watercraft

Magdalena Island

Published January 13, 2019

North Pole polar bears, South Pole penguins.

Early breakfast, lobby FULL with runners. Marathon Day? Nope, PENGUINS. Easy half-mile walk to the Pier, tickets presented, boarded a ferry. Open water excursion, short hour away. Isla Magdalena. No cancellation, no refund, no need – I kissed the BRASS 😊

Nervous excited boat chatter. Seas rolling but not rough. Couple sprays from a distant whale pod. Just a distraction. Island approach – close, close, closer, PENGUINS.

Disembark instructions: stay on trail, keep moving & don’t chase the natives.

🐧 Magellanic Penguin 🐧

South American penguin, breeding in coastal Argentina, Chile and the Falkland Islands, with some migrating to Brazil where they are occasionally seen as far north as Rio de Janeiro…most numerous of the Spheniscus penguins.

Mass: 8.8 lbs Conservation status: Near Threatened (Population decreasing)

Day’s excursion did NOT disappoint. Literally HUNDREDS of PENGUINS.

Adults matched in size by the dull fluffy adolescent chicks they still supported, preened & fed. Seemingly nesting EVERYWHERE. HIGHLY recommended MUST-DO TRIP.

Sooooo much bigger than the wee blue ones seen in Oamaru (NZ/Mar 2017). Just WOW!

Rock-rock-rocky, return ride home. Took short breaks outside. Let the cold Tierra del Fuego air numb the quease. Whole lotta retching. Yikes! Who knew my lithe fit Asian brothers stomach’d so much bile? Just as well today was not Antarctica Day. Folks gonna need an extra day or two to repopulate calories. Ick. Just the sheer Sound, the Smell. Sad souls.

Post-boat dinner? Heck yeah, I’m not one to miss a meal 🍴 Italian dinner. Long table of 8. Julian (France). Brad (Quebec). Kentucky Dave. Circle continues to grow.

Pre-Flight Briefing tomorrow. ZERO impact (group poop 💩) discussion.

: PENGUIN Day!

: Los Pingüinos

: 🐧🐧

: penguin CROSSING

: adolescent fluff

: peep preening

: SEA GULL chicks

: Chilean lighthouse

: seasonal pair ❤️

: circle of FRIENDS

Isla Magdalena

Posted in Americas | Tagged lighthouses, watercraft, wildlife | Leave a comment

Estrecho de Magallanes

Published January 11, 2019

Three hours early for a domestic flight? Glad I heeded the advice. Flying from Chile’s capital city? Folks it’s a hot mess. Check in, dropping a bag, clearing security. 2 hours 45 minutes. Friendly & professional but just a select few working. No criticizing our TSA, been schooled.

4 hour direct flight, southernmost city in Chile. Touchdown, bag retrieval. Last hour more turbulent as winds off the Andes pushed our small plane side-to-side – still, clear open skies in Punta Arenas. Nodded to a taxi driver holding a sign marked $10,000. Assumed Chilean currency & piled in. Hotel Diego de Almagro por favor. Room key, smile, nod, sorry no español.

Nuff time for an afternoon run. Layered up, 10 mile out-n-back. Best way to see a new city. Hugged shoreline (no getting lost). Ran ‘long the Strait of Magellan, where oceans Atlantic & Pacific meet. WOW! Strong gusty headwind, rough rolling surf, even summer season.

No ear buds, eyes alert to traffic and dogs. Packs of them street-roamed. Strangely, most wore tags & collars. They’d chase, I’d walk. They’d sniff, I’d slowly ease myself back on pace. Eyed them use crosswalks, watch for cars – this their town. I’m the tourist.

Day 2 Highlights: Ocean shots, statue pics, a famous shipwreck. Newest landscape addition – giant city sign dedicated just the day prior, anticipation of next year’s 500-year Magellan anniversary. AWESOME timing, short tenth-mile from my hotel digs. FAAANNNNTASTIC!

White Continent meet ‘n greet tomorrow. Crazy excited!

: Punta Arenas bound

: Chilean home digs

: Tripulantes Goleta Ancud Monument

: 500 años anniversary

: Gobernacion Maritima

: summer season calm

: YIKES!

: Lord Lonsdale Shipwreck

: 10 mile out-n-back

: southernmost city in Chile

Chilean Telenovela

Posted in Americas | Tagged beachcombing, road-signs, watercraft | Leave a comment

Newfoundland & Labrador

Published September 2, 2018

Step aboard… experience the WONDER. Witness the world’s largest concentration of humpback whales, as we cruise along our beautiful coastlines. Steam through the passageway of 12,000 year-old icebergs as they arrive after breaking off from the Greenland ice shelf and slowly melt into our frigid waters.

Book a tour on IcebergQuest.com, kinda think you’re gonna see – well, icebergs. Oops, wrong season. No icebergs, no puffins, no whales. No discount either. BUT still the BEST way to see St John’s, Newfy’s harbor-nestled capital on the North Atlantic.

Downtown walk, easy to locate: Water St to Pier 6 (street parallel to restaurant-littered George). Knowledgeable upbeat crew – ALL with the Newfoundland accent. LOVED it! Sailed thru the Narrows into the cold expansive Ocean. Can’t imagine how our Pilgrim ancestors stomached the voyage OR had the courage. Blank landscape/nothing but grey rocking waves. Looked back on the North American continent: Greenland north, Ireland due east. Cool/constant breeze kept me easy, stomach steady. 2 other tourists not as fortunate. Crew comforted with trash bags, exchanged ‘em often. Uck.

Cape Spear, Signal Hill, Cabot Tower, Fort Amherst. Capt’n spouted lotta Newfy facts, furthering my O’ Canada knowledgeable. Tuned in bit more than normal, dug his pseudo-Irish brogue. ‘Round the active lighthouse on Cape Spear, then circled back to town.

Marathon tomorrow but not before dinner. Ya’ll know I’m a foodie 😊 Seafood’s what’s cookin’ in St John’s. Tops here? Mussels & cod. Heard it, lived it: LOUD & CLEAR. Cod chowder starter. Cod tongues app. Steamed mussels dinner. GREAT local eats.

Transportation fail. Bowring Park, Monday’s Huffin’ Puffin start: FIVE miles away. Taxi to the airport, last-minute car rental. These boots are tired of walking ♫ ♬ ♭ ♮ Whew!