Antarctica Drive-By’s - Current Reports

[pdmlynek]

On 1/29/2023 at 2:55 PM, kaisatsu said:

One thing that has changed is the hot pools. Around 2011 IAATO realized that digging out the beach pools was disruptive to the local environment and they changed their guidelines to discourage the practice.

...

I've heard of that as well, and it seems really silly.  Digging up a beach pool, taking a dozen square meters to the depth of half a meter in an island with a diameter of 12 km, a single tiny island within millions of square kilometers, is not going to be noticable.  Who cares?  Just exactly what is IAATO trying to achieve?

 

I'd say that the tens of thousand of penguins that poop on this island do millions of times more damage to the loal environment, and IAATO doesn't go after the penguins.  Neither does IAATO go after the volcano which has over the past tens of thousands of years erupted several times, wiping out all the local population, and releasing 30 cubic km of magma.

 

Trying to protect the environment by prevent beach pools, is akin to trying to prevent the use of wind energy, because it slows down the rotation of the Earth, making days longer.

[Bella0714]

On 2/14/2023 at 9:42 AM, Nitemare said:

I consider booking now for this month or next month to not be 'booking in advance'.   There are certainly last minute offers in that range, but most folks (or at least most folks like me) need a few months to plan a trip of this magnitude, especially the flights

Okay, we can drop this, but I'm seeing $5,500-$6,500 for next season, not next month.

[kaisatsu]

On 2/15/2023 at 2:22 AM, pdmlynek said:

I've heard of that as well, and it seems really silly.  Digging up a beach pool, taking a dozen square meters to the depth of half a meter in an island with a diameter of 12 km, a single tiny island within millions of square kilometers, is not going to be noticable.  Who cares?  Just exactly what is IAATO trying to achieve?

 

I'd say that the tens of thousand of penguins that poop on this island do millions of times more damage to the loal environment, and IAATO doesn't go after the penguins.  Neither does IAATO go after the volcano which has over the past tens of thousands of years erupted several times, wiping out all the local population, and releasing 30 cubic km of magma.

 

Trying to protect the environment by prevent beach pools, is akin to trying to prevent the use of wind energy, because it slows down the rotation of the Earth, making days longer.

Sorry, it looks like I was wrong. It’s not an IAATO guideline, but one set by the Antarctic Treaty administration:

https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Ats/Guideline/e36c1a8f-3ae7-4187-9b24-194c8cf5e780
 

Deception Island (and particularly Whaler’s Bay) sees some of the highest visitor numbers of any landing site. Perhaps having several landings group per day digging up the beach was contributing to erosion or otherwise disrupting the local ecosystem?

 

The penguins, on the other hand, would be there anyway. The goal of IAATO is to minimize the impact of human visitors on the region. Not to try to “fix” the existing ecosystem in any way.

[pdmlynek]

2 hours ago, kaisatsu said:

Sorry, it looks like I was wrong. It’s not an IAATO guideline, but one set by the Antarctic Treaty administration:

https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Ats/Guideline/e36c1a8f-3ae7-4187-9b24-194c8cf5e780
 

Deception Island (and particularly Whaler’s Bay) sees some of the highest visitor numbers of any landing site. Perhaps having several landings group per day digging up the beach was contributing to erosion or otherwise disrupting the local ecosystem?

 

The penguins, on the other hand, would be there anyway. The goal of IAATO is to minimize the impact of human visitors on the region. Not to try to “fix” the existing ecosystem in any way.

Thanks!

 

I think that if I ever get to decide to do Antarctica cruise, that visiting Deception Island would be one of the top destinations for me to look forward to.  (Yes, I know that you can't predict where the ships will end up sailing to.)

[2552phxcrzr]

Returning to the original topic of drive by sailing reports.

 

Oceania Insignia just completed it’s 3-day drive by a couple of days ago.

 

Although I am still a strong proponent of expedition cruising in the polar regions (have done this twice), I will say that this was a very successful trip (part of the world cruise).  We had an excellent bridge team that worked in close cooperation with the ice pilot and the expedition team leader to get us much closer to the scenery than I expected … Dallman Bay, Neumayer Channel, Gerlache Strait, Andvord Bay (Paradise Bay was blocked by ice), Errera Channel, and then up to the South Shetlands … Deception Island (did not enter the caldera), Half Moon Island, Greenwich Island, into Admiralty Bay on King George Island.

 

We had the Drake Lake both ways.

 

An amazing whale bubble feeding fest in Andvord Bay, with humpbacks right next to the ship.  Penguins were little more than distant dots, but then I didn’t go with any other expectation, so not a surprise.  Also, leopard seal on an ice floe … and crabeater seals on another ice floe … both fairly close to the ship and identifiable without binoculars.

 

We managed to tender into Stanley on the way north.  Another success.

 

Did I miss the landings that we’ve done in the past?  Absolutely.  But Antarctica is amazing however you get down there.

Edited February 24, 2023 by 2552phxcrzr