Capturing the Moment

  Stuck at Sea on a Cruise Ship Cape Town Harbor   In a little over a week I have gone from the satisfaction of a job well done as the end of the Antarctica season drew to an end, to having to do circles with the ship off Cape Town while being told we weren't allowed in to dock, to elation that we got permission to dock, to trepidation that neither us nor the passengers were being allowed off, to hurrah!, the passengers are allowed off, to over joyed that the expedition team may be allowed off, to the ultimate denial from the South African government, and a quick 'get off the dock', to where my current predicament finds me now.   I am still aboard the Silver Cloud, the expedition ship I've been working on this winter down in Antarctica. It was an amazing experience, a great ship, and a wonderful crew. I met lots of interesting passengers from all around the world. And of course built a bit of a ship board family as this style of living and working together usu

  As our trip draws to a close (maybe) I can't help but look back at what an amazing time we had over the last twenty days. We left the port of Ushuaia at the tip of South America on Feb 28th, then sailed for the Falkland Islands, South Georgia, and the remote Tristan da Cunha archipelago before ending in Cape Town. At the moment I can look outside through the fog and see the famous Table Mountain of Cape Town. But at this moment we have been denied entry into the port...so who knows how this Cape to Cape trip will end. Cape to cape to cape anyone?   Luckily we have been in Antarctica, then a quick turnover with new guests in Ushuai back in late Feb, before most of the outbreaks across Europe and the US occurred. So we have been traveling in a safe little bubble while we watch the rest of the world descend into a bit of chaos with the spread of the novel corona virus. Our first brush with it came as we approached Tristan da Cunha, and the islanders sent word that they would be re

Cape to Cape: Expedition Cruising from Cape Horn to Cape of Good Hope With the Antarctic season wrapped up I am embarking on a grand adventure across the Southern Atlantic Ocean. I am the assistant expedition leader onboard the Silver Cloud, a 240 passenger luxury expedition ship. We have just departed Ushuaia, Argentina and will finish 20 days later in Cape Town, South Africa. This journey will take us from the wild waters around Cape Horn at the tip of South America, to the wildlife rich islands of the Falklands. The next stop will be South Georgia and its thousands of penguins and seals. Then a few days to explore the exposed volcanic islands of Tristan da Cunha before completing the voyage past the Cape of Good Hope in the beautiful port of Cape Town. We have around 170 guests onboard which is a welcome number after being filled every voyage in Antarctica. Most of these guests have sailed with the company before....some have racked up over 500 days sailing with Silversea! It

  A Look Back at a Summer in Antarctica    As we pulled into Ushuaia, Argentina, I realized that the Antarctica expedition was actually coming to an end. This summer I spent two and a half months working on an expedition ship cruising through the White Continent at the bottom of the world. I crossed the infamous Drake Passage eight times, soaked up knowledge from thirty other expedition team members with different specialties like geology, history, ornithology, ecology, geography, and other marine biologists. The staff also came from a dozen different countries, while the crew and guests onboard represented almost fifty countries. Leopard seal on ice Towering Icebergs  The ship I've been working on is called the Silver Cloud. It is a 240 passenger, ultra luxury expedition ship run by Silversea Cruises. Silversea was one of the first to combine the ultra luxury and expedition market which has since been copied by other companies. Since we are under 500 passengers we are