Antarctica - Antarctica ship suggestions?

Does anyone have recommendations for an Antarctic cruise company?

Quark Expeditions.

Two operators using luxury ships (not converted Russian icebreakers) are:

Orion from Australia:
http://www.orioncruises.com.au/expeditions/antarctica/voyage_summary

Corinthian from South America
http://www.traveldynamicsinternational.com/cruiseinfo.asp?type=&voyageid=21

I've travelled with both companies and they both have outstanding lecturers and resource people onboard.

Orion has stabilisers that made the trip comfortable even in the 9 metre seas we had.

It's an expensive trip, but worth it. I was totally impressed with the scenery and the experience. If possible find a trip that does more than the "milk run" from Ushuaia to the Antacrctic Penninsula. Try to include South Georgia or the Falklands or join one of the trips from Australia that land at one of the historic huts from the "Heroic age" of exploration. It's magic.

You really need to decide what you want out of an Antarctica trip. "Milk run", as sarming posted, large cruise ship experience or ship with landings (these are much smaller ships). There are a lot of variables and a LOT of ships/experiences.

One thing to consider-Drake Passage can be VERY rough. If you are prone to severe motion sickness, you may want a larger ship.

Dorlee - there are some great threads going back a couple of months. Go to the "Display Option" at the bottom of the Antarctica forum and pick a time period.

Orient Lines - The Marco Polo.

She isn't a converted ice-breaker, though she does have a strengthened hull and was built in Russia.

If you like the small ship atmosphere, and at a reasonable cost, she is pretty good. She has been doing the area for a few years, and has many repeat clients.

Not that I am at all biased... working for NCL. ;) All that aside, she really is my favourite ship.

Mark

WOW: plenty of experienced help within this thread. I've never been but know that if ever the chance arises, where to go for advice. Thanks everyone here for your support of FlyerTalk and for offering up your advice and experiences to our other members.

Not sure how I missed this thread :)

Lindblad Expeditions (http://www.expeditions.com/Destination44.asp?Destination=283), in concert with National Geographic, runs the 100 passenger National Geographic Endeavour to Antarctica. They not only run a basic Ushuaia to Antarctica and back trip, but a longer one that includes the Falklands and South Georgia. Lindblad was the first company to run a tour to Antarctica and Lars-Eric Lindblad has a cove named after him on the Antarctic Peninsula.

Lindblad is probably one of the most expensive options, but their trips are first rate. I will be on the Endeavour in both the Arctic and Antarctic next year.

Edit to say I am not affiliated with Lindblad other than as a very satisfied customer. By December of next year I will have been on five of their trips.

Second vote for Quark Expeditions from me. I travelled two times with them, first on the nuclear icebreaker "Yamal" to the North Pole, second trip on the "MV Orlova" to the Falklands, South Georgia and Antarctica. Professional crew, excellent but not overdone service.

Brief descriptions of many polar ships here (http://www.polarcruises.com/ships.cfm?pole=Antarctica&mainnav=ships).

Orion from Australia:
http://www.orioncruises.com.au/expeditions/antarctica/voyage_summary


We travelled with Orion in early 2006 to the Ross Sea area of Antarctica from New Zealand. While the ship is very luxurious it's not going to get to places an icebreaker can get to. We've now booked the Kapitan Khlebnikov for a semi-circumnavigation in November 2008 to travel further to more places. So I guess it depends what your priorities are.

We've now booked the Kapitan Khlebnikov for a semi-circumnavigation in November 2008 to travel further to more places. So I guess it depends what your priorities are.

Yowza. :eek: Please write a trip report!

Yowza. :eek: Please write a trip report!

Will do but it'll be a while in coming!

I went on a converted ice hardened ship, the Akademik Ioffe booked through Peregrine in Australia (although many other companies book the same trips.) I really enjoyed it, not too luxurious but nice and the fact that they Zodiac you on shore, you can kayak among the ice and the whales and get the opportunity to actually camp out on the ice if you wish sold it for me. The crew was excellent with an "open bridge" policy, food was extremely edible and satisfying and we made it down to the Antarctic circle and had a barbecue on deck to celebrate. If you want a mid-price trip with some good opportunities for exploring, I recommend it!!! Pre and post trip organization and information was tight and well planned. I loved it and can now say "I've been to all 7 continents!!!"

I will be spending the semester in Australia (or NZ, haven't hammered out the details). While I am down there I would like to visit Antarctica, I think it would be cool and it would be I will have visited all seven continents. I don't need a lux ship, but good guides are important to me. I will most likly be going solo so if there is an option for them to partner me up with someone else so I don't have to pay for my own stateroom that would be nice too.

And I definitely what one with landings, I am not interested in a 'carnival cruise' like trip. I am looking for an educational adventure...and one where i can chill with the penguins.

Third vote for Quark! We, too, were on the Orlova.

There are a few icebreakers (like the Yamal, a true rare bird as it is nuclear power,) but many of the ships in Antarctic tour service are ice hardened - like the Akademik Ioffe. (BTW, many of the Russian ships are actually built in Finland.) The Russian crews tend to be very experienced in ice conditions. These ships are also sized properly - 40 - 120 passengers make a nice trip, larger ships make for crowded, very staged and timed (fewer!) trips to shore. The Ioffe may be a little round hulled, but we felt better knowing she is up to significant ice conditions and had a very skilled crew. (The Explorer was operated by an Argentine crew on this trip - they have some ice experience, but Russian crews have often worked the Baltic and North Seas for the Navy and research organizations, as well as Antarctica - dealing with ice conditions annually at least.)

As more cruise and expedition (not -ice-hardened) ships cruise down to Antarctica, one finds ships less prepared for difficulties, and less ice-experienced crew - not always a good idea, IMO, even if the odds aren't huge you will be adrift a while in life boats; there have been a few instances of tourist vessels needing help, though to date no souls have been lost iirc.

For example, everybody's favorite, the "Little Red Boat," MS Explorer - which was just holed by an iceberg in the Bransfield Strait off the King George Island in good weather conditions, had its crew and passengers taken off to the Nordnorge and is currently listing 30 degrees; some current speculation is that the ship will be lost - from a hole 10cm by 25cm (4ins by 10ins) in size!

The passengers had to leave in rafts and small boats, with temps at -5C / 23F, rather ironic for the expedition billed as the "Spirit of Shackleton," and for a ship that itself had participated in the rescue of a crew in Antarctic waters in 1989.

BBC article (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7108835.stm)

I was shocked by the news of the Explorer today - it really does sound like it's going to sink. I'm glad everyone was able to evacuate and now I understand why I had to pay so much for evacuation insurance!

I sure am not an expert on insurance but I think evacuation insurance only applies to medical problems. In any case, under the circumstances, an insurance company should not have pay - it should be the cruise company's responsibility.

I sure am not an expert on insurance but I think evacuation insurance only applies to medical problems. In any case, under the circumstances, an insurance company should not have pay - it should be the cruise company's responsibility.

Correct.

I travelled to the North Pole and Antarctica with ships and didn't pay for any additional insurance.

The Explorer has sunk - with all of SOLAS standards, multiple compartments, etc. a hole the area of a softball sunk her within hours. :eek:

Article, pictures and video here (http://www.abcnews.go.com/International/story?id=3905858&page=1).

As to evacuation insurance, it is generally medevac insurance for medical issues / accidents. I have permanent, year-round medevac insurance through Divers Alert Network (http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/), active any time I am 100 miles away iirc, for up to USD $100k, for the cost of membership under $100 annually) for diving and non-diving injuries, no age limit, you do not have to be a diver. In the Explorer instance, not needed... unless someone was injured or became hypothermic and needed evacuation due to that (but how does one get medevacced from Antarctica?)

In this Explorer case, the evacuation was standard safety at seas business - the Nordnorge was in the vicinity, effectuated a rescue and is transporting crew and passengers to Ushuaia, Argentina, a bit before their trip ended. Costs would probably be paid by the Explorer's insurers, and passengers would rely on their trip cancellation and interruption insurance to pay differences for the price of unplanned accommodation in Ushuaia, going home early, lost personal effects and baggage, etc.

I have permanent, year-round medevac insurance through Divers Alert Network (http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/), active any time I am 100 miles away iirc, for up to USD $100k, for the cost of membership under $100 annually) for diving and non-diving injuries, no age limit, you do not have to be a diver.

I need to look at my DAN insurance coverage again. I thought I remembered that the trip had to be dive related before the medevac coverage applied?

Absolutely not. DAN TravelAssist kicks in when you are 50 mi / 80 km away from home, for any medevac reason (you have to get their authorization, but I know people who have used it very successfully - one dive instructor friend in Playa del Carmen developed n infection - not dive related at all - and they flew her to Sacramento for better treatment.) USD $100,000 per person if a family membership. (The trip cancellation insurance definitely must be a dive trip to qualify for TCII.)

I need to look at my DAN insurance coverage again. I thought I remembered that the trip had to be dive related before the medevac coverage applied?

Those folks from the Explorer were at sea in lifeboats (fortunately, -5C and pretty calm, not really in the spirit for Shackleton, but in open and very crowded-looking lifeboats) several hours. If any had required air evac from the Chilean Navy base they were taken to, their evacuation would be covered.

Fortunately, it does not appear any passenger had to be evacuated. But, if they had, it would be a long way to the South Shetlands to be picked up - not sure the Chilean or Argentine Navy have anything with the range. Once at Chilean "Eduardo Frei" Antarctic Base on King George Island, they were pretty much home free, given the quite decent weather - but air evac would have cost considerably.

I guess we won't have a trip report from any of the passengers (yours is the benchmark to beat!)

I was shocked by the news of the Explorer today - it really does sound like it's going to sink. I'm glad everyone was able to evacuate and now I understand why I had to pay so much for evacuation insurance!

I will really miss the Little Red Ship. I spent more than 2 wild weeks on her in 1995 in the North Atlantic in very rough sea conditions. We traveled from Dundee Scotland to and around Iceland and back to Dundee Scotland. We were in and out of drifting ice and also nearly got caught up in a maelstrom. I am a daughter of Norway with Viking blood and didn't get sea sick, but my poor husband certainly did as did most of the passengers.

This was the last voyage that the Smithsonian chartered the M/S Explorer as it was all too obvious that her age was showing. There was no way that the M/S Explorer could meet the 2012 SOLAS regulations and would have had to be taken out of service by that time. Her hallways were much too narrow and many were nearly blocked by equipment and food storage.

The photos and video of her lifeboats adrift at sea after her sinking tell the sad tale. The Zodiacs were taken aboard the rescue vessels.

I have very good arctic turn out gear and boots. I wonder how many of the passengers did and if they took seriously the orders to 'put on all your warm clothing'. My arctic coat is in a lively signal yellow so it can be seen. It is a much better coat than those provided by the ships that go to Antarctica. I've heard many people say that they don't want to bother traveling with such heavy and big gear. I can always find a way to take it along.

Thanks to Heaven that all souls are safe!

Indeed, oldpenny16!

Your link to the Chilean Terra Actualidad article (http://www.terra.cl/noticias/index.cfm?id_cat=302&id_reg=883232&pagina=1) was also helpful.

To summarize, the Chilean icebreaker VELO reports a small 20 x 180 oil slick it is attempting to break up (by "blending" it by cruising through it multiple times,) as there is no other way to deal with an oil slick in this region. It will also recover abandoned lifeboats and other major debris.

The Explorer was punctured at 1:45AM local time (at which time it was likely like dusk, not entirely dark, and the low-lying ice is only indicated in two dimensions by radar,) received two punctures approximately 4 x 8 inches in size, and sunk at approximately 3:30 PM local time November 23 at latitude 57º 15’ south and longitude 062º 24´west, with no loss of life.

The passengers were transported to the Eduardo Frei Montalva Chilean base (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant%C3%A1rtica%2C_Chile) and disembarked, to continue their voyage home, likely begun by flying them to Punta Arenas, Chile, via military C-130 transport aircraft once flying weather improves.

(The article is also full of nationalistic rhetoric, stating the ship was lost in the "Chilean Antarctic waters" and Chilean base, etc. but there are research bases of EIGHT nations in the immediate area...:rolleyes: Argentina, Chile and teh UK all have territorial claims on the area encompassing the Antarctic Peninsula and Shetlands, but the Antarctic Treaty System (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antarctic_Treaty_System) has all territorial claims in suspension. For a larger map of Antarctica and the many national claims see here (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Antarctica.jpg).)

In my opinion, all were very, very fortunate the weather was relatively benign when the ship struck ice - 10 - 30 foot swell whipped up by 60+ MPH / 100 KPH winds would have been truly tragic. It won't surprise me if the IAATO (International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators) begins to develop new, stricter regulations, or nations step in, after this to tighten restrictions on ship operations in Antarctic waters - particularly since the Explorer was presumably fit for Antarctic waters, as stated here (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/highlands_and_islands/7110800.stm). With SOLAS standards, IAATO guidelines, modern ship design and compartmentalization, it quite beggars the mind this ship was sunk by two salad-plate sized holes! in relatively good weather (for ships, not aircraft.)

I am doubly thankful for the Ioffe's strong ice-hull, trained and capable crew - and now that I think of it, the completely enclosed Arctic / Antarctic standard live boats- and triply thankful we never had to to put it to the test.

The impact of Antarctic tourism can be read in a brief article here (http://www.coolantarctica.com/Antarctica%20fact%20file/science/threats_tourism.htm).

JDiver, thank you for translating that article. Yes the M/S Explorer's life boats were open to the air in the old style and the Zodiacs not only are open to the air but do tend to take on water; so the passengers in the Zodiacs got wet and cold.

The passengers who ended up in the Zodiacs also had to descent ship's ladders to the sea. The M/S Explorer ladders have a very narrow place to put your feet as you step down the ladders facing the ship. In a wild sea it would be nearly impossible for most people to do that.

In 1995 when I was younger, healthier and thinner I was usually sent down the ladders first. It could be that I was the least valuable person. I had to do it facing slightly sideways to get more of my size 7 feet on the ladder treads as I descended. A person with large feet would have more difficulty.

I was told not to hesitate at each tread so as to put both feet on the same tread at the same time but to alternate treads keeping myself moving down all the time.

The persons in the lifeboats likely would have been lowered by the davits.

It is curious that the original name of the M/S Explorer was the M/V Lindblad Explorer and one of the ships that assisted in the rescue is the National Georgraphic Lindblad Endeavor. I have no idea when the M/V designation on the Explorer was changed to M/S.

This begs the question of the future of standard issue cruise ships carrying hundreds if not thousands of passengers making visits to Antarctica. Holland America, Crystal and Princess are among the many who make a visit in those waters. None of them allow passengers to go ashore at any point.

I don't intend to travel with any of those companies for a sight seeing only visit to Antarctica!

It is also obvious from the M/S Explorer passenger list that many people may not have been fluent speakers of English. There must have been terror on those seas.

I just spent some time looking at photos of the people arriving at the military outpost. It does not appear that the ones in the photos are all wearing the standard cold weather jackets lent out by the ship. One person, likely a woman, appeared to be wearing a waist length zip up jacket. That isn't enough folks!

You can't count on other people's gear!

I'm not sure about the prefix "Motor Vessel" vs. "Motor Ship," and they almost seem interchangeable. IMO the shipping lines play games with the prefix on occasion - we will be on the MSY (Motor Sailing Yacht) Wind Star soon... no major ice has been spotted in the Caribbean, Panamá Canal or Eastern Pacific off Costa Rica, so I will be leaving my Antarctic / Arctic gear at home this time. :)

Fortunately, the weather was pretty decent, the Chilean station was even within helicopter range, and apparently the crew did a creditable job of keeping things organized. Passengers were mustered with their expedition gear, and were issued "poppy suits" (cold weather exposure suits) on boarding the lifeboats / RIBs. One passenger even took the engagement ring he had brought from Denmark, and presented it with is offer of marriage whilst in a lifeboat! That may well be in the spirit of "The Boss" (Shackleton.)

One woman from the UK has given her story to the BBC online, and we can read it here (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7111080.stm). It's considerably less detailed and spellbinding than Endor's trip report, but... ;)

Absolutely not. DAN TravelAssist kicks in when you are 50 mi / 80 km away from home, for any medevac reason

Thanks JDiver. You are 100 % correct. My DAN renewal came in last week and I just re-read the T&Cs. I guess that means that DAN cards will come along with us to Antarctica ;)

oldpenny16, who makes the gear you carry? A friend, who happens to be going on the Endeavour this January, brought in his expedition parka for me to look at. It is actually a reasonable piece of kit given the expected conditions. Not dissimilar to a Mustang Survival parka, but without the flotation.

Thanks JDiver. You are 100 % correct. My DAN renewal came in last week and I just re-read the T&Cs. I guess that means that DAN cards will come along with us to Antarctica ;)

oldpenny16, who makes the gear you carry? A friend, who happens to be going on the Endeavour this January, brought in his expedition parka for me to look at. It is actually a reasonable piece of kit given the expected conditions. Not dissimilar to a Mustang Survival parka, but without the flotation.

I bought my arctic sailor's jacket in Nova Scotia from the store for the Blue Nose historic ship. It has multiple layers with the outer one very water proof. You can disassemble it and wear any of the layers alone. I got my boots when I worked in Alaska. They are called snow packs. They fit me very well and keep me warm.

I have a lot of layers of clothing including Patagonia and ExOfficio long underwear and very good socks. When I wear it all I look about 100 pounds heavier but I have never been too cold wearing it.

The main thing is that the clothes all fit properly and don't bind or bunch up. You have to be able to walk, climb ladders, use your hands, get in and out of boats and not get sores from your boots (they can be dangerous!)

My Blue Nose jacket cost me about $225 many years ago. It is signal yellow and can be seen for a long distance.

I hope this info helps. Your friend going on the Endeavor will be given a packing list. Most people have no idea how to dress in the cold and what to do when you are all dressed up and get too hot. That's why the good gear has all sorts of zips and snaps so you can cool yourself down. Good gear also has pockets.

For carrying camera gear I am now getting into using Scottevest stuff. Check it out on the WEB. www.scottevest.com

I travel with my big Blue Nose jacket as a carry on item/personal item for flights. The rest of the stuff goes in a duffle and is checked, but I can't replace that jacket!

Thanks oldpenny16. I'm pretty comfortable with my equipment and skills, but I'm always looking to uplevel what I have. ;)

Well, birdstrike, you are welcome! I collect AA miles and gear.

If you really want a good laugh, come watch me depart from DFW in the summer with my winter gear in hand and in duffle.

At this moment we are having sleet, snow and ice coming overnight in the DFW area. I'm about 90 minutes west of DFW at the house.

Sometimes this gear comes in handy at home.

One reliable source of winter gear at good prices is the REI Co-op out of Seattle with a great many retail stores all over the US.

Good gear lasts a good long time. My snow packs have removeable and replaceable wool liners. My Blue Nose jacket has zips and snaps so if the zips freeze up or break, I can still snap up and stay warm.

I was told that I ought not to take Gore-tex on the Explorer as it doesn't work well in salt water, but it worked OK for me if I only got a little wet.

OK, I'll come clean and admit it. I took the wrong boots for the Explorer. It was July in the North Atlantic and I assumed that I could get by with less heavy boots due to packing issues for flights. Wrong! I wore fairly standard deck shoes when on the boat but wore some low price Eddie Bauer waterproof boots when leaving the boat and on land. Bad idea! We weren't doing the water landings down in Antarctica, but did a lot of hiking in rough conditions on land.

I had on the wrong boots and wasn't happy about it. The cheap boots didn't fit properly and didn't give me any confidence when hiking.

Lesson learned!

Well, birdstrike, you are welcome! I collect AA miles and gear.

As do I! Though I've been majoring in AS miles of late.

One reliable source of winter gear at good prices is the REI Co-op out of Seattle with a great many retail stores all over the US.

Wanna compare member numbers? ;)

Good gear lasts a good long time. My snow packs have removeable and replaceable wool liners. My Blue Nose jacket has zips and snaps so if the zips freeze up or break, I can still snap up and stay warm.

Couldn't find the Blue Nose on line. :( I have a Marmot down jacket which I combine with an older REI shell and Wintersilks (http://www.wintersilks.com/default.aspx?sc=WWEBSEMGTRH07) silk/cashmere long underwear for effective layering. I do look like the Pillsbury Doughboy. :D

Lindblad does give each guest a free bright-red parka (http://www.newheadingsllc.com/cgi-bin/lexgear/cgi-bin/cp-app.cgi?usr=51F7293420&rnd=323980&rrc=N&affl=Lexpedition/&cip=&act=&aff=&pg=prod&ref=CompAnt&cat=outerwear&catstr=) with SOLAS tape. I'm of the impression they want to be able to easily visually identify each guest by having them all look alike. I'd take my Mustang jacket, but then I'd look like crew ;)

OK, I'll come clean and admit it. I took the wrong boots for the Explorer. It was July in the North Atlantic and I assumed that I could get by with less heavy boots due to packing issues for flights. Wrong! I wore fairly standard deck shoes when on the boat but wore some low price Eddie Bauer waterproof boots when leaving the boat and on land. Bad idea! We weren't doing the water landings down in Antarctica, but did a lot of hiking in rough conditions on land.

Boots are the final worry. I have Kastinger mountain boots that are not suitable for wet landings, and really too heavy to schlep half a world away. Chota kayaking boots which served well for wet landings and hiking in an Alaskan summer. I have snap-on metal traction devices for them. With heavy socks I'm sure they would work down to freezing, but not much margin there.

The Lindblad offering (http://www.newheadingsllc.com/cgi-bin/lexgear/cgi-bin/cp-app.cgi?usr=51F7293420&rnd=1141217&rrc=N&affl=Lexpedition/&cip=&act=&aff=&pg=prod&ref=arboots&cat=footwear&catstr=) looks similar to the neoprene Chota. Edit to say, maybe not. I just ordered a pair to check out.

Oh, well. I'll be in Bergen mid-year, so perhaps I'll look for something there.

I need to look at my DAN insurance coverage again. I thought I remembered that the trip had to be dive related before the medevac coverage applied?

Dan used to have great non-dive medical evac coverage. Now it's not so good. Only the Preferred insurance at $70 (in addition to membership, I think) covers non dive medical. The LIFETIME LIMIT is $10,000. I'm not sure whether that covers medical evacuation or not. http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/insurance/compare.asp
I don't dive every year, so I join DAN only in the years I'm going to be diving. If their medical coverage for non diving travel was what it once was, I'd continue to be a member.

There are other plans like SOS International that provide medical evac etc for a reasonable price per trip. Fortunately, for reasons I don't quite understand, I have SOS International through my employer.

Dan used to have great non-dive medical evac coverage. Now it's not so good. Only the Preferred insurance at $70 (in addition to membership, I think) covers non dive medical. The LIFETIME LIMIT is $10,000. I'm not sure whether that covers medical evacuation or not.

I believe the evac is covered by:

Your DAN TravelAssist benefits are provided through MedAire, Inc. DAN TravelAssist must arrange all covered medical and visitor transportation. Since DAN TravelAssist is an assistance service, we cannot reimburse you for expenses you incur on your own. DAN TravelAssist is in excess of any insurance coverage you may have. Coverage underwritten by All American Life

and is capped at $100,000. That is what my policy says.

Of course it has a subrogation clause, when means it only kicks in after any other insurance you have (ex. homeowners) runs out.

birdstrike, My REI number goes back to 1976, at least. As far as shopping in Bergen, WOW! that's expensive.

I have a Marmot jacket with a few trips on it. Found it locally in Texas in an off season sale. It is noisy (crinkle noises) so is not so good for photography.

I understand about the expedition boats wanting everyone to dress alike but I think it has two causes. One is safety and the other is photo presentation.

We had a big discussion last night about what to grab if you only have 5 minutes to grab and go on a ship. As we get older the list changes a bit. Passports, ID's, credit cards, money, MEDICINES, a change of underwear, gloves and glove liners, and a couple food bars. Not in that order.

Our Annie was a cook on a fishing boat in Alaska and not having enough winter did the same on freighters in the Great Lakes before she got married. Does she have stories to tell! She always slept dressed with her boots close by and always had her pockets loaded up with her most important stuff. She loved cooking for people who really loved to eat good food without counting carbs and calories, but realized that like a cat, she'd used up a couple of her lives. It is really weird to be with her on a boat or a ship as she is all eyes and ears. Worries she does!

I do also (getting back to gear) like real Polartec fleece as it is such high quality. I have several vests made by that company that have good pockets.

Even if a boat provides me with a jacket, I'm still going to travel with my own as it makes a handy airplane blanket and I can hide a ton of stuff in the pockets if there are limitations for carry on bag weights and sizes.

I really burns me up when a company takes a really good item out of their line. I have old Patagonia and ExOfficio stuff that I love but that is long out of production.

I have this collecting thing going for gear bags as well. Gear, AA miles and gear bags.

But I am still seeking perfection!

Maybe I need a 12 step program.

Thanks again for the link.

birdstrike, My REI number goes back to 1976, at least.

I may have you beat. Mine is 222,xxx. :)

I really burns me up when a company takes a really good item out of their line. I have old Patagonia and ExOfficio stuff that I love but that is long out of production.

I have this collecting thing going for gear bags as well. Gear, AA miles and gear bags.

But I am still seeking perfection!

Maybe I need a 12 step program.

I think I do too. When I find something I like,that fits, I usually buy two. I have a brand new duplicate pair of Lowa boots, and a duplicate pair of the aforementioned underwear, plus stacks of socks still in their wrappers. :eek:

Birdstrike, you have me well beat on REI membership numbers, but at least 700,000. I have no idea where they are now on issuing new numbers.

A couple of boots I've seen that work well are waterproofs with liners that can be removed and dried out, made by Sorel (Canada) and Nokia / Nokian (Finland.) Iirc, Nokia made boots for the Soviet Army long before they got into the cable and radio comm business, and then cellular phones, as well as boots for Nordic fishermen and the like. Both were high enough for wet landings; the Nokia / Nokian have served me well in both Arctic and Antarctic.

As to the OP, I would not recommend booking on the M/S Explorer. :p

Since no one was hurt or even worse - killed they can say they REALLY had an adventure!!! Hey who can claim they sank off Antartica and lived to tell the story?!

To top it they were extremely lucky with the kind of weather they were dealt. Big swells could have stoped getting into the lifeboats and possibly would have sunk her even faster. Crowded lifeboats were the least of their problems - the more the warmer since it was around -5°C plus the wind chill factor I suppose it couldn't get crowded enough.

A couple of boots I've seen that work well are waterproofs with liners that can be removed and dried out, made by Sorel (Canada) and Nokia / Nokian (Finland.) Iirc, Nokia made boots for the Soviet Army long before they got into the cable and radio comm business, and then cellular phones, as well as boots for Nordic fishermen and the like. Both were high enough for wet landings; the Nokia / Nokian have served me well in both Arctic and Antarctic.

Thank you for the suggestion. I will look for them the next time I am in Scandinavia. ^

Hi all,
Recently returned to Oz after a cruise to Falklands, Sth Georgia and Antarctic Peninsula.
We departed from Puerto Madryn on Prof Molchanov (50 pax only) on 9th Nov.
Rough weather, beam on, on the 10th Nov meant that all except 4 of us got seasick.
Arrived Falkland Islands 12th Nov early morning - I think it was most interesting for the English as it was the 25th anniversary of the Falklands War - however I did enjoy my time here - some surprisingly good gift shops in Stanley. Departed pm 13th Nov. We got to see Shag Rocks (100 odd miles from Sth Georgia) reasonably close up - huge amount of bird life. Arrived Sth Georgia am 16th Nov. I will tell you now that if you are going to do an Antarctic cruise, save up for a little longer and make sure it includes Sth Georgia - the scenery and wildlife are simply stunning. They also have a very good museum and pretty church at Grytviken (population 9). We drank a toast to Shackleton at his grave - half for me, the other half for him.
Departed Sth Georgia pm 19th Nov. There was a lot of pack ice around the South Orkneys 21st Nov - we also sighted the Explorer here. They were in clearer water about 7 miles West of us heading towards a fateful rendezvous.
am 23rd Nov, we were supposed to go ashore at Elephant Island, however, Explorer had been holed and they were abandoning ship, so we set course in case additional help was needed. (It was very rough at Elephant Is, so we probably wouldn't have been able to get ashore anyway). By the time we got to Explorer's lat/long she had long sunk - we cruised through the oil slick a few times - sighted a stool in the slick and 2 lifejackets which had blown up onto pack ice. The Chileans had a ship - with helicopter airborne - cruising the area.
24th Nov - arrived Deception Island - you actually sail into a volcano - there's a narrow opening in it's side. We dug a hole in the sand, it filled with water, volcanic gases warmed the water and 6 people had a dip.
25th Nov - fantastic weather for our landings at Cuverville Island and Neko Harbour (on the mainland) and cruising Paradise Bay.
27th Nov on our way back to Sth America, Drake passage lived up to it's reputation - Force 10, 10 metre seas side on to ship gave a good?? rolling motion - we got to 45 degrees regularly.
Arrived Ushuaia morning of 28th Nov.
This report is only brief, but I had the trip of a lifetime and I'm going to do it again.

My thought for those thinking of cruising to Antarctica:
Go to Sth Georgia - I know I said it before, but it's worth repeating.
My wife used seasickness tablets, Promethazine - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promethazine - they make you a bit drowsy. Recommended dose was 1 per day (25mg), she took 2 per day and didn't get sick - make sure you take it before you even leave the wharf. I've done quite a bit of stuff in small boats and was confident of not getting sick so didn't take anything and thankfully I was correct.
Travel on an ice breaker or an ice strengthened ship of 50 pax or less - While these small ships don't have the fancy on-board environment of the bigger ships, they have the advantages of good comaraderie - you get to know everyone, everyone gets to go ashore in quick time (max allowable is 100 at a time), you can take photos without people in shot. The average age of pax is younger, so they will do zodiac landings that ships with older pax wouldn't dream of attempting. We were allowed on the bridge at any time.
Do some research on crew - our ship had a Russian crew that do both Arctic and Antarctic cruising - the captain had been to Antarctica over 200 times and it showed. We went with Oceanwide expeditions and their guides had a lot of experience. http://www.oceanwide-expeditions.com
If you are short of any gear, there are some good shops in Ushuaia selling at pretty good prices.

Thanks for the trip report, mizzy! It looks like everyone in the area was affected by the loss of Explorer.

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