The South Shetland Islands are a refuge for many wildlife animals. Huge penguin rookeries, beaches ruled by Antarctic fur seals and southern elephant seals make every day spent on this amazing island unforgettable. It’s breathtaking when we sail through a narrow strait into the flooded caldera of Deception Island (the name of the island is translated from English as a hoax)
King George Island, the largest of the southern Shetland Islands, is home to colonies of breeding penguins Adele and Chinstrap, blue-eyed cormorants, Antarctic terns and southern giant petrels, as well as scientific bases in many countries. Chinstrap and Gentoo penguins, as well as elephant seals, are waiting for you on Livingston Island.
The amazing story of the Antarctic Peninsula related to early explorers will interest you. You will have plenty of time to explore amazing landscapes, the untouched desert of snow, ice, mountains and water, as well as the incredible diversity of wildlife. In addition to penguins and seabirds, you will also see crabeater seals and leopard seals, as well as killer whales and humpback whales at close range.
We hope to sail through some of the most beautiful waterways (depending on ice conditions): Gerlash Strait, Neumeier Canal and Lemer Canal, the latter are narrow passages between towering cliffs and impressive glaciers. We plan to make at least two landings per day, and possible landing sites may include:
The Gulf of Paradise is perhaps the most successfully named place in the world, and we are trying to land on the continent itself. After talking about the icebergs of Antarctica, we hope to visit the noisy penguin colony of Adélie (breeding more than 100,000 pairs) and blue-eyed cormorants on the island of Paulet. Members of the expedition, led by Otto Nordensjöld, built a stone hut here in 1903. Today its ruins are captured by breeding penguins.
Further exploration may lead you to a group of cupronickel islands, Cuverville island, Neko harbor, Plino island and, if ice conditions permit, visit the southernmost Ghent penguin colonies on Petermann Island.