About the Antarctic Peninsula

The G Expedition emerging between icebergs in Heal Bay

I just gave you a thorough overview of Antarctica for background and context. 

But, while we were going to Antarctica (remember, below 60°S), we were not going to the main continent. We were going to the Antarctic Peninsula, that little spike that rises from Antarctica reaching toward South America.

Map: Wikipedia

In fact, we were going to the South Shetland Islands and the north part of the Peninsula, stopping just short of the Antarctic Circle. This is where most tours go because it is more accessible, faster to get to and, quite frankly, gorgeous.

Yes!

The Antarctic Peninsula is part of the larger peninsula of West Antarctica, protruding 810 miles from a line between Cape Adams (Weddell Sea) and a point on the mainland south of the Eklund Islands. It was formed by geologic uplift and the transformation of seabed sediments into metamorphic rocks.

The 202,000 square-mile Antarctic Peninsula is 80 percent ice-covered.

Glacier face

Beneath the ice sheet that covers it, the Peninsula is a string of bedrock islands separated by very deep channels. The southernmost tip of South America is about 620 miles away across the Drake Passage.

Map: Wikipedia

In 1964, the Advisory Committee on Antarctic Names and the UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee resolved a long-standing disagreement over what the Peninsula should be named.

The British used the name "Graham Land" and the United States called it "Palmer Peninsula." 

The two committees agreed on the straight-forward name, "Antarctic Peninsula" and then named the north part Graham Land and the south part Palmer Land. 

Graham Land is named after Sir James R. G. Graham, First Lord of the Admiralty at the time of the UK's exploration of the northwest side of the Peninsula in 1832.

Palmer lost (sort of) his namesake, but got a stamp

Palmer Land was named by Seal hunter Nathaniel Palmer. The Chilean name, O'Higgins Land, honors Bernardo O'Higgins, a Chilean patriot and Antarctic visionary. Other Spanish-speaking countries call it la Península Antártica. Argentina also refers to it as Tierra de San Martín.

Since the Peninsula has the mildest climate in Antarctica, the highest concentration of research stations can be found there or on the many nearby islands. 

The British research ship, the RSS Sir David Attenborough

Temperatures are warmest in January, averaging 34°F to 36°F (we actually hit 48°F). June is coldest, averaging from 5°F to −4°F. Precipitation varies greatly. 

We had light rain and snow; Photo: Scott Stevens

Down to 68°S, precipitation averages 14-20 inches per year, often as rain in summer. 

Between about 68°S and 63°S on the west and northeast coast, precipitation is 14 inches or less with occasional rain. 

Along the east coast south of 63°S, precipitation ranges 3.9-5.9 inches. In comparison, the subantarctic islands have precipitation of 39-79 inches per year and the dry interior of Antarctica is a virtual desert with only 3.9 inches per year.

The marine ecosystem here has been subjected to rapid climate change. Over the past 50 years, warm, moist air has shifted south, increasingly displacing the once dominant cold, dry continental Antarctic climate. This has decreased sea ice extent and duration, altered phytoplankton and zooplankton composition and changed the availability of Krill to predators. It has also shifted the populations of the three kinds of Penguins we saw: ice-dependent Adélies have declined, while Gentoo and Chinstrap populations have grown.

Chinstrap, Adélie and Gentoo Penguins

For each decade for the past five, average temperatures have risen by 0.90°F. Ice mass loss occurred at a rate of 60 billion tons per year, with the greatest change occurring in the northern tip of the Peninsula. Seven ice shelves along the Peninsula have retreated or disintegrated in the past two decades. 

According to the US Geological Survey, every ice front on the southern half of the Peninsula experienced a retreat between 1947 and 2009. According to the British Antarctic Survey, glaciers on the Peninsula are both retreating and increasing their flow rate as a result of increased buoyancy in the lower parts of the glaciers.

A fragile landscape

The Peninsula is very mountainous, its highest peaks rising to 10,627 feet. The mountains are a continuation of the Andes of South America, with a submarine spine connecting them. Volcanoes in the islands around the Antarctic Peninsula are caused by tectonics in the Bransfield Rift to the west and the Larsen Rift to the east.

The landscape of the Antarctic Peninsula is tundra. Islands along the peninsula are mostly ice-covered and connected to the land by pack ice. Plant life is mainly mosses, lichens and algae adapted to this harsh environment, with lichens preferring the wetter areas of the rocky landscape.

A Snowy Sheathbill eating algae on a snowy day

The animals of Antarctica (with the except of the Snowy Sheathbill, the continent's only land bird) live on food they find in the sea and include Seabirds, Seals and Penguins. The Seals include: Leopard, Weddell, Ross, Southern Elephant and Crabeater plus the Southern Fur Seal, which is actually more of a Sea Lion. 

Crabeater Seal

Whales include the Antarctic Minke (seen by some on our trip but not by me), Dwarf Minke, Humpback and Orca. We saw lots of Humpbacks and one pod of Orcas.

Gerlache Orcas

Penguin species found on the Peninsula, especially near the tip and surrounding islands, include the Chinstrap, Emperor, Gentoo and Adélie. Petermann Island is the world's southernmost colony of Gentoo Penguins. The exposed rocks on the island is one of many locations on the Peninsula that provides a good habitat for rookeries. The Penguins return each year and may reach populations of more than ten thousand.

A Chinstrap Penguin colony

Seabirds of the Southern Ocean and West Antarctica found on the Peninsula include many that I saw: 

Antarctic Shag (AKA Blue-eyed Shag)

Antarctic Tern

Arctic Terns

Brown Skua

Cape Petrels

Kelp Gull

South Polar Skua

Southern Fulmars

Southern Giant-Petrel

Wilson's Storm Petrel

There are a few others I didn’t see, such as the Snow Petrel. So, that’s enough of that. 

Let’s talk about our trip.

Cruising (and taking photos)

The Crew

I told you about the Peninsula, but didn't outline our specific planned stops. That's because we didn't know where we were going for sure. Wind, currents, temperatures, snow and ice conditions all play a part in specific excursions. The G Expedition team monitors all that and makes trip decisions as we go. 

Our bartender; Photo: Scott Stevens

That is how it was in Svalbard and it makes it exciting for us and, for different reasons, for the crew. 

The crew has two components: those who manage the ship and those who manage the tour.

The ship crew is fantastic: friendly, tuned in to guest needs and efficient. 

The captain was French (a lovely person but with such a thick accent that he was hard to understand); the officers that handle the ship were multi-national (including good representation from Ukraine); the doctor was Colombian; and much of the restaurant, bar and housekeeping staff were Filipino.

The expedition crew was the group of experts, guides and Zodiac drivers who made sure that we got the most out of our experience.

The G Expedition expedition crew; Photo: Scott Stevens

The expedition crew was led by Expedition Leader Matt Burnaby, a marine biologist and educator from British Columbia. He has been guiding in the Antarctic summer since 2010 and spends his "other summer" guiding on Vancouver Island and in the Great Bear Rainforest in BC.

Assistant Expedition Leader Sarah Keenan, who also hails from BC, has worked as a guide and naturalist since graduating from high school, spending summers as a Whale watching skipper/naturalist and winters as an alpine snowshoe guide. She has been working on the G Expedition since 2017.

 

The (well-bundled) crew heading out to assess conditions and blaze a trail

The entire team is pretty large, mainly because excursions are by 8-12-person Zodiacs, each of which needs its own driver/guide.

The team has to build a trail each time

Expedition Coordinator Storm Simpson is originally from England, but now lives in BC, where she works summers as the Operations Manager for G Adventures tours in Canada.

Kayak Master Mauricio Martinez is from Iguazu Falls, Argentina, where he spends off season as a jungle guide and naturalist.

Zodiac Master Brad Mason is also from BC. His other jobs are related to Whale-watching: Zodiac skipper, captain, naturalist, operations manager and small-vessel instructor.

Naturalist/Zodiac Driver Marzena Kmiecik, from Poland, has guided in Iceland and spends her off time traveling in her 40-year-old van around Europe.

Ship Photographer Sheeren; Photo: Scott Stevens

Photographer Shereen Mroueh, from Toronto, has shot for National Geographic, Nike, Mastercard and Cineplex. She runs a production company and teaches college-level photography.

Camping Master/Naturalist/ Zodiac Driver Eric Wong is an alpinist and documentary photographer from Hong Kong who specializes in landscape, mountaineering and wildlife photography. He has scaled many of the world's highest peaks.

Kayak Assistant Daniel Urriza is from Bariloche, Argentina, where he works as a sailboat captain on Nahuel Huapi Lake.

Naturalist/Zodiac Driver Osi Shahaf, originally from Birmingham, England, worked as an international banker for almost three decades before scrapping her career to become a guide! She now lives in rural Canada north of Toronto.

Matt briefing guests; Photo: Scott Stevens

Naturalist/Zodiac Driver Scott MacPhail, who lives north of Toronto (seems to be a hotbed for nature guides), has worked in polar regions for 20 years and is an expert on the explorers who first visited these harsh environments.

Geologist/Glaciologist Keith Mountain, PhD., is an Australian who has worked for years as a researcher, guide and university professor. Keith was also on our Svalbard expedition in 2019. I guess with a name like Mountain, he had to be a geologist!

Ornithologist Lyn Mair grew up in Zimbabwe and turned a passion for traveling and birding into a career. She also works as an expedition leader for marine tours of West Africa and the Mediterranean. She lives in Cape Town, South Africa.

Lyn (in bright green) briefs guests; the Weddell Seal doesn't care; Photo Sheeren Mroueh

Musician/Zodiac Driver Jeff Wiseman is often the main attraction in the Polar Bear Bar aboard the G Expedition. He is a songwriter, singer, recording artist, choir director, coach and teacher.

Musician in Residence Jacinthe Trudeau is a violinist from Sudbury, Canada, with a lovely, lovely voice. She is married to Jeff.

So that's the team. We interacted more with some than others and found them all delightful.

On my next post I'll start telling you where they took us.

The ship from a Zodiac

So, with their guidance, let's get going! 

In the next post.

Trip date: December 30, 2023  - January 12, 2024