An Antarctic journey on the newest polar cruise ship

Until recently, adventure travelers the world over have only dreamed of someday leaving their footprint on Antarctica, our planet’s 7th continent. But today, those dreams can come true.

In 2007, the travel world welcomed the launching of the first high tech polar expedition cruise ship, the MS FRAM, from the Norwegian shipping company, Hurtigruten.

My journey began in Chile. After two days of sightseeing in Santiago, the city known as the “cleanest capital” in South America, I traveled by land through the beautiful Chilean wine region to the coastal port city of Valparaiso. There I boarded the MS FRAM for an unforgettable adventure.

After two days at sea, our first landing was the Chilean port city of Puerto Montt, the gateway to the Lake District. The view was a picture postcard featuring magnificent lakes, turquoise rivers and glacier-formed valleys surrounded by snow-capped volcanoes.

During the following days of cruising, the Andes Mountains offered spectacular views. This picturesque mountain chain extends over seven countries and ends at the tip of Chile. As we navigated through the fjords, one can only wonder how many millennia it took to create this natural setting.
On day 5, after docking in the port of Puerta Natales, we traveled by bus to Torres del Paine National Park with its spire mountain peaks and aqua lakes.

Punta Arenas in Chilean Patagonia was our next short stay. There we observed the Magellan penguins. As it was nesting time, they had left the sea and were returning to their underground burrows.

Our next stop was Tierre del Fuego (the Land of Fire). We were now on the southern route to Cape Horn through the Cockburn and Beagle Channels. Our next adventure would be the dreaded Drake Passage which has swallowed men and ships since there were sailors on the seas.

At the Cape, we climbed to view the relief sculpture of an albatross in flight, a commemoration to those lost at sea. From here onwards, we would be sailing to the great white wilderness by the same route taken by explorers, seal and whale hunters and today’s polar scientists.

Our next landings were made on desolate islands. There we saw nesting penguins and seals resting on the beaches. On Aitcho Island, we observed three kinds of penguins; the chinstraps, the gentoos and king penguins.

As we sailed further along the Antarctic Peninsula, the beauty of the mountains, glaciers, sea ice and icebergs was everywhere. Antarctica is a continent ringed by an ocean and covers almost one-tenth of the earth’s surface.

For the next 6 days, MS FRAM made landings on the peninsula and the mainland. Each landing was unique. Some contained the homes of various animals and bird species while others housed scientific research stations.

Next stop was Whaler’s Bay on Deception Island, part of a volcanic caldera. The hot surface meeting the cold air and sea produced an eerie fog over this deserted whaling station that began in 1905 and as a consequence to a mudslide; its structures were abandoned to the elements in 1967
Walker Bay on the island of Livingston was our final landing. Like an “open air” museum, it offered an interesting collection of fossils and a shoreline covered with southern elephant seals that could provide an entire day of photography.

No one can leave Antarctica without strong feelings. Apart from wishing everyone could personally visit this incredible place, our sincerest hope is that the countries of the Antarctic Treaty continue to protect and preserve this valuable, natural asset of our planet.

Michigan writer Carole Herdegen is the Editor and Travel Consultant of TravelSite.com, the host site of her travel magazine, TravelQuest with Carole Herdegen­.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY CAROLE HERDEGEN