I woke up this morning at 5.20 and knew it would be beautiful outside so put my coat on over my pyjamas and went out on deck. There were lots of birds flying around, Albatross, Petrels, Cape Pidgeons. It was peaceful watching them glide around me.
Breakfast was a buffet, to much food but i managed to indulge in some of the things i hadn´t seen for a while, Sausages!
Someone is sick with Nobo Virus so everyone is on cleaning stations, if it gets out the whole ship could go down with it.
Three great lectures today, i learnt so much. Natural History and Geology of the Falklands, Introduction to bird life on the Falklands and Digital photography. Despite some of the obvious points in this lecture i still have lots of headless birds.
We are making good time and should get to the Falklands at 1am. When we wake up we will go on land, i can´t wait.
Not to much happened today but it was fun to people watch. The boat is definatley starting to divide. With 94 people you will never meet everyone but there is a younger crowd, which i am pleased about.
The food is excellent. Ended the night in the bar with Ursula, Joel, Chris and John. The staff are all great. Ursula is a whale expert and i can´t wait to hear her lecture. She told me that it may be to early for whale spotting but i am praying that we can just see one.
This trip is amazing, i don´t know how i will sleep tonight but with a few long days ahead i hope it is soon.
Grey-Headed Imm.
Royal Albatross, these birds are so graceful. They were only with us in the early stages, as we head further south we will pick up a a few more types of Albatross.
Pintado, these birds were with us for most of the trip. They spend most of their lives at sea, returning to land to breed. They use the boat for lift as the glide effortlessly
Sunset over the Atlantic, heading for the FalklandsMV POLAR STAR SHIPS LOG
Wednesday, 5th November – At Sea, Atlantic Ocean, heading for the Falklands
Time: 12:00
Latitude: 53° 31.4' S
Longitude: 63°25.4' W
Wind: Force 4 West South West
Sea Conditions: Very Rough (wave height 4 – 6m)
Pressure: 1000 mbTemperature: 6ºC
The ship woke to a fresh, sunny morning: perfect conditions to observe the variety of sea birds that soared around us. The keen spotters among us were treated to fantastic views of black browed albatross, grey headed albatross, giant petrels, and cape petrels (pintados).
Today would be spent entirely at sea with a following wind that pressed us ever closer to our destination, the Falkland Islands. Our first breakfast at sea was slightly challenging due to the irregular rolling of the ship,the rule "one hand for the vessel and one for yourself" was in the back of our minds as we jostled past each other around the buffet; a source of great amusement at times.
Gary Kochert began the expedition’s lecture schedule with From Africa Upside Down, afascinating talk which highlighted the importance of continental drift in the formation of the Falkland Islands we know today. We learnt that the islands were once sandwiched between Africaand East Antarctica within the super continent of Pangea before its break-up; geology and fossil records confirm this theory. His explanation of the natural history and geology of the area left us excited for tomorrow’s landings. After a short break to stretch the legs on deck, John Sparks followed with his lecture A Southern Eden. This photographic introduction to the birdlife of the Falkland Islands gave us pointers in identifying the wildlife we would see as well as explanations of some unique behavioural traits of the different species.
After lunch we convened in the observation lounge for an expedition overview with Ian which explained the IAATO guidelines that are so important in protecting Antarctica from the negative impacts of tourism. We also attended the mandatory Zodiac briefing as our first trip out in the boats would be tomorrow morning. In order to get fully prepared for our first landing we donned extra pairs of socks and selected a pair of rubber boots for the expedition. The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing in our cabins, the observation lounge or out on deck. After dinner, John Sparks and Gary gave a presentation that aimed to help us get the most out of our cameras during the trip. Questions were answered and camera features were explained, a very useful session to get us readyfor taking some wonderful photos.
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