Journey to Antarctica – Part 4

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Robin S. Kent

First, a quick update on the Herndon ArtSpace Fine Art Photography Competition. I was quite pleased on Saturday evening to receive a 3rd Place Award for my “Clearing Storm, Yosemite Valley” image (see my previous post here). Maybe I should do this more often…or should I quit while I’m ahead? Anyway, back to the saga of the White Continent……….

It seems that every Antarctica trip veteran we met before our departure had a different story about the weather. Although we’ve been there only once, it’s pretty easy to see why. Even when conditions are not extreme (i.e., enormous waves, huge storms), the weather is still volatile and often localized. This combination can make things very interesting. The following sequence of images on our passage through the Lemaire Channel is just one example.

Lemaire Channel, Looking South at Sunrise

Lemaire Channel, Looking East (One Minute Later)

Lemaire Channel (25 Minutes Later)

Lemaire Channel is about 7 miles long and a mile wide at its narrowest point. Because of the closeness of the sheltering mountains, it can be as smooth as a lake. Icebergs, however, can block the passage especially earlier in the season. Our destination was Petermann Island, home to another colony of Gentoo penguins and no iceberg congestion interfered (two images below).

Gentoo Penguin Surveys His/Her Domain

Gentoo Penguins on Petermann Island

Petermann Island was the southernmost point of our expedition, even though we would not have complained had the captain decided to break ranks and continue on. But such was not the case and that evening we retraced our route through the Lemaire Channel. On the positive side, we were treated not only to some very nice evening light by the setting sun but also the spectacle of a rising full moon (images below)

Sunset, Antarctica

Alpen Glow, Antarctica

Moonrise, Antarctica

Next—Paradise Bay and Beyond

40 thoughts on “Journey to Antarctica – Part 4”

Susan Portnoy on March 2, 2015 at 7:54 am said:

Congratulations on your award!!!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 2, 2015 at 10:01 am said:
  
  Thanks, Susan. I was pretty excited about it.
  
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Alexander Lautsyus on March 2, 2015 at 9:41 am said:

Exciting experience, interesting reportage, and beautiful pictures!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 2, 2015 at 10:02 am said:
  
  Thanks, Alexander. I appreciate your comments. What with the long days, I wasn’t getting much sleep, but I certainly wasn’t complaining with scenery like that.
  
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sariscorner on March 2, 2015 at 10:35 am said:

Congrats on the 3rd place! These are some stunning pictures of the southern continent!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 2, 2015 at 10:47 am said:
  
  Thanks very much for visiting and for your comments. I appreciate your thoughts.
  
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cazim on March 2, 2015 at 12:12 pm said:

Awesome photos. And congratulations on your Herndon competition award! Cheryl Z.

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- Robin S. Kent on March 2, 2015 at 12:44 pm said:
  
  Thanks very much, Cheryl. And thanks for visiting.
  
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Joanne on March 2, 2015 at 1:47 pm said:

What MAGNIFICENT captures – what an experience – and congrats on your award, the first of many I’m sure! 🙂

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- Robin S. Kent on March 2, 2015 at 2:59 pm said:
  
  Thanks, Joanne, very kind of you. It was a fantastic experience, so it’s been fun to write about it.
  
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quarterhorsegirl on March 2, 2015 at 4:44 pm said:

These pictures are amazing!!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 2, 2015 at 4:48 pm said:
  
  Thanks!
  
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jmeyersforeman on March 2, 2015 at 8:00 pm said:

Congrats on the award. I love hearing about he trip. Your images are wonderful as always

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- Robin S. Kent on March 2, 2015 at 8:47 pm said:
  
  Thanks very much, Janice. Always good to hear from you and I am excited about your exploration of still-life photography.
  
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Snow's Fissures and Fractures on March 3, 2015 at 11:10 am said:

Congrats on your award! Very happy to hear that.
The images are amazing, especially the one with that solitary penguin, that is my favorite.

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- Robin S. Kent on March 3, 2015 at 4:22 pm said:
  
  Thanks very much. That little guy was quite the poser. He/she gave me 3 different looks while standing in the same (perfect for the composition) place.
  
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Sarah Longes - Mirador Design on March 3, 2015 at 4:49 pm said:

Congratulations Robin! Well deserved 🙂 I just ADORE the image of the lone gentoo and all the mini bergs. Wonderful composition!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 4, 2015 at 9:00 am said:
  
  Thanks, Sarah. I appreciate the comments. We didn’t have much time on the island, so there was a fair amount of luck involved.
  
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  - Sarah Longes - Mirador Design on March 4, 2015 at 9:22 am said:
    
    There’s always an element of luck in photography 😉
    
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lauramacky on March 4, 2015 at 1:21 pm said:

All these images are just beautiful. I love the one with the Gentoo…amazing to see life in that area with the broken up icebergs or chips. They are all so well done!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 4, 2015 at 2:25 pm said:
  
  Thanks, Laura, Those are very kind words. The Gentoo image seems to be quite popular;-)
  
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  - lauramacky on March 4, 2015 at 6:37 pm said:
    
    You’re welcome. I can see why!
    
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the dune mouse on March 5, 2015 at 1:20 am said:

Amazing and beautiful!! and Congratz on your award!!!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 5, 2015 at 6:11 pm said:
  
  Thanks so much for visiting and for the comments.
  
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darwinontherocks on March 5, 2015 at 4:38 am said:

This is amazing, what a beautiful gallery !!! Congratulations for your award, you deserve it !

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- Robin S. Kent on March 5, 2015 at 6:14 pm said:
  
  Thank you very kind of you to say. I was hoping to get the final chapter out today, but Mother Nature dumped 10 inches of snow on us, so I was out shoveling.
  
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  - darwinontherocks on March 6, 2015 at 3:00 am said:
    
    This is crazy, you’ve had such a harsh winter ! I’ve seen posts of people from West Michigan, it looks bad over there as well 😦
    
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  - Robin S. Kent on March 6, 2015 at 10:11 am said:
    
    Well, actually we can’t complain too much. Others are enduring conditions far more extreme compared to what is normal for them. And the view out my window at this moment is wonderful.
    
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Dani on March 5, 2015 at 10:57 pm said:

Congrats on 3rd place, Robin 🙂

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- Robin S. Kent on March 6, 2015 at 10:12 am said:
  
  Thanks, Dani. Good to hear from you.
  
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  - Dani on March 6, 2015 at 10:37 am said:
    
    I’ve been hiding under a rock since my father’s stroke, Robin. Every waking minute has been about him and his recovery…so I’m trying to take a few for me and mine.
    
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  - Robin S. Kent on March 6, 2015 at 10:52 am said:
    
    I’m so sorry to hear about your father, Dani. Family, as you have so eloquently written in your postings, comes first and I wish you all the best in this difficult time and I hope your father has a full recovery.
    
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Dee & Gee on March 6, 2015 at 12:52 am said:

Wow! They are stunning. Especially Lemaire Channel, Looking East -Dee

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- Robin S. Kent on March 6, 2015 at 10:23 am said:
  
  Thanks very much for visiting and for the comments. I had to move fast to get that one because the boat was moving. Most of these images with a panorama format are actually several images (two in this case) merged together on my computer. The computer doesn’t have too much trouble when all of the images are taken from exactly the same spot. But since I couldn’t expect a 500-foot long ship to stop every time I saw a good scene, my only option was to shoot the sequence as quickly as possible (about 1 second for this image) and hope for the best.
  
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Stacy P. Fischer on March 10, 2015 at 10:23 pm said:

Robin, there are just no adequate words to convey how beautiful these images are! Each and every one I scrolled to, I just continued to gape. What a fantastical area of the earth, and how blessed you are to have seen it with your own eyes. Thanks for sharing these remarkable photos. I will definitely revisit them!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 11, 2015 at 8:16 am said:
  
  Hi, Stacy: Thanks so much for those very nice words. I plan to start making some exhibition prints fairly soon. Even though Open Studio is more than 6 months away, I am getting excited about it already.
  
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svtakeiteasy on March 21, 2015 at 1:57 am said:

Oh Robin, these images are stunning. I have been debating about going to Antarctica before I give up work – images like yours are certainly making me think about this more seriously!

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- Robin S. Kent on March 21, 2015 at 8:42 am said:
  
  Thanks very much for the visits and comments. After the trip, I would highly recommend it for anyone who likes travel and discovery. Unlike many trips, one feels they have wandered into a different time, that the vessel carrying you and your fellow passengers are alone in a strange land equivalent in size to the lower 48 states.
  
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katieprior on March 21, 2015 at 11:53 am said:

Congratulations on your award Robin. I’ve just caught up with all your Antarctica posts, they are all amazing and it seems such a wonderful experience! Thank you so much for sharing your marvellous photos and travel stories with us.

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- Robin S. Kent on March 21, 2015 at 3:25 pm said:
  
  Thanks, Katie: Thanks for checking out the posts and for the kind words. As you say, it was a memorable experience, and I’m glad I had the opportunity. It was also kind of Mother Nature to provide some fantastic conditions. But as we were about to leave the last stop, she gave us just a little taste of what it could be like. And that was fun too.
  
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