Antarctic Venturers

[toseaornottosea]

 

 

 

 

 

Will soon board the Venture for an Antarctic expedition and I have more than a few questions for those of you who have made this trip on the Venture.  Please bear with me and don’t beat me up.  My guess is that many who will be going on the same expedition cruise have many of the same questions, perhaps more and better questions.  Thanks in advance for your input and guidance. 

So here goes:
First and foremost, given recent zodiac events on Antarctic cruises have you been made aware of any enhancements in safety protocols?  An extra guide/crew member in the zodiac?  Fewer pax in zodiacs?  More assistance with zodiac boardings and landings?

 

Was your Drake passage crossing rough and if so how did Venture handle the rough/high seas?
How do people dress at night in the MDR and the Colonnade?  Country Club expedition I hope.
How many pax in the zodiacs in addition to expedition guide(s)?
Is a walking stick helpful/necessary?  Does Seabourn provide them?
Did you find the need for ski goggles while riding in the zodiacs?
Is there any internet service while in Antarctica?
 

 

[Cortesefam]

We're on the Quest next month for Antarctica--looking forward to the replies!

[dustcat]

What happened on quark expeditions was a tragic event.  I don’t know what happened on their zodiac but I found the expedition crew on Venture to be more than cautious with the safety of their passengers.  The storms in the Drake are spaced out about a day apart from each other.  Our captain did a great job of timing the trip through the drake.  Download the app windy and you can see when the drake will be crazy bad.  The zodiacs come in two sizes a 8 and 10 passenger.  They have one guide driving on boat but at least four guides helping you out of the zodiac.  No need for walking sticks unless you are unsteady on your feet.  I feel googles is a must as they help keep you warm and when you go through waves on the zodiacs they keep your face dry as you get soaked sometimes especially if you are sitting in the front.  The internet was really good except for one morning when we were in an area that was surrounded on all sides by mountains blocking the signal.

[cruiseej]

There was the flipped zodiac where someone died on the Quark expeditions trip. Then there was the Viking zodiac accident — passengers described it as an "explosion", but it's possible they were hit from underneath by a whale — in which one person was thrown into the water and pulled back in, and another suffered a severely broken leg. (That led to the rest of the cruise being canceled, as the ship rushed to Ushuaia to get the injured passenger the medical care she needed.) And then Silversea just had a zodiac which flipped (possible due to a wave from ice falling or flipping) and dumped everyone in the water; I don't think anyone was injured. That seems like unusually bad luck; I've never read of zodiac incidents being common occurrences. Since we're leaving for Antarctica tomorrow, I'm hoping it's true that bad things come in threes, and the rest of the winter season will be smooth sailing for all who are going! 😉

[highplanesdrifters]

@cruiseej

And then Silversea just had a zodiac which flipped (possible due to a wave from ice falling or flipping) and dumped everyone in the water; I don't think anyone was injured.

 

Thanks for this information.  First I've heard. Just wondering where you heard and if there is more information available.  Thanks.

 

[toseaornottosea]

On 12/14/2022 at 5:53 AM, highplanesdrifters said:

@cruiseej

And then Silversea just had a zodiac which flipped (possible due to a wave from ice falling or flipping) and dumped everyone in the water; I don't think anyone was injured.

 

Thanks for this information.  First I've heard. Just wondering where you heard and if there is more information available.  Thanks.

 

Ditto

[Fletcher]

Is there a technical problem with the Venture?  Citing broken stablisers, people on Facebook report the ship has turned back to Ushuaia and won't be going to South Georgia for the Holiday voyage. The ship appears to be at anchor in the bay at Ushuaia. 

Edited December 16, 2022 by Fletcher

[SLSD]

4 hours ago, Fletcher said:

Is there a technical problem with the Venture?  Citing broken stablisers, people on Facebook report the ship has turned back to Ushuaia and won't be going to South Georgia for the Holiday voyage. The ship appears to be at anchor in the bay at Ushuaia. 

I read in another forum that the stabilisers are working at a reduced capacity, and, for that reason, the itinerary has been altered for safety reasons.  SB provided a letter to those onboard with this information.  I saw a copy of the letter on the other forum.  Some passengers preferred to disembark, and this is the reason for the return to Ushuaia according to those onboard.  

[Covepointcruiser]

I believe most have heard of the additional Viking accident on their new ship.   While returning to Ushuaia they were hit by a Rogue Wave.   Four cabins had their windows broken in and one women from the U.S. was killed.   This happened while they were returning because of the passenger with the broken leg.

[highplanesdrifters]

3 hours ago, SLSD said:

I read in another forum that the stabilisers are working at a reduced capacity, and, for that reason, the itinerary has been altered for safety reasons.  SB provided a letter to those onboard with this information.  I saw a copy of the letter on the other forum.  Some passengers preferred to disembark, and this is the reason for the return to Ushuaia according to those onboard.  

Also heard from someone on board that South Georgia has been canceled.  But at least they will get Falklands and Antarctica. So perhaps all is not lost.

[rallydave]

2 hours ago, highplanesdrifters said:

Also heard from someone on board that South Georgia has been canceled.  But at least they will get Falklands and Antarctica. So perhaps all is not lost.

Not necessarily falklands. In normal times fewer than 50% of scheduled stops actually occur. We are 5o%  1 out of 2 stops occurred. 

[Fletcher]

25 minutes ago, rallydave said:

Not necessarily falklands. In normal times fewer than 50% of scheduled stops actually occur. We are 5o%  1 out of 2 stops occurred. 

Port Stanley can be iffy for bigger ships which would include Quest but possibly not Venture.  Also, Venture is scheduled to visit several outer islands which should be perfectly OK and are much more interesting than Stanley.

[highplanesdrifters]

My source tells me that the days they loose in South Georgia will be spent in Falklands and Antarctica.  So there is a good chance with extra days they will get some quality time there. But mother nature may have other plans.😀

[rallydave]

20 minutes ago, highplanesdrifters said:

My source tells me that the days they loose in South Georgia will be spent in Falklands and Antarctica.  So there is a good chance with extra days they will get some quality time there. But mother nature may have other plans.😀

What about the days lost going back to Ushuaia ?

[toseaornottosea]

2 hours ago, rallydave said:

Not necessarily falklands. In normal times fewer than 50% of scheduled stops actually occur. We are 5o%  1 out of 2 stops occurred. 

I'm guessing you are currently on Venture.  If I'm correct please elaborate on the status of the stabilizers.  Are they fully functioning and if not how does it affect the ship in rough waters?

[highplanesdrifters]

15 hours ago, rallydave said:

What about the days lost going back to Ushuaia ?

I'm just guessing based on the Venture schedule and cruisemapper, so please don't shoot the messenger.  The Holiday Cruise began on Dec. 15. Venture left Ushuaia yesterday and is in Falklands today, Dec. 17. So perhaps one day lost? The bigger question for me is why not still go to South Georgia, if in fact that is still the current plan. I'm sure all will be revealed at some point. 😀

[Covepointcruiser]

It’s too bad they lost a day of the cruise taking the malcontents back to Argentina.   They could have had extra landings in Antarctica, the Falklands or any other landing areas deemed safe by the expedition crew.

[Travels with Lisa]

I have a question on clothing.  Did you follow the packing list and order what they recommended or wing it on your own?  I don't want to be cold but I also don't want to spend a fortune on clothes I probably won't use again.  

 

What are you wearing on the bottom?  I'm torn between long underwear, fleece pants and rain pants or just long underwear and lined ski pants.

 

TIA

[rallydave]

16 minutes ago, Travels with Lisa said:

I have a question on clothing.  Did you follow the packing list and order what they recommended or wing it on your own?  I don't want to be cold but I also don't want to spend a fortune on clothes I probably won't use again.  

 

What are you wearing on the bottom?  I'm torn between long underwear, fleece pants and rain pants or just long underwear and lined ski pants.

 

TIA

From our trip on Quest a few years ago in mid December temps weren’t cold low 30s the coldest and we wore too much. Especially trudging there the snow we were quite warm wearing mid weight long underwear with long sleeve shirt 

 

Most important is waterproof pants and if doing it again just the waterproof over the thermal underwear. 
 

IMHO buying all they recommend is overkill waste of money and if walking a lot you will sweat. 

[Mr Luxury]

59 minutes ago, Travels with Lisa said:

I have a question on clothing.  Did you follow the packing list and order what they recommended or wing it on your own?  I don't want to be cold but I also don't want to spend a fortune on clothes I probably won't use again.  

 

What are you wearing on the bottom?  I'm torn between long underwear, fleece pants and rain pants or just long underwear and lined ski pants.

 

TIA

Jeans,now the dress code has been discontinued.😁

[worcestergal]

On our Antarctica trip a few years ago, I brought 3 different weights of long underwear. I never used the heaviest. I wore them under my lined, waterproof snow pants and I was never cold. I think I could have gotten by with just the lightweight long johns, but I was glad to have the options. (And, since I live in New Hampshire, I didn’t have to go out and buy for the trip). 

When we were in the Arctic in September/October, I didn’t  bring snow pants at all, just fleece lined rain pants, which were more than adequate. 

It was really never that cold in Antarctica. It was considerably colder back home!  I think I could have avoided the bulk of snow pants and just brought the lined rain pants and worn them with the medium or heavy long underwear.