Oceanwide - Antarctic Peninsula Cruise

ANTARCTIC PENINSULA

10-12 nights
Departures: December 2009, & January & February 2010
Ships: Professor Molchanov, Professor Multanovskiy and M/V Plancius

The White Continent, with its multi-coloured ice-caps, glaciers and towering snow-capped mountains, offers attractive scenery and photographic opportunities. Sailing from Ushuaia, the southernmost city in Argentina, we cross the Drake Passage and make our first landing in Antarctic waters at Aitcho or Penguin Island, which both offer a good variety of flora and fauna such as Gentoo Penguins, Chinstrap Penguins and Southern Giant Petrels. Elephant Seals and Fur Seals may also haul out at the beaches. Weather and landing conditions permitting, we will spend as much time ashore as possible, hiking and exploring the sites. The limited number of passengers aboard the vessel enables us to bring everyone, all at once, quickly and smoothly ashore with our inflatable Zodiacs. Regularly we try to land at "unknown" locations, which will contribute to the exploratory character of the Polar voyage.

Apart from snow and ice and the rich Antarctic life, there are also many historical sites, such as Paulet Island where Otto Nordenskjöld’s Swedish expedition survived, in 1901-03. The Swedish hut is still standing, surrounded by thousands of Adelie Penguins. From here it is possible to gain an understanding of what enticed men to this remote land. Muffled against the weather we look out across the Weddell Sea: inhospitable, yet inspiring, it is a sight to quicken the pulse and move the spirit. If we are lucky, we may even spot that most elusive of birds, the Emperor Penguin on an ice floe. Sometimes, as we sail towards the Lemaire Channel, sea-mist may obscure the narrow strait leaving only rocky peaks visible against the sky. Take a place high on the upper deck where the mist thins, the deck will disappear and the filtered light takes on an ethereal glow. On some voyages we move further south, crossing the Antarctic Circle and reaching Crystal Sound, a land of high mountains and huge glaciers. Sailing north through Neumayer Channel we arrive at the Melchior Islands where we may have our last Zodiac cruise of the voyage.

Itinerary - 10 nights

Day 1
	In the afternoon, we embark in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, the picturesque southernmost city in the world located at the Beagle Channel and sail through the Beagle Channel.
Days 2 and 3
	During these two days we sail across the Drake Passage. When we cross the Antarctic Convergence, we arrive in the circum-Antarctic up welling zone. In this area we may meet Wandering Albatrosses, Grey Headed Albatrosses, Black-browed Albatrosses, Light-mantled Sooty Albatrosses, Cape Pigeons, Southern Fulmars, Wilson's Storm Petrels, Blue Petrels and Antarctic Petrels. Near the South Shetland Islands, we glimpse at the first icebergs.
Day 4
	At Deception Island, we will try to land at Baily Head with a colony of ten thousands of Chinstrap Penguins. Deception Island is a huge volcano of which the crater opens into the sea, creating a natural harbour for the ship. Here we find hot springs, an abandoned whaling station, thousands of Cape Pigeons and many Dominican Gulls, Brown and South Polar Skuas and Antarctic Terns. Wilson's Storm Petrels and Black-bellied Storm Petrels nest in the ruins of the whaling station in Whalers Bay.
Day 5
	We will sail to Orne Islands with large colonies of Chinstrap Penguins and a beautiful view across the Gerlache Strait. Later we continue to Cuverville Island, a small precipitous island, nestled between the mountains of the Antarctic Peninsula and Danco Island. It contains a large colony of Gentoo Penguins and breeding pairs of Brown Skuas. From there we sail through Paradise Bay with its myriad icebergs and deep cut fjords, while having chances of seeing large whales. We will have opportunities for zodiac cruising between the icebergs in the inner parts of the fjords.
Day 6
	We sail through the spectacular Lemaire Channel to Petermann Island where we can find Adelie Penguins and Blue-eyed Shags. We also try to land at Pleneau Island home to Elephant Seals. In this area there are good chances to encounter Humpback Whales, Minke Whales and Fin Whales.
Day 7
	Sailing north through Neumayer Channel and Gerlache Strait we arrive at Charlotte Bay with a very beautiful landscape and again possibilities for zodiac cruising among the icebergs, where we may encounter Leopard Seals, Crabeater Seals and Minke Whales.
Day 8
	Half Moon Island is a beautiful volcanic island with Chinstrap Penguins, Gentoo Penguins, Blue-eyed Shags, sheathbills and Brown Skuas. Weddell Seals and Elephant Seals may also be spotted. The crew of the Argentine station is very hospitable. We may also choose to land at Hannah Point, which has a very rich wildlife featuring Elephant Seals, Cape Pigeons, Southern Giant Petrels, Macaroni Penguins and Gentoo Penguins.
Days 9 and 10
	In the Drake Passage we have again a chance of seeing many seabirds.
Day 11
	We arrive in the morning in Ushuaia and disembark.

Important reminder: All itineraries are for guidance only. Programmes may vary depending on local ice and weather conditions and in order to take advantage of opportunities to see wildlife. Flexibility is paramount for expedition cruises.

Departure Dates and Prices

Prices are per person for 10 or 12 nights and do not include international flights.

Departure date	Ship	# nights	Prices
3 December 09	Professor Molchanov	12	Ł5325
23 January 10	Professor Molchanov	10	Ł5045
26 January 10	M/V Plancius	10	Ł5045
2 February 10	Professor Molchanov	10	Ł5045
4, 14 & 24 February 10	Professor Multanovskiy	10	Ł5045

Price Includes:
Voyage aboard indicated vessel, all meals throughout voyage including snacks, coffee and tea, all shore excursions operated by Zodiac, activities throughout the voyage, service taxes and port charges.
Price Excludes:
Pre-post land arrangements, any airfares, government arrival/departure taxes, meals ashore, personal insurance, items of a personal nature and gratuities.