He's Alive, He's Alive He Has Risen!

Supposedly our crossing of the Drake Passage was one of the smoothest ever - this doesn’t bode well for the return voyage given my sorry state so far. The cry of ‘land ahead’ rang out 6 hours earlier than expected and everyone dashed to the nearest porthole clutching cameras, binoculars and yes, even satellite phones!

Seeing the Antarctic Peninsula for the first time is a difficult experience to describe. There was a great sense of relief, not least for my stomach, a tangible air of excitement throughout the ship and I know it’s a terrible cliché but the scenery really was breathtaking.

We anchored in the South Shetlands for a few hours which was an opportunity to ‘meet and greet’ the local inhabitants – Gentoo and Chinstrap penguins. A few of us were also able to take out sea kayaks and get in some much needed practice for the Antarctic Kayaking Championships, only 4 days away.

Paddling between icebergs, we were immediately rewarded with the sight of penguins ducking and diving alongside the kayaks. They were very curious and certainly showed no fear – I’m sure they must have thought I was some clumsy, misshapen seal in my all-in-one, rubber dry suit.

It wasn’t all cutesy penguins and stunning landscapes; the harsh reality of the Antarctic environment was brought home to me when moments later the same penguins were attacked by a huge leopard seal. Like a scene from Jaws, we watched him shoot out of the waves, mouth wide open, and snatch a fleeing penguin. It was all over in an instant but was a pertinent illustration of why only a tenth of penguins make it to maturity.

Back on ship we had a race briefing. I was slightly shocked to realise that there is less than 48 hours until the marathon. Cue, panic! I must have lost track of the days whilst under the influence of drugs (legal ones of course).
The marathon organisers have taken Zodiacs (motorised inflatable boats) into Maxwell Bay where the Russian research base, Bellingshausen is located. The Russians are hosting the run along with the Chinese, Uruguan and Chilean bases. The organisers will spend time negotiating the finer details of ‘Race Day’ with the 4 bases and will hopefully be able to finalise and lay out the course route tomorrow. This isn’t a normal marathon where all of the parameters can be agreed upon in advance, many compromises have to be reached and we are all braced for last minute changes.