Sailing to Chile. . . . . . . . .

Cape Horn, Chile

March 9, 2018

51F Cloudy, rain possible

Our embarkation on the Noble Caledonia "Hebridean Sky" went very smoothly with luggage awaiting in a spacious cabin maintained by Ms. Andy, who kept us neat and tidy and replenished the tissue boxes often when I came down with the beastly cold! After the welcome briefing, usual lifeboat drill and Zodiac briefing, we set sail for Puerto Williams where we anchored for clearance into CHILE and took our two Chilean Pilots on-board---they stayed with us the entire voyage to keep us safe. After formalities were completed we continued towards Cape Horn.

"The evening was calm and bright, and we enjoyed a fine view of the surrounding isles. Cape Horn however demanded his tribute, and before night sent us a gale of wind directly in our teeth. We stood out to sea, and on the second day again made the land, when we saw on our weather-bow this notorious promontory in its proper form - veiled in mist, and its dim outline surrounded by a storm of wind and water."

Charles Darwin's journal description of Cape Horn

Charles Darwin, in The Voyage of the Beagle, a journal of the five-year expedition upon which he based The Origin of Species, described his 1832 encounter with the Horn.

Early morning arrival - thankfully a beautiful day with quite calm sea and sunshine - how lucky we were.

The cape lies within Chilean territorial waters, and the Chilean Navy maintains a station on Horn Island, consisting of a residence, utility building, chapel, and lighthouse. A short distance from the main station is a memorial, including a large sculpture by Chilean sculptor José Balcells featuring the silhouette of an albatross, in remembrance of the sailors who died while attempting to "round the Horn". It was erected in 1992 through the initiative of the Chilean Section of the Cape Horn Captains Brotherhood.The terrain is entirely treeless, although quite lush owing to frequent precipitation. 

On arrival off Cape Horn, our Captain, in cooperation with the Chilean Pilots and 

our expedition leader Jane, assessed weather and sea conditions for Zodiac landings.

Above shows expedition team members heading ashore to determine all is OK

 for a safe landing. . . . . . . the beautiful Albatross memorial visible on the hill. . . . . . 

. . . . . and preparing for the 167 stair climb up the cliff!

View as we climbed the stairs, the ship at anchor, water quite flat, and a beautiful sunny morning to explore.

More steps to the memorial. . . . . . . 

We met the Chilean lighthouse keeper and his wife - the children were studying.

When asked if the children liked living there he told us they have already requested he 

sign on for another 2 year posting when this one is completed!

- The Chapel -

This first stop on our expedition voyage to the Chilean fjords  was going to be

 hard to beat - such a pleasant day as the strong winds and 

big sea swells stayed away. . . . . . 

. . . . . and we sailed away to dress up a bit for the Captain's Welcome Cocktail Party

 followed by an excellent Welcome Dinner.

Next day we would be cruising through the majestic sea, ice and landscape of 

Garibaldi Fjord.

Shipshape. . . . . . . . . . . .

Remember how I told you the interior of Cunard's Queen Victoria is beautiful.

 This is the central staircase, decorated for the holiday season, leading to the

 shopping arcade upstairs, and then down to areas such as the ballroom, casino, 

British style pub, many lounge areas with live music such as piano, harp, jazz combo,

classical string quartet etc., and a walk forward to the bow brings you to the fabulous

 Royal Court Theatre. All the interiors of the ship are tasteful, classic, elegant,

 and I suppose very British. 

Then there are the open deck areas, and plenty of them. Of course on a winter 

cruise one doesn't get to use the wet areas unless you are brave and hardy . . . . . . and

 have perhaps tucked a wetsuit into the suitcase!

After unpacking I took a walkabout to refresh my memory of the ship's layout as

 it was over two years since we sailed on her to the Baltic and Russia.

 You can see on the water sloshing somewhat in the smaller pool on this our first day

 whilst crossing the English Channel.

My favorite print in a stairwell on the ship - I just couldn't resist adding an 

appropriate comment.

Pool towels didn't get much use - the ship's laundry must like this season.

This is the larger pool, the sun was brilliant but the temperature chilly, and you can

 see the water movement. I did see one swimmer there later - then she, along with

 two other young women, jumped into the nearby hot tub.

As the evening drew in and the sun illuminated the lovely billowy clouds above the

 Channel, Bob popped the cork of the complimentary bottle of bubbly chilling in our

 cabin. We stepped out on the balcony, clinked our glasses, and hoped for a

 smooth crossing as we headed to the often choppy Bay of Biscay and 

 Spain. . . . . . . . . . . and loved being at sea again.

We had a great time on this cruise.

North Sea to Baltic Sea……………

The weather was kind to us most of the cruise, and even beyond when we arrived back in England.

Days at sea consisted of non-stop interesting pastimes, lectures, classes, entertainment, eating, and most important, exercising………to walk off overindulgence in the restaurants. Days ashore were healthy as they brought miles of walking over cobblestones in fresh air and sunshine. We did a 2-day guided tour in St. Petersburg where we covered a lot of ground in a minibus, canal boat and hydrofoil……we walked and walked in every other port of call, thankful for comfy shoes and temperatures.

Funny thing is, after the third day I realized, regarding the eating part of cruising -

1. I would never eat like that at home
2. I'd worked hard to lose 10lbs before I tripped lightly up that gangway in Southampton
3. I would hate myself for the remainder of the Summer if I arrived back home carrying those 10lbs and having to start over again
4. Bread, no matter how fresh from the ship's ovens below my stateroom, all crunchy and delicious, is not required at every meal
5. Walking three - six - nine laps of the Promenade Deck (3 were a mile) was fun, easy, interesting,  scenic, and a lot better for me than lazing by the pools, turning lobster red, and putting myself in danger of melanoma. I no longer sunbathe, and anyone in their right mind shouldn't as we all know by now, don't we?

So, hopping on the scales the first day back I was pleasantly surprised to see I had only gained back two of those pounds despite eating much more than usual. I didn't diet and enjoyed lovely meals, but made better choices after those initial three days when I stuffed everything in sight and felt horrible!

One of many signs around the Promenade Deck.

Here are a few pics from around the ship taken as I walked at different times 

of day and evening………………

After rounding Denmark's Cape Skagen, we proceeded on a southerly course following the Danish and Swedish coastlines toward the 'Great Belts', sailing between the islands of Sjaelland and Fyn. Excitement was felt as we neared Ostbroen (East Bridge), the quite amazing and largest part of the Great Belts Bridge, which is actually a series of bridges and tunnels connecting Sweden and Denmark.

Everyone was out on deck or their balconies as we passed under the bridge, which 

seemed awfully close to the Queen Victoria's smokestack, and a general sigh could be 

heard followed by a cheer…………………

……and we left it standing, an amazing feat of engineering in the beautiful waters of the Baltic Sea.

On the return we actually passed under the bridge again, but during the night so missed seeing it.

Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral and born in my home county of Devon, was the second sea captain to carry out a circumnavigation of the world, 1577-1580.  Knighted by Elizabeth 1 in 1581 he was a legendary hero to the English. 

I loved his words quoted on our breakfast tray placemat and must say I'm beginning to agree with him.

Next time, heading to Estonia, and our first port of call, the beautiful little capital Tallinn.