January 8, 2024: Zodiac ride in Hope Bay, Antarctica
You just had an amazing morning kayaking among the penguins, grabbed some lunch back on the ship, and are now putting all of your thermal layers back on to take an afternoon zodiac ride in Hope Bay. It’s lightly snowing, which can only momentarily distract you from the chill in the air. Luckily you packed both hand and toe warmers.
Hope Bay is along the Antarctic Peninsula, where research bases and overlapping claims of sovereignty are nestled between icebergs, blue glaciers, and Adélie penguin colonies. The bright red buildings of Argentina’s Esperanza Base call Hope Bay home. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to explore the base, but we could see a few people outside.
Within the first 30 minutes of our 75 minute zodiac ride it was clear that some of the other guests in our zodiac had perhaps underestimated just how cold it would be out on the water. There were a couple people that looked like they really wanted to turn back to get some handwarmers or more thermals, but weren’t willing to risk missing the outing. This probably was the coldest zodiac ride of our whole trip, in retrospect.
Starting the trip with kayaking honestly made this zodiac ride seem a little dull in comparison. I know, how can riding around Antarctica looking at penguins and cool ice while it’s snowing be dull? It wasn’t. But it just wasn’t the same level of excitement as the Close Encounters of the Bird Kind that we experienced kayaking earlier that morning. Sitting, cold, on a less-than-comfortable zodiac just cannot be as compelling as literally getting splashed by a penguin. I also was not in charge of the camera/photos for this part, and we were seated at opposite ends of the zodiac from each other. So, as interesting as this outing truly was, it did not quite get my adrenaline going. Luckily, future zodiac rides would.
Adelie penguins have grown to become my favorite. Many people may prefer the cute orange beaks on the Gentoo or have been swayed by Happy Feet to love Emperor penguins. But to me, the Adelies just look like they’re from an old claymation movie. I picture their innocent faces waddling around with Rudolph in the Land of Misfit Toys or as background dancers for Snow Miser.
By the end of the outing, even those of us who had worn many layers of thermals were cold and almost happy to escape the Antarctic winds and return to the warmth of the ship. Each time being welcomed back with hot tea, followed by a thermos of darjeeling tea from the lounge. This first day of excursions was truly just the beginning of what would become an unforgettable adventure.
