Stories

On the morning of our third day we rose at dawn to travel up the Manu River, which joins the Rio Alto Madre de Dios a few kilometers upstream from Boca Manu. Unlike the relatively clear Rio Alto Madre de Dios, which flows over a cobbled bed, the Manu is a brown, muddy stream and its banks frequently bear the scars of turbulent flows in the wet season. Piles of branches and washed-over trees line the banks and impede the flow of the water in many places, providing refuges for both animals and birds.

The final stage in our Peru trip involved a visit to the Manu Biosphere Reserve, a World Heritage site that is located at the foot of the Andes about 250 km northeast of Cusco. The reserve, which contains the Manu National Park and Manu and Amarakaeri Reserved Zones, boasts the highest diversity of plants and animals of any park on Earth and forms part of the headwaters of the mighty Amazon River. (A map of the region can be found at http://www.inkanatura.com/mapmanu.asp.)

February 24, 2006: Our last day in Antarctica also began with wind but we had hopes for a landing at Port Lockroy later in the morning if the wind abated. After cruising down the Neumeyer Channel for several hours, we anchored just off Port Lockroy. Consisting of Jougla Point and Goudier Island, Port Lockroy is in a very exposed position and somewhat bleak. However, we received a warm welcome from the three staff who man the station and were able to send postcards and purchase souvenirs – as well as seeing even more gentoo penguins plus relics of the whaling station that persisted into the middle of the 20th century.

February 19, 2006: We had our first sight of Antarctica late yesterday afternoon when, after hours of cruising through fog, Elephant Island loomed out of the mist. The Island rises in steep cliffs from the sea and you wonder how Shackleton’s men survived their long months of isolation there – and where they were able to camp. There’s a huge glacier pouring into the only harbour we could see, covering any beach that might have been and making it dangerous to approach. Icebergs frequently calve off the glacier cliffs down here and fall into the sea with a resounding crash, sending shock waves across the waters.

February 20, 2006: Today began early with a 6 am wake-up call for the intrepid souls who planned to climb Spigot Peak. This conical point rises up from the water roughly 300 metres and is backed by even taller mountains. The rest of us set off in Zodiacs for the much lower Danco Island, a 1.5-kilometre long land mass in the southern end of the Errera Channel. We had two objectives: observing gentoo penguins and climbing to the highest point on the island for a view over a spectacular part of the Antarctic Peninsula.

February 17, 2006: Although only five days have elapsed, it seems ages since we left Patagonia. So much has happened in those five days! We had to leave El Chalten very early on Friday morning to be in time for the flight to Ushuaia at 2.30 pm. The bus trip to El Calafate airport normally takes about five hours but you have to allow for delays caused by roadworks, burst tyres, etc. The early start had its advantages, though, as we were able to photograph the mountains as the first rays of sun illuminated their craggy contours.

February 18, 2006: At sea at last, on the way to Antarctica. Friday, 16 February was spent in Ushuaia, preparing for our voyage south. Our tour leader, Milton Sams, urged us to be up early to see our ship, Professor Molchanov, arrive in port at around 6.30 am. Six keen photographers were on the viewing platform shortly after six, where we were able to photograph a spectacular sunrise and see two suitably-sized ships approaching. Later we discovered the Professor Molchanov had arrived ahead of schedule and was already in dock!

February 12, 2006: Two days ago we travelled by bus from El Calafate to El Chalten, which sits at the foot of the mountain of the same name. The mountain has been renamed “Mount Fitzroy” after the captain of Charles Darwin’s ship, The Beagle, but its original name, which means “the smoking mountain” is more appropriate today. There’s been cloud hanging off the peak since we left our accommodation this morning.

February 8, 2006: Patagonia at last! The Nikon D200 and Sony camcorder got their first real workout today as we have now embarked on the “real” part of our trip. Our arrival in El Calafate yesterday evening coincided with the arrival of another plane full of tourists and the town is absolutely packed with visitors. It’s difficult to find accommodation – and seating in restaurants – unless you pre-book. One of the benefits of joining an organised tour is having all this taken care of, leaving you free to enjoy as much as possible.