10/2/08 13:30

Nik gives Gabriele a Zero Coke from the cockpit fridge (which is turned off and still plenty cold) and remarks, “Coke without sugar is like a Play Station without a remote control.” 

We going nicely now on track and have a new weather map and ice report;  a passing ship has confirmed there is no ice at Deception Island where he’d just come from, so we’re not so worried about arriving before full light.  It only gets really dark for a few hours after which there is an extended half light before dawn.

17:15

All grey everywhere. Barometer down 12 milibars in the last 24.  Air Temp 4C, Water Temp 6C.  First Whale spotted. Too quick for pictures. 

Alternator fan belt on engine had to be replaced.

11/2/08  9:00

We sailed through the night into grey pea soup.  Two or three sea lions swam by and one of them lifted his flipper as though to wave at us.

We entered “Neptunes Bellows” just before 8, and anchored at Whaler’s Bay home of a disused whaling station closed 1931.  The crew celebrated with a Steve Fry Up which I watched having had my porridge.

This volcano is still active; in 1923 the water boiled and burned the paint off anchored ships. In 1930 the floor of the harbour dropped 3 metres during an earthquake. As recently as 1992 eruptions forced the evacuation of research stations, and there is a published emergency evacuation plan.  As we entered, the sea temperature rose from 5C to 10 C. 

12:00

Paulo Nik and I have been ashore visiting the whaling station. Paulo and I have relieved Steve and Gabriele on the boat so they get a turn.  We met a Spanish expedition leader doing research here who told us we were lucky there were no cruise shops here today, otherwise there would be 200 people wandering around our private site.

Incredibly as we still seem to have a Fleet 33 connection I will send of a few snaps, they may not be great but they are hot off the press.

While we were ashore the boat practically disappeared from view as the fog settled in.