There are solely a handful of locations on this world that supply essentially the most spectacular wildlife experiences conceivable. A safari in Africa is one. A cruise across the Galapagos Islands is one other. However nowhere else boasts true remoteness and splendour fairly like a wildlife expedition to Antarctica.
The landscapes of the white continent are the preliminary supply of unrivalled awe encountered in Antarctica, but it’s the wildlife that may eternally keep in your reminiscence.
After we travelled to Antarctica we knew we had been going to expertise one thing magnificent. As one of many final really wild areas on the planet, it was a vacation spot that enticed extra pleasure than we had ever felt earlier than.
After the 2 days spent crossing the Drake Passage we lastly made it to the Antarctic Peninsula. From the second the solar rose over the snow-capped peaks we caught our first glimpse of a few of the outstanding species that decision Antarctica residence – gentoo penguins, minke whales, crabeater seals and numerous birds. And that was only the start.
For the following 6 days we acquired up shut and private with the wildlife, and our appreciation for great thing about the animal world has by no means been the identical since.
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The world class naturalists, whale specialists and ornithologist onboard spent infinite hours sharing every bit of data they might concerning the creatures we had been encountering. Their data enormously enhanced our expertise with the wildlife in Antarctica, and we are able to’t thank them sufficient for this.
It was a visit we’ll always remember. These are a few of our favorite wildlife encounters that we skilled in Antarctica.
Of all the things that stands out in our minds, it was at the present time within the Gerlache Strait, after we had been surrounded by an enormous pod of humpback whales coming proper as much as our teams, that’s the most memorable. The kayakers had been in awe because the whales breached subsequent to them, and we couldn’t imagine our eyes because it was occurring.
The most typical species you’ll possible encounter within the Antarctic Peninsula are the gentoo penguins. They kind enormous colonies on each cove, island and seaside, and are very curious of people.
A good looking crabeater seals stretches on a small iceberg on our first day within the Antarctic Peninsula.
4 humpback whales breach on the identical time within the Gerlache Strait. A very phenomenal encounter!
A seal pops his head up to take a look at a zodiac throughout a cruise on our first day.
Arguably the ugliest creature in Antarctica, the elephant seal is gigantic and may weigh as much as 4 tonnes. We discovered them throughout Hannah Cove on Livingstone Island. Whereas we needed to maintain our distance (they are often fairly temperamental), they had been nonetheless a surprise to see up shut.
6 varieties of penguins dwell in Antarctica, and whereas we noticed numerous gentoos, chinstraps and adelies, we solely managed to seek out two macaroni penguins, with their well-known yellow mohawk.
Right here one of many macaroni penguins will be discovered hanging out in a chinstrap penguin colony.
A leopard seal takes a break on a floating piece of ice. We had been so blissful to see considered one of these superb creatures throughout our time in Antarctica.
A gentoo penguin feeds its younger within the Antarctic Peninsula.
Whereas the seals tended to relaxation and chill out on the shore, within the water they had been extraordinarily playful and curious.
If you do zodiac cruises or go sea kayaking in Antarctica you’ve the good perspective of seeing the penguins up shut from the ocean.
A humpback whale spy hops subsequent to a gaggle of kayakers within the Gerlache Strait. Whales do that to take a look at what’s above the floor.
There’s such an abundance of wildlife in Antarctica that species peacefully co-exist. Whereas the elephant seals slept, the gentoo penguins wandered round carefree.
One creature we didn’t handle to see up shut was the unbelievable orca, however our expertise with them was nonetheless spectacular. On the finish of our most intense day for wildlife encounters, a pod of orcas confirmed up amongst the humpbacks, crabeater seals and gentoo penguins. They didn’t get shut sufficient to our ship to seize a very good photograph, however the reminiscence of seeing the majestic killer whales won’t be forgotten.
This gentoo chick got here working as much as us, squawking away. It appeared so cute we couldn’t assist however snap an image.
A sea lion provides a giant yawn throughout considered one of our shore landings.
Two humpbacks breach on both aspect of those fortunate kayakers.
Concerning the Creator – Alesha and Jarryd
Hey! We’re Alesha and Jarryd, the award-winning writers {and professional} photographers behind this weblog. We’ve got been travelling the world collectively since 2008, with a ardour for journey journey and sustainable tourism. Via our tales and pictures we promote thrilling off-the-beaten-path locations and engaging cultures as we go. As one of many world’s main journey journalists, our content material and adventures have been featured by Nationwide Geographic, Lonely Planet, CNN, BBC, Forbes, Enterprise Insider, Washington Publish, Yahoo!, BuzzFeed, Channel 7, Channel 10, ABC, The Guardian, and lots different publications. Comply with our journey in actual time on Fb, YouTube and Instagram.
