Antarctic

From Antarctica by Tole & Jessica

“It isn’t possible to convey in words, or even in pictures, the otherworldly beauty of the landscapes and seascapes we saw,” write RealTravelers Tole & Jessica about a recent trip into the glaciered gorgeousness of Antarctica. Used to traveling through destinations like South America and Europe on bicycles, Tole & Jessica traded in their two-wheel transportation for a small cruise ship that traveled through the icy waters of sparkling Antarctica. Venturing on outings using small motor-powered rafts called zodiacs, the adventurous couple from San Francisco were able to weave between glaciers and ice burgs and get up close with some of the region’s wildlife.

Here’s a passage from their journal, Antarctica:

“Our zodiac landings on the islands and Antarctic mainland gave us a chance to see elephant seals, crabeater seals, leopard seals, and about a million fat little penguins. On one island we hiked up a snow-covered hill for about an hour to find ourselves surrounded by a stunning panorama, then slid all the way down on our bums in about 10 minutes. We saw several whales from the ship, and many whale bones on the islands we visited. On a few zodiac outings we simply cruised around a particularly beautiful place, like Paradise Harbor, in the zodiacs to get a more intimate look at the sea life, icebergs, and strange, still beauty. One zodiac cruise found us up close and personal with a curious leopard seal that swam around our raft taking peeks at us. On one island we sat for half an hour looking down at penguins swimming in the water, amazed by how fast they are - they take off like little black and white bullets! To top it all off, on the last day, a bitterly cold day of stinging sleet and wind, we joined the other lunatics from the cruise for a dip in a “hot spring” and in the sea off Deception Island.” (more…)

Tole & Jessica said the beauty of the Antarctica had them feeling “awestruck every single day,” which is saying quite something since, at this time of year, the sun is out almost all the time. Tole & Jessica go on in their blog to share some delightfully interesting facts about Antarctica, like:

“Melting ice and icebergs make a rather loud crackling/popping sound in the water, like Rice Krispies in milk.

Much of Antarctica is actually considered desert because it receives so little new precipitation, in some parts as little as 2 cm per year.

And

The largest iceberg ever recorded was spotted near Antarctica in 1956. It was 208 miles long and 60 miles wide - roughly the size of Belgium.”

To learn more about Antarctica, and to see some awe-striking photographs, check out the rest of Tole & Jessica’s travel blog, Antarctica. If you’ve been captured by the beauty of this region and want to experience it for yourself, visit these useful links to help you get started:
Antarctica Travel Guide
Antarctica Travel Blogs
Virtual Tour: Antarctica

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