Em busca do Mar de Weddell

Departing Ushuaia, the voyage crosses the Drake Passage en route to the South Shetland Islands and the ice-rich Weddell Sea. Exploration includes Hope Bay, Paulet Island, and Brown Bluff, with massive Adélie Penguin colonies and tabular icebergs. Historic sites tied to the Nordenskjöld expedition are visited, alongside chances to spot Emperor Penguin juveniles. The journey continues through the Antarctic Peninsula’s Gerlache Strait, Paradise Bay, and Deception Island. Wildlife encounters include whales, seals, and penguins before returning to Ushuaia via the Drake Passage.

Dia 1: partida de Ushuaia

Embarque no USHUAIA à tarde e conheça a equipe de expedição e os palestrantes. Depois de se acomodar na cabine, navegamos pelo famoso Canal de Beagle e pelo cênico Paso Mackinlay.

Dias 2 e 3: No mar, travessia da Passagem de Drake

Named after the renowned explorer, Sir Francis Drake, who sailed these waters in 1578, the Drake Passage also marks the Antarctic Convergence, a biological barrier where cold polar water sinks beneath the warmer northern waters. This creates a great upwelling of nutrients, which sustains the biodiversity of this region. The Drake Passage also marks the northern limit of many Antarctic seabirds. As we sail across the passage, Antarpply Expeditions’ lecturers will be out with you on deck to help with the identification of an amazing variety of seabirds, including many albatrosses, which follow in our wake. The USHUAIA´s open bridge policy allows you to join our officers on the bridge and learn about navigation, watch for whales, and enjoy the view. A full program of lectures will be offered as well.

The first sightings of icebergs and snow-capped mountains indicate that we have reached the South Shetland Islands, a group of twenty islands and islets first sighted in February 1819 by Capt. William Smith of the brig Williams.

With favorable conditions in the Drake Passage our lecturers and naturalists will accompany you ashore as you experience your first encounter with the penguins and seals on Day 3.

Dias 4 a 6: explorando o Mar de Weddell

This is where huge tabular icebergs roam. In some years, the Erebus & Terror Gulf and Weddell Sea are chock-a-block full with ice, making for exciting ice navigation. Get up early and go out on deck. It may be 3:30 h in the morning, but the sunrises will be unlike anything you´ve ever seen. Huge tabular bergs break from the Larsen, Ronne, and Filchner ice shelves and combine with one-year-old and multi-year sea ice to produce a floating, undulating panorama of rugged ice scenery. All-white Snow Petrels are likely to be coursing over the floes, often joined by Pintado Petrels.

The usual passage to the east side of the Antarctic Peninsula traverses the Antarctic Sound, which is 30 miles (48 km) long and 7-12 miles (11-19 km) wide and runs northwest-to-southeast. Hope Bay and the Argentine Station Esperanza, are located on the western side of the Sound. Brown Bluff, a promontory on the Tabarin Peninsula, is located south of Hope Bay. Both of them might be possible landing sites. The Weddell Sea represents the center of the Peninsula’s Adélie Penguin population. Devil Island, Paulet Island and the already mentioned sites, might give us ample proof of this. The numbers of penguins are breathtaking. Sometimes juvenile Emperor Penguins have been sighted, riding ice floes but are by no means regular in the area.

This region also teems with vibrant exploration history. The most bizarre of these tales involves the Swedish Antarctic Expedition of 1901-03 under the command of geologist Otto Nordenskjöld. Four visitor sites have links to this expedition: Hope Bay, Paulet Island, Snow Hill Island, and Cape Well-Met on Vega Island. Our expedition staff will be pleased to share their exciting story with you. Nordenskjöld´s expedition was the first to overwinter in the Peninsula. His ship the Antarctic, under the command of the famous Norwegian whaling captain Carl Anton Larsen, was trapped in the ice and sank, but the men survived on different locations and even managed to carry out significant scientific research in the area.

Dias 7 a 9: Explorando a Península Antártica e as Ilhas Shetland do Sul

The Antarctic Peninsula´s remarkable history will also provide you with a type of excitement often only associated with the early explorers. You will have plenty of time to explore its amazing scenery, a pristine wilderness of snow, ice, mountains and waterways and a wide variety of wildlife. Apart from Gentoo and Chinstrap Penguins and other seabirds you are likely to encounter Weddell, crabeater and leopard seals as well as Minke whales and orcas at close range.

We hope to navigate some of the most beautiful waterways: the Gerlache Strait, Errera Channel and Neumayer Channel. Possible landing sites may include: Paradise Bay, which is perhaps the most aptly named place in the world with its impressive glacial fronts and mountains, Cuverville Island, home of the biggest Gentoo Penguin colony in the Peninsula surrounded by glaciers and castellated icebergs, and the British Museum and Post office at Port Lockroy.

Further exploration will lead us to the South Shetland Islands. The volcanic island group is a haven for wildlife. Vast penguin rookeries and seals hauling out on the shorelines make every day spent here unforgettable.

We plan to sail through the narrow passage into the flooded caldera of Deception Island - the largest of three recent volcanic centers in the South Shetlands- which is truly amazing. Once inside, the rising slope of the black, cinder-covered volcanic rim can be walked uphill to a rather spectacular vantage point. We also aim to visit the crescent-shaped island Half Moon, home to Chinstrap Penguins in breathtaking surroundings, in the entrance of Moon Bay between Greenwich and Livingston Islands.

Dias 10 e 11: No mar, travessia da Passagem de Drake rumo ao norte

Deixamos a Antártica e seguimos para o norte pela Passagem de Drake. Junte-se aos nossos palestrantes e naturalistas no deck para procurar aves marinhas e baleias e aproveite as últimas palestras. Aproveite para relaxar e refletir sobre as aventuras fascinantes dos últimos dias no caminho de volta a Ushuaia.

Dia 12: chegada a Ushuaia

Chegamos ao porto de Ushuaia no início da manhã e desembarcamos do USHUAIA após o café da manhã.

Please note: The above itinerary is a guide only. Our exact route and program will vary to take best advantage of local weather and ice conditions and opportunities to view wildlife. Changes will be made by the Captain and/or Expedition Leader to facilitate the best results from the prevailing conditions. A daily program sheet will be issued on board. Flexibility is the key to success.

O QUE ESTÁ INCLUÍDO

• Cruzeiro de 12 dias com hospedagem
• Todos os desembarques de Zodiac e excursões conforme o itinerário
• Aluguel de botas de borracha
• Guias e palestras com o nosso líder de expedição e a equipe
• Equipe de expedição que fala inglês
• Pensão completa no navio: café da manhã, almoço, jantar e lanches
• Chá e café à vontade 24 horas por dia
• Impostos, taxas portuárias, taxas de documentação
• Diário detalhado pós-expedição

O QUE NÃO ESTÁ INCLUÍDO

• Excursões e atividades extras não mencionadas no itinerário
• Suplemento de quarto individual e upgrades de cabine
• Refeições fora do navio
• Bebidas (exceto café e chá)
• Gorjetas para a tripulação
• Despesas pessoais
• Tudo o que não estiver mencionado expressamente em ’Inclusões’
• Parka impermeável, calças ou outros equipamentos não especificados em ‘Inclusões’

É necessário um sinal não reembolsável de 30% do valor da cabine correspondente para confirmar a reserva do cruzeiro de expedição. O pagamento final (70%) vence 90 dias antes da partida. Os pagamentos podem ser feitos por transferência bancária (forma de pagamento preferida) ou cartão de crédito. Todos os pagamentos devem ser feitos na moeda combinada indicada na fatura.