January 29 - Sea Day en Route to New Island, Falkland Islands

Before I discuss the events of the day, I would like to inform you that I am having difficulty at the present time sinking the pictures to the blog. I am looking into it and hope to rectify the problem shortly.

For past subscribers please click on the email notification to read the blog and then click on the photos tab to see the photographs related to the day's events. This would be for Embarkation Day and possibly the Falkland Islands.

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Thank you for your patience.

Today's weather Light Rain / Cloudy. High 13C / 55F Low 9C / 48F.
Sunrise 05:34 Sunset 21:10

This is our first sea day, and a busy day is in store for us as there are four mandatory attendance meetings. Upon arriving at our cabin yesterday our red parkas were laid out on the bed. Janice's parka was the correct size but mine needed to be exchanged for an XL parka which I did at 08:00 in the Explorer Lounge. The first mandatory attendance was at 09:30 around the pool deck for the lifeboat drill where we were shown how to properly wear a life jacket. The demonstration was completed in five minutes, but I do not remember if a roll call was taken to ensure everyone was present.

Our second mandatory briefing was held in the Explorer Lounge for the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) and zodiac briefing. All guests' names are checked off here as we make our way into the lounge. The expedition leader Schalk Botha 'pronounced Skulk' who is from South Africa went through the regulations of the things that you should not do when coming across sensitive areas. The main thing is that you should stay 5 meters away from wildlife such as penguins and slightly more when seals are in the area. He reminded us to make sure we never came between a mother seal and her pups. We were advised not to take any food from the ship and not to collect any items while on shore like plants and rocks. Not easy for Janice to not have food with her but she behaved for the sake of the animals.

Skulk continued with the zodiac briefing. There are six zodiac groups (ours was number five) with approximately 30 guests per group. Each guest should be ready to come down to the mud room but only when their number is called. This means you are expected to be dressed wearing your life jacket. The exception is the boots which will be left in the mud room for the length of the cruise.

The third mandatory kayak safety briefing was held at 14:00 for all guests. Anyone wishing to sign up for kayaking was required to be at the meeting. Here you listened to the presentation and then signed a waiver should you wished to kayak which we were hoping to do. Demand is very high, and the expedition leader would try to get everyone wishing to kayak out on the water when the weather cooperated.

The final mandatory event was the bio security check and boot tagging held between 15:00-16:15 where an inspection was carried out on all your outer layers of clothing you wish to wear when going ashore. The expedition team was looking for organic material, including soil, seed, and insects in Velcro, cuffs, pockets, seams, and hoods plus your boots. Any new gear which you brought or were given on board such as the parkas did not need to be checked. After the check every guest was required to sign a biosecurity declaration. Our rental boots were tagged, and the assigned number is where to place them in the mud room.

Over the course of the cruise the expedition team presents lectures on a variety of subjects. Today the assistant expedition leader who is Canadian, Neil Rabjohn, provided a brief history of the Falkland Islands. We can go back to 1592 when an English navigator John Davis might have been the first person to sight the Falklands. In fact, in 1600 a Dutchman named Sebalk de Weerdt is recorded to be the person who had undisputedly sighted the Falklands. Throughout the 1700s, the French, Spanish and the English settled on the Falklands at any given time. During the 1800s, Argentina declared their independence from Spain and claimed the Falklands for themselves. The 20th century brought disputes between England and Argentina as to who has the legal right to govern the island. In February 1982, the Argentina's military government invaded the islands which caused the Falkland Island War. The war lasted ten weeks after which time the Argentina's military surrendered to British forces in Stanley the capital. A referendum was held in March 2013; islanders voted nearly unanimously to remain a British overseas territory. Today there are approximately 3,700 inhabitants that include 1,200 military personnel.

This evening there is a Captain's Welcome Presentation where the captain welcomes all the guests and introduces the senior crew members. It is odd to go to an event like this and not dress up, it was very informal.

At 18:30 the expedition team is introduced by Skulk. Immediately afterwards he discussed the plans for tomorrow. During the briefing he explains all wet landings are based solely on weather conditions. Weather charts were shown on the main screen, if the charts are green then the weather conditions are favorable, and pink represents unfavorable weather conditions.

Skulk discussed expedition cruising:
• Different to classic cruising
• Need to be flexible
• We have a Plan A but often a Plan B may need to be used
• Wind, waves, ice and fog can all affect our plans
• Goal is to make each proposed destination but sometimes not possible
• Listen to announcements
• Plans do and will change

Daily briefings will be carried out throughout the cruise. Remember to pray to the weather gods each night.

You will find that expedition cruises are quite different from normal cruises. On the Silver Cloud there is a Team Expedition Leader accompanied by two Assistant Expedition Team Leaders. The Team Leader is only as good as the other expedition members below him or her. We were fortunate to have 28 expedition members on our voyage. They were very knowledgeable and answered all of our questions. These included the following:
• Program Coordinator
• Staff Assistant who spoke five languages
• Geologist (3)
• Naturalist
• Biologist and Astronomer
• Marine Biologist
• Ecologist (3)
• Oceanographer and Antarctic Scientist
• Glaciologist
• Historian
• Ornithologist
• Expedition Guides (8) of which two are PADI Divemasters
• Kayak Guides and Safety Drivers (4)
• Filmmaker
• Photo Studio Manager

The Expedition Team is also responsible for the safety of the passengers. At each landing the team will find the best landing area and then mark out the trail to follow or mark with a cross which areas are prohibited to walk in. They also help the passengers when disembarking at the landing sites as well as leaving the landings to return to the ship by stabilizing the zodiacs. These individuals are extremely knowledgeable in their respective fields and are always eager to share their knowledge.

Daily briefings would continue throughout the cruise.

That evening we had reservations at the outside restaurant The Grill, located on the Pool Deck. Here passengers select their choice of meat or fish from the menu and cook it on a hot lava stone which has been preheated to a temperature of 400˚C. We had requested baked potatoes as well but sadly the shipment of potatoes did not make it to Puerto Williams. As Janice would say a first world problem….