Trip Report - Emmalee Tarry
January 15 - February 2, 1999

Antarctica, South Georgia and the Falkland Islands

Contents Introduction Part 1 Birding in Santiago and Ushuaia Part 2 Drake Passage and Antarctica Part 3 South Georgia Part 4 Falkland Islands Appendix A References,Cost and other Information Appendix B South Georgia Bird List New England Seabirds

Introduction

In 1983 while I was living in Pittsburgh, the Pennsylvania lottery accumulated a 6 million dollar prize. We thought that was a great sum of money so all my co-workers and I bought lottery tickets. Then for a week or so we enjoyed playing the "What I am going to do with 6 million dollars" game. One would open a restaurant, another buy the Boston Celtics and I dreamed of taking a trip to Antarctica. Well I didn't win the lottery, but in January of 1999, I did go to Antarctica.

During the months of planning I answered these questions time and again. "Why would anyone go to Antarctic in the middle of winter?" When its winter here, it is summer down there. "Why go to Antarctica it's cold there?" That's an easy one for a birder. Albatross, Penguins, and just the adventure of it all. This trip report, as well a providing a lasting memory for me, is intended for those with a similar spirit who are planning an Antarctic adventure.

My trip was with Victor Emanuel Nature Tours (VENT) aboard the MS Explorer owned and operated by Abercrombie and Kent (A&K). There was an afternoon of birding in the Andes Mountains at a ski resort near Santiago and another afternoon in Tierra Del Fuego National Park near Ushuia, Argentina. The primary focus of the trip was on the Antarctic Peninsula, the island of South Georgia and the southern ocean. The trip ended with a day of birding in the Falkland Islands .

The first evening aboard the ship we sailed down the Beagle Channel and awoke the next morning rocking, rolling and birding the infamous Drake Passage. After two full days of sailing we spent 3 days exploring various islands and the mainland of the Antarctic Peninsula. Then it was back to the sea for two days, sailing to South Georgia for 3 days of birding at various spots in the islands. The great pelagic continued with two plus days of sailing along the Antarctic Convergence to the Falkland Islands. We had one full day of birding on two outer islands followed by a morning in Port Stanley and a long bus trip to the Stanley airport. We returned home by way of Santiago, Chile.

This was an incredible trip. If you suffer from seasickness (I don't) , you may have several bad days that will temper your enthusiasm.

The real highlight of the trip is the island of South Georgia. If you are planning a trip, be sure South Georgia is included.

All zodiac landings depend upon conditions. Landing spots vary from year to year and are not announced in advance. I assume that if one spot is inaccessible one year that the ship goes to another similar spot. We were extremely lucky with the weather and low ice conditions this year.

The food was more than wonderful and included lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. Accomodations were comfortable if somewhat cramped and daily maid service is provided. Everybody has full access to the common facilities on the ship regardless of the price of their rooms. There are no assigned tables in the dining room or formal dressing.

There were approximately 98 participants along with 3 VENT leaders: Greg Lashley, Peter Dunne and Michael Sallaberry. A & K has a number of naturalists and experts on geology and history as part of the crew.

Getting There January 15 - Ice Storms in the North East

The ship sails on schedule even if a ice storm strands you in the north east for hours and even days. We got very lucky and were on one of the few planes that left Boston on January 15. Those who waited until later in the day to travel to one of the three departure points (NY, LA and Miami) were not so lucky. Some missed birding in Santiago and one person did not catch up to the group until the airport in Ushuia after paying an addition $800 for alternate airfare. In the future, I will leave a day early. I did elect to leave from Miami rather than the closer NY to avoid weather problems.

Our flight out of Miami was on Lan Chile, an airline that treats time very casually. Since we did not have assigned seats we arranged to arrive at the Lan Chile counter as they opened. Despite all promises, VENT was only once able to get Lan Chile to assign seats in advance. Seat assignments do not appear to be a heavy concern with Lan Chile. Be careful that they do not assign you to the smoking section without asking.

Our flight was uneventful and we arrived in Santiago the next morning after getting some sleep on the crowded plane. Buses took us and our luggage directly to the Plaza San Francisco Hotel. Our first birding trip was at noon.

Next: Part 1 Santiago and Ushuaia.