At sea

At 7.30 this morning we approached a massive iceberg named C28B.  This is a flat topped iceberg, over a mile long, with perfectly shaped arches leading into caves.  We were surrounded by icebergs, whales and birds and it was a treat to sit at breakfast watching all this.  

As I said yesterday we are sailing towards Elephant Island and should be there by 4.30 this afternoon. Elephant Island was named by the early explorers who sighted elephant seals on its shores and it also has an elephant like head appearance!  It is situated 24 kms north-northeast of the tip of the Antarctic Peninsular. A bit more information - 1,253 kms west-southwest of South Georgia, 935 kms south of the Falkland Islands and 885 kms southeast of Cape Horn.  It is within the Antarctic claims of Argentina, Chile and the UK.  Brazil has a shelter (not a bus shelter!) on the island, Goeldi, supporting the work of up to  six researchers during the summer. We are headed to Point Wild, a spit on the north coast where the Endurance Glacier is the main discharge glacier.  Due to slow recoveries and illegal whaling by the Soviet Union with support from Japan, numbers of Southern right whales visiting the island are still on low level.  Meanwhile, the seas are high and very beautiful to watch from the dining room at the back.