We landed at Buenos Aires Ezeiza International Airport at 10:25AM.

After clearing Customs and Immigration we took a taxi to the Buenos Aires Plaza Hotel, where we will stay for just one night.

The map of South America shows the location of Buenos Aires and Ushuaia in Argentina, highlighted in red.

We will be flying to Ushuaia tomorrow.

Map is courtesy of Central Intelligence Agency

On December 20 we joined a tour of the Farm at Estancia Las Hijas arranged by Cheesemans' Ecology Safaris.

This old wagon at Estancia Las Hijas was a reminder of the old days.

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Estancia Las Hijas had a number of trained sheep dogs. This is one returning from a sheep roundup in one of their pastures.

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Another view of the Andes Mountains.

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Shown is an Upland Goose Female with four Goslings.

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This Upland Goose family was wandering around the Martillo Island Penguin Colony.

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A Magellanic Penguin resting in the grass.

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A juvenile Magellanic Penguin walking on the beach.

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A Magellanic Penguin with a Chick resting outside their burrow.

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Two King Penguins and a number of nesting Gentoo Penguins with Chicks were in the middle of the Magellanic colony.

Unlike the Magellanic which nest in burrows, both the King and Gentoo makes their nests on the ground.

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December 22nd we took a tour of Tierra del Fuego National Park arranged by Cheesemans' Ecology Safaris.

Tierra del Fuego National Park is a large Argentina National park to the west and north of Ushuaia along the Chilean border.

Our luggage was sent ahead from the hotel to the Ortelius and by 5:00 pm we were boarding the Ortelius.

Shown is a photograph of a Male Upland Goose.

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Our ship, the Ortelius is shown in this photograph.

The Ortelius was our home for 26 days.

Note the staircase descending down the side - this is how we boarded into the Zodiacs which were lowered by a crane from an upper deck storage area.

The photograph was actually taken on January 3, 2014 in Cooper Bay on South Georgia Island.

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We left Ushuaia on the Ortelius early in the evening of December 22, 2013. Our first stop would be the Falkland Islands.

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Attached is a map of the Falkland Islands.

Highlighted on the map are the locations of the various Zodiac landings that we made on the Falkland Islands over the next three days:

      December 24, 2013 - New Island

      December 25, 2013 - Steeple Jason Island

      December 26, 2013 - Sea Lion Island

Map is provided via Wikimedia Commons: By Eric Gaba (Sting - fr:Sting) [GFDL ( http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html), CC-BY-SA-3.0 ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/) or CC-BY-SA-2.5-2.0-1.0 ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5-2.0-1.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Falkland_Islands_topographic_map-en.svg

We observed several Blue-eyed Shags bringing in mouthfuls of nesting material.

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Another close up photograph of a Rockhopper Penguin and their upper body.

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Two Rockhopper Penguins who could not keep their beaks off each other as they spent time preening.

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A Black-browed Albatross is resting near the colony.

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All Albatross love to soar.

A Black-browed Albatross soaring near the colony.

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Another Black-browed Albatross soaring near the colony.

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The Male Kelp Goose feeding on kelp in the surf is mostly white.

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We made a Zodiac landing on Christmas day on Steeple Jason Island.

It would be our second location for landing in the Falkland Islands.

Shown in the photograph is a Gentoo Penguin colony - one of several Gentoo Penguin colonies we would visit over the course of our entire trip.

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A Gentoo Penguin is shown in this photograph returning from the sea back to the colony.

Penguins returning from the sea are usually nice and clean from all the dirt and guano from the colony, although some times we see them come in with sea weed and algae stains.

They also tend to be plump since they are full of food to feed the chick when they make contact with their mate and young.

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The Gentoo Penguin left the nest for just a few seconds while it chased off another Penguin.

Leaving the nest even for a moment can lead to Caracaras and Skuas to attempt to steal the egg.

Notice the nest is mostly a loose grouping of rocks with some plant material mixed in.

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There were always lots of Striated Caracara hanging around the Penguin colonies waiting on a chance to steal an egg or newly hatched chick.

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This Striated Caracara has stolen a Gentoo Penguin Egg.

Now comes the hard part - cracking open the shell. He will soon have a gallery of his friends offering to help.

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On December 26th we made a Zodiac landing on Sea Lion Island. It would be our third and final island that we visited in the Falkland Islands.

Shown in the photograph is a Gentoo Penguin returning from the sea.

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Here is a Gentoo Penguin with a younger Chick.

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We observed this Austral Thrush feeding in the grass on our trek between Gentoo Penguin colonies.

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Resting on one of the nearby beaches was a group of Juvenile Southern Elephant Seals. The large Bulls have returned to the waters to feed, and the Females are likewise out to sea feeding.

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Shown are two other juvenile Southern Elephant Seals practicing their future fighting skills.

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Here we see a Magellanic Penguin returning from the sea.

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This Kelp Gull was hanging around the Gentoo Penguin colonies - it likewise will prey on Gentoo Penguin chicks and eggs.

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This Upland Goose Female was hanging out near the Male.

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While walking between Gentoo Penguin colonies, we were able to photograph a Female Black Throated Finch feeding in the grass.

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Attached is a map of South Georgia Island.

Highlighted on the map are the locations of the various Zodiac landings that we made on South Georgia Island over the next several days:

- December 29, 2013 - Bay of Isles, Salisbury Plain

- December 30, 2013 - Fortuna Bay in the morning and anchored in Stromness Bay in the afternoon

- December 31, 2013 - Hercules Bay in the morning, Zodiac Cruise late morning and Grytviken in the afternoon

- January 1, 2014 - St Andrews Bay

- January 2, 2014 - Gold Harbour

- January 3, 2014 - Cooper Bay in the morning and an afternoon Zodiac cruise around Cooper Island

The ship then cruised the Drygaliski Fjord before heading out across the Scotia Sea toward the South Shetland Islands.

Map is provided via Wikimedia Commons: By Dr. Blofeld (Maps for Free) [CC-BY-SA-2.0 ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Location_map_South_Georgia.png

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The morning of December 30, 2013 we landed by Zodiac at Fortuna Bay on South Georgia Island.

Shown is a photograph of a King Penguin.

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On the morning of December 31, 2013 we landed by Zodiac at Hercules Bay on South Georgia Island.

The morning brought several light snow showers.

Shown in the photograph is a Macaroni Penguin during the snow showers.

The Macaroni Penguin is up to 28 inches in height and weighs 9-13 pounds.

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Note the large number of Macaroni Penguins exiting the water.

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A close up photograph of the Macaroni Penguins exiting the water.

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We landed by Zodiac at Grytviken in the afternoon.

Grytviken was an old whaling station. The Church was restored by Tim and Pauline Carr who were also part of the expedition staff on our expedition.

Shown is a photograph of the inside of the church.

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January 1, 2014 - New Year's Day brought us to St Andrews Bay on South Georgia Island.

St Andrews Bay has an incredible set of Mountains and Glaciers along with a very large King Penguin colony.

Shown is a Photograph of a Brown Skua.

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Adult King Penguins returning to the breeding colony does not happen all at once as it does with some other penguin species, thus they frequently change partners for each breeding cycle.

The King Penguin has an unusually prolonged breeding cycle, taking some 14–16 months from laying to offspring fledging.

The reproductive cycle begins in September to November, as birds return to colonies for a prenuptial molt. Those that were unsuccessful in breeding the previous season will often arrive earlier. They then return to the sea for up to three weeks before coming back ashore in November thru January.

Breeding King Penguins break up into two general groups;

-Early breeders lay their eggs in November which hatch around mid-January. The chicks reach about 90% of their adult weight by April when they are independent.

-Late breeders lay and incubate their eggs from January until March.

King penguins don't make a nest, since they balance the single egg, once laid, on their feet covered with a flap of abdominal skin called the brood patch.

King Penguins have roughly a 55 day incubation period. During that time the egg is being shuffled from one parent to the other every 6-18 days. While the one parent incubates the egg, the other parent then goes back into the sea on a food foraging trip. Hatching can take a total of 2-3 days.

Once the chicks have hatched, they continue to be protected on the parent’s feet and the brood patch for another 30-40 days, until they are able to regulate their own temperatures. It can still be a wait of up to 3-14 days between feeds as the parents swapping duties when one of them returns to the sea to forage for food.

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Juvenile King Penguins leave the colony where they were born when they have fledged fully and are able to swim in the sea and catch their own food.

Juveniles cannot go into the water until they have lost their fluffy brown juvenile down which is an excellent insulator in the air, but a very poor insulator when wet.

They will not return again to breed until they are at least 3 years old, when they will usually return to the site they were born.

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A blond Antarctic Fur Seal is a rare sighting.

On this trip we were able to see both a blond Pup and a Yearling.

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Melanistic is a condition that shows up as a Black head on the King Penguin. It does not grow the normal colors.

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As indicated previously, Melanistic does not allow the colors to grow out.

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The morning of January 2, 2014 we landed by Zodiac at Gold Harbour.

Shown are some of the Mountains near Gold Harbour.

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Sheathbill walking along the beach.

As it would turn out, it would be killed a few minutes later when it was attacked by Brown Skuas.

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This is the lone Sheathbill that was walking around the beach.

A group of Brown Skuas attacked the Sheathbill.

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A Southern Elephant Seal using its front flipper to toss sand on its back.

They toss sand on their backs to cool themselves and also prevent sunburn.

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A very large Macaroni Penguin colony in Cooper Bay.

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A very large Macaroni Penguin colony in Cooper Bay.

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We were able to photograph two Grey-headed Albatross as they swam around our Zodiac.

This bird appeared to be a sub-Adult.

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Another photograph of the adult Grey-headed Albatross.

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This Cape Petrel swam right up to our Zodiac.

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Before leaving South Georgia Island, the Ortelius did a ship cruise of the Drygalski Fjord.

The next several photographs are the beautiful mountains and glaciers in the Fjord.

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Shown is an overall map of the South Shetland Islands.

We will be visiting three islands in this group:

   - Elephant Island

   - Deception Island

   - Livingston Island

Details about our visits will be discussed in later listings.

Map shown has been released into the public domain by its author, Topbanana at the English Wikipedia project. Details regarding this release are shown at the following URL:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:South_Shetland_Islands_Map.png

Point Wild was our intended landing site on the north side of Elephant Island.

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Photograph of Cornwallis Island as we were traveling along the South Shetland Islands.

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We made a Zodiac landing at Cape Lookout on Elephant Island.

Shown is a photograph of a Chinstrap Penguin on the rocks.

There were both a small Chinstrap Penguin colony and a larger Gentoo Penguin colony at the landing site.

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We sailed toward Astrolab Island. A Zodiac reconnaissance by a staff Zodiac found sea ice blocking the landing site.

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We were going to check out a couple of other landing sites, but the sea ice continued to be heavy along the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula.

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We found a Chinstrap Penguin resting on a piece of ice that had washed up on the shore.

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See the map of the Upper Northern Part of the Antarctic Peninsula for the areas we visited.

January 9, 2014   - Zodiac Cruise of Cerva Cove 

January 9, 2014   - Ship Cruise of Gerlache Strait

January 9, 2014   - Zodiac Landing on Cuverville Island

January 10, 2014 - Ship Cruise of Neumayer Channel

January 10, 2014 - Zodiac Landing on Goudier Island - Port Lockroy

January 10, 2014 - Zodiac Landing On Wiencke Island - Jougla Point

January 10, 2014 - Ship Cruise of Peltier Channel

January 10, 2014 - Ship Cruise of Lemaire Channel

January 10, 2014 - Zodiac Landing on Peterman Island

January 10, 2014 - Zodiac Cruise of Booth Island

January 11, 2014 - Zodiac Landing on Yalour Island

January 11, 2014 - Zodiac Cruise of Penola Strait

January 11, 2014 - Ship Cruise of Lemaire Channel

January 12, 2014 - Zodiac Landing on Neko Harbour

January 12, 2014 - Zodiac Cruise on Andvord Bay

January 12, 2014 - Zodiac Cruise of Danco Island - Errera Channel

Map is © OpenStreetMap Contributors.

See this link for copyright details: http://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright

The Blue Ice of an Iceberg with a light snow falling.

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A Minke Whale swam by while we Zodiac cruised.

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As we cruised our way closer to the glaciers, the Icebergs became more numerous and larger.

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The snow continued to fall, but the blue colors remained bright.

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The white contrasts nicely against the gray black Mountains.

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Ortelius is surrounded by sea ice and icebergs in Cerva Cove.

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This is one of the large glaciers at the end of Cerva Cove that helps calve out the Icebergs.

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Snow and Glacier covered Mountains surround parts of Cerva Cove.

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We encountered this Antarctic Tern as we maneuvered among the Icebergs.

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It is always great to see Penguins hauled out on the Icebergs.

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Even an Iceberg decided to float in and visit the Ortelius.

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We continued to encounter more Icebergs as we headed south down the Gerlache Strait.

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The Mountains and Glaciers along the Antarctic Peninsula were very scenic as we headed south to Cuverville Island.

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Cuverville Island had a lot more fresh snow than usual and it was causing some disruption and delay to the Gentoo Penguins preparing their nests and laying eggs.

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It is fun to watch any of the Penguins enter or leave the water. They waddle on land, but they can swim like rockets in the water.

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Gentoo Penguin working through the new snow in the Penguin Highway.

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Another incredibly blue colored iceberg.

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This Weddell Seal was hauled out on a snow covered spit of the Antarctic Peninsula next to Cuverville Island.

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Port Lockroy on Goudier Island was in a small bay surrounded all around by Mountains and Glaciers. We heard the ice crack and observed numerous ice falls from the many glaciers.

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After spending some time at Port Lockroy on Goudier Island, we moved by Zodiac over to Jougla Point on Wiencke Island.

Here is the Wiencke Island-Jougla Point - Antarctic Treaty Visitor Site Guide.

Wiencke Island-Jougla Point - Antarctic Treaty Visitor Site Guide is copyrighted material of the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat (ATS).

http://www.ats.aq/e/ats_other_siteguidelines.htm

Another photograph of a Gentoo Penguin with two chicks.

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A Gentoo Penguin feeds the chicks by regurgitating its food. The chick places its bill deep into the parents bill to receive the food.

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While we were photographing the nesting Gentoo Penguins in the colony, this Brown Skua flew into the middle of the colony trying to steal a young chick. You can see the reaction of one of the Gentoo Penguins.

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This was our first chance to see Adelie Penguins. It was a small colony and also had some Gentoo Penguins as well as Antarctic Shags.

Adelie Penguins are 18-24 inches in height and weight 8-10 pounds. Because of their Black and White coloring they are also sometimes referred to as the "Tuxedo" Penguins.

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Shown is a photograph of an Adelie Penguin adult pair with two large chicks in the middle of the colony.

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Photograph shows an Adelie Penguin with its feet off the ground.

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Following our visit to Peterman Island, we cruised to Booth Island. It was our expectation to land, however ice and icebergs blocked our landing site, so we went Zodiac cruising instead.

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The Icebergs around Booth Island were equal to what we saw in Cerva Cove.

The dark blues in the Icebergs were incredible.

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A Crabeater Seal was hauled out on this Iceberg.

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An iceberg with a deep blue hole.

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A close up of a glassy blue Iceberg.

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A photograph of a Crabeater Seal lying on an Iceberg.

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Photograph of an Iceberg with a hole through it.

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After the late night Zodiac cruise around Booth Island, we had planned to make an overnight run for the Antarctic Circle to the South. This was a option that they had exercised on previous Antarctic trips.

The Ortelius Captain was only an hour into the cruise south when it became apparent that the floating Sea ice was too heavy and there was also a concern about Icebergs, so he turned back to the north again.

The decision was made to make a Zodiac landing at Yalour Island on the morning of January 11, 2014.

At 65°14'S, 064°10'W Yalour Island was the southern most place we have walked on land on planet earth.

The visit to Yalour Island allowed us to visit another Adelie Penguin colony. Shown is a photograph of an Adelie Penguin with a chick.

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Photograph shows an Adelie Penguin adult with two chicks.

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Photograph shows an Adelie Penguin colony on the rock peaks.

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The famous yawn of the Leopard Seal to show you his teeth.

One of his favorite foods in the Antarctic waters are penguins. Given this set of teeth the Penguin does not last long.

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We began January 12, 2014 with a Zodiac landing at Neko Harbour.

Here is the Neko Harbour - Antarctic Treaty Visitor Site Guide

Neko Harbour - Antarctic Treaty Visitor Site Guide is copyrighted material of the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat (ATS).

http://www.ats.aq/e/ats_other_siteguidelines.htm

Neko Harbour brought us back into a Gentoo Penguin colony.

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We were warned when we landed to stay above the broken sea ice line on the beach. This was an area of an active Glacier calving, which if it calved large amounts could create a significant wave into the beaches well above the tidal range.

We only observed one Glacier calving while we were on land and it did not reach our beach.

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The Kelp gull decided to go for a swim after walking down the beach.

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Photograph shows the Ortelius anchored among the heavy sea ice and Icebergs of Andvord Bay

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This Photograph shows two adult Orcas. Take a look at the next photograph and see the baby surface between the two adults.

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The Baby continues to swim between the two Adults.

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This Gentoo Penguin had the Iceberg all alone

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This Crabeater Seal was resting on top of an Iceberg.

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This is a photograph of large Iceberg floating in Errera Channel.

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>BR>

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The translucent blue in this Glacier was almost unreal.

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Here again is my favorite view looking out of Errera Channel into Gerlache Strait with the Glacier, the Mountains and the snow.

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This photograph shows a Glacier with a large blue wall section.

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This photograph of a Glacier shows a large crack with a leaning piece of ice.

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This Antarctic Tern was posing for us on a small floating piece of sea ice.

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This photograph is a Weddell Seal laying on some ice washed ashore.

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This Glacier had several areas of deep blue coloring.

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This photograph of the Glacier gives it a feeling of a Cathedral stained glass window.

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We crossed the Drake Passage on January 14 and 15, 2014.

We encountered an Albatross flying along side the ship on January 14, 2014.

We made a total of 21 Zodiac landings during the course of our trip. We did not make 2 Zodiac landings - Stromness Bay and Baily Head. We did not make the Stromness Bay landing since it was primarily to pick up the Shackalton crossing hikers and view the Whaling station which we could not enter for safety reasons. We did not make the Baily Head landing becasue it was very early morning, it was rainy and foggy and we had a rough night crossing the Bransfield Strait and we were warned that we would have a rough Drake Passage crossing, which proved to be a fact.