in 

a most unladylike way on her backside all the way to 

kitchen entrance. The crew were amazing, picking us up 

and dusting us off - really concerned for our safety.

However, much rougher weather was in store for later - this 

evening toss about was just practice believe me!   

Next chapter in my journey to the bottom of the 

world will focus on reaching Antarctica and cruising 

through the beautiful Lemaire Channel....can't wait 

to show you the awesome scenery we passed through on the 

way to the seventh continent.