I returned to Antarctica in February, after having my scheduled trip postponed in 2021 and 2022 due to Covid-19 concerns. As will be seen, Covid was still a concern and even more, a reality for me in 2023. As is usual, the trip to Antarctica was a fairly arduous one, requiring you to fly first to Santiago, Chile, and then on to Punta Arenas, at the tip of South America. From Punta Arenas, after a day of rest, we fly on to the Antarctic Peninsula, for total in flight time of about 14 hours total. We flew to Punta Arenas on LATAM Airline, a surprisingly good experience. In Antarctica, we boarded our ship, the ice-breaker Ocean Nova for what should have been 8 days. During our days of sailing around Antarctica, we would go out in Zodiac boats twice a day for a total of about 6 hours, from which we did the bulk of our photography.
While the trip was a fantastic one, it was evident to those of us who had been to Antarctica previously, that there were significant, noticeable differences from past trips. The ice was simply not as dramatic in many ways, with many fewer major ice arches and less dramatic ice forms. Antarctica, however, is incredibly beautiful and those in our group who were first-timers thought it stunning, which it was. But it was not as dramatic for sure. As an example, I counted my images in 2019 compared to this trip in 2023: 2019 - 11000 images, 2023 - 7500 images.I don’t think that was simply due to this being a follow-up trip compared to an initial trip. There were a number of problematic reasons: it was rainier and windier, the overall weather wa not as conducive to photo-making, and a variety of other lesser factors. Bt mainly, we just did not see as interesting a collection of ice to photograph. But I did come away with many very satisfying pictures, many of which I will post on this site.
Travel back home was also fraught with complications. The plane that was scheduled to pick us up could not land because the gravel runway was too icy (imagine, ice in Antarctica!). A a result, we wound up sailing the Drake Passage back to Chile, with its 35 foot swells. Fortunately, I did not suffer any seasickness, though a number of people in our group disappeared for two days into their cabins. Secondly, several of us also contracted Covid-19, though we were unaware of that fact until we returned home, a few days later. I was mildly ill, with a sore throat, cough, and stuffy nose, but no fever. I was also very fatigued and weak, all of which took several weeks to fully resolve. One only wonders how many people I might have infected, since I did not realize I had it until I was home for two days. But I am well now and fully recovered.
As I noted, in spite of some disappointment at the shape of the ice in Antarctica, I did make many satisfying images, which will be posted on my website. One of my favorites is seen below, a sunset with amazing colors that was simply wonderful. Wili I return to Antarctica, I am not sure? If you had asked me in the week immediately following my return, I would have said never again. But looking back now, I am not so certain, given my satisfaction with my images and my improved post-processing. Maybe I have one more trip left in me, we shall see.
Sunset Antarctica 2023