After a fantastic sail back across the Drake Passage we were jubilant to
make landfall yesterday in the Wollaston Islands in southern Chile just 10
miles from Cape Horn. Our return marks the successful completion of our
Arctic to Antarctic Challenge. This 8 month voyage, during which we have
sailed over 14 000 miles, has been a demanding, rewarding and most
incredible adventure. We feel priviliged to have met a great variety of
pelagic wildlife and these intimate encounters have only increased our
commitment to help preserve and protect the marine environment. Coming eye
to eye with a truly wild, beautiful, gentle inhabitant of the ocean, such as
the Antarctic Minke whale in this photo, is an unforgettable experience -
humbling, awe-inspiring and very special.
In these modern times it defies belief that any country has a need
to hunt whales commercially yet Japan, Norway and Iceland continue to do so.
More than ever we condemn this cruel and unnecessary slaughter and we are
proud to have
undertaken our voyage in aid of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society
(www.wdcs.org), an organisation actively campaigning against international
whaling. We applaud their efforts. Help us support the vital work of the
WDCS by using the "donate to WDCS" link on the right of this page to make
a donation today.

We plan to spend the southern winter in the Chilean channels and Ushuaia
before sailing to the Falklands and South Georgia next season and this will
be our last update on the website for some time. If you would like to share
our future adventures, please post a message using the "Add/View Comments"
button below so that we can add you to our mailing list. We will then
let you know if we decide to continue the website in September, or include
you when we send out occasional news letters.

Our weather window materialised earlier than expected and we are now well on our way back across the Drake Passage. We have a steady 20 knots of wind from the SSW and are flying along in moderate seas - perfect conditions for "Wandering Albatross". Conditions are forecast to remain much the same for the next day or two and as we should make landfall sometime tomorrow it seems that the Drake has been kind to us. We left the Melchior Islands in heavy snow on the morning of the 26th after managing to prepare the boat for the passage in one busy day. Amongst other things we had to put our wind steering system back on the transom, collect about 100 L of water from a nearby stream of melting ice, check over the rig, stow everything securely, bake bread and prepare some underway meals, not to mention sharing cups of tea and slices of cake with Thies & Kicki on "Wanderer III"! As we motored slowly out of the channel and turned into the wind to hoist the mainsail a pair of Humpback whales surfaced a few hundred yards away and then approached the boat. To our delight they blew and dove and spyhopped around us at close quarters (see photo) and then swam near us as we reluctantly turned north, almost as if they were bidding us farewell. It was a perfect send off and as the smooth snow domes of the islands were swallowed in the driving snow behind us we vowed we would return one day to this magical, untouched wilderness at the bottom of the world. The next day was very calm and sunny and it seemed as if whichever direction you looked there was the high, bushy blow of a spouting whale, some near, some far and several passing close off the bow or surfacing at the stern. All appeared to be swimming slowly at the surface and heading in a generally northerly direction. It was a remarkable sight and we surmised that this must be Humpbacks beginning their long migration north to breeding grounds in tropical waters. Humpbacks that feed in the waters off the Antarctic Peninsula have been recorded breeding off the coast of Costa Rica, a straight line distance of at least 4500 miles and the longest confirmed migration of any individual mammal. On this incredible journey the whales average only one mile per hour as they rest and socialise frequently. We felt very lucky to have witnessed this moment and it was nice to think that we were leaving Antarctica at the same time as these special whales...

We spent 2 nights in a sheltered cove in Paradise Harbour where we could anchor without the need for shorelines for the first time in Antarctica. Less than a mile away a fantastic glacier tumbled down a steep mountainside and we could hear a constant thundering and roaring, as if the ice was alive. Much brash ice accumulated outside the bay overnight and when we went out exploring in the dinghy we came across a 'new' type of ice: small, jagged pieces of brash ice were welded together with sea ice like peanut brittle and floated in broad but thin slabs upon the surface. The weather forecast is showing the makings of a possible gap to cross the Drake Passage in a few days time and although we are reluctant to leave, we can feel the changing season in the air and know it is time to go. So today we headed north to the Melchior Islands, which will be our departure point. Very aware that this is our last day in Antarctica we took our time and tried to absorb every detail, soaking up the views and ice bergs and wildlife to remember forever. And it was indeed a memorable day. Perfect reflections of the ever impressive scenery stretched in all directions; great blue bergs in interesting shapes gathered off every point; big groups of penguins congregated in the water, surfacing as one and causing the sea to boil and churn as a hundred black and white heads popped up; more stood on the ice, always seeming to enjoy srambling up a steep slope that goes nowhere; seals, too were hauled out and lay motionless on the ice as we passed by unnoticed. About half way on our route we came across a pair of Humpback whales drifting like logs on the surface. Not expecting a repeat of our previous Humpback encounter, but ever hopeful, we stopped a few hundred yards away and drifted with them. They blew softly and sank beneath the surface and a few moments later came up just yards from the stern with booming blows and a shower of spray. A third whale soon joined them and there followed 2 hours of incredible interaction with these wonderful creatures as they swam and dove and spyhopped around the boat, often within a few metres. It was as if we were engaged in an elegant dance together and we were yet again awed by the close proximity of such magnificent animals and delighted that they seemed to be so interested in us. Our path has been intertwined with that of "Wanderer III" for the past few days and as they were not far behind us we shared this remarkable encounter with Thies and Kiki (see photo). It was another incredible meeting with whales and we particularly noticed their size and power compared to the Minke whale a few days ago. We reached Melchior on a real high and tied up in a small, rocky cove in a channel between isalnds domed with ice. The next few days will be spent preparing to cross the Drake Passage...