Antarctic Finale.

 And so we had nearly reached the end of our 3 week trip. and what a trip it had been.

Before we reached the dreaded Drake's Passage, which is a notorious stretch of water that we had to cross, we had some gorgeous panoramic views of the snowy mountains, with low clouds covering the peaks. This view went on for some time, and many photos were taken, although lots were very similar!!

The Drake's Passage took a couple of full days to get through, covering the vast seas between Antarctica and Ushuaia, the most southern city in the World. It turned out to be one of the most beautiful cities too.

As we first hit the famous passage, the wind was quite strong and we feared we would have both days struggling through it, but it wasn't very long at all before the wind dropped, and we had one of the calmest crossings that the crew could remember. We were extremely lucky, as this was the part of the trip that I had been dreading. 

Our final Antarctic views.

During the crossing we also had some good bird action, with many Prions, Albatrosses and Petrels to photograph. By now I had improved my skills at photographing flying birds. The Prions were the hardest by far as they were extremely quick in flight , and they changed direction all the time. Amazingly, I actually got a few decent shots of them. Prions are very similar and very difficult to identify, as they all look the same. It was assumed that all these are Antarctic Prions, but if anyone can confirm it would be appreciated.

Antarctic Prion.

Northern Royal Albatross.

Black-browed Albatross.

On our final night of the cruise at sea we were treated to a fantastic Drake's Passage sunset. What a fabulous finish.

Drake's Passage Sunset.

The following day we gradually got nearer to Ushuaia. As the light started to go we sailed with land each side of us. Chile on one side, Argentina on the other side. As the darkness arrived we were just a few miles away, docking around midnight.

The following day, we gathered all our belongings, and after our final breakfast, departed from the ship. Lisa had arranged for our luggage to be left in a local travel agents, so we could explore the local area. The city was surrounded by some spectacular snowy mountains, and several nature reserves. Unfortunately, our time was quite limited, but we did walk all along the seafront to a reserve with lakes and damp meadows where we saw some great birds, and even an American Beaver.

A couple of views of Ushuaia.

Only a short walk from the Ushuaia sign we saw our first decent bird, a Black-crowned Night Heron.

Black-crowned Night Heron.

Southern Lapwing were also very evident. They were also a little more approachable than they had been in Puerto Madryn.

Southern Lapwing.

Several Magellanic Snipe were also seen, as well as heard. A very strange call these birds have.

Magellanic Snipe.

Crested Duck

I would have loved to have got a better image of the gorgeous Patagonian Sierra Finch, but they were not easy to get near to.

Patagonian Sierra Finch

Another bird that we had seen in number at the start of the trip in Puerto Madryn was the Rufous-collared Sparrow. Once again here, they were more approachable.

Rufous-collared Sparrow.

A pair of Black-faced Ibis did keep their distance, but eventually we got just about near enough to get some shots.

Black-faced Ibis

After seeing so many South Georgia Pintail ducks, we nearly missed photographing the Yellow-billed Pintail. This one has a much larger bill that the South Georgia version!!

Yellow-billed Pintail.

We then headed back to the main streets of the city, where I had one more lifer to look forward to. My first ever visit to a Hard Rock Café!!  It was very welcome too, with a lovely cold beer with a burger and fries.

It was then collecting our luggage and getting a taxi to the local airport to begin the long trip home!!

Looking back, it was amazing to think we had seen so much in those wonderful 20 days on the MV Plancius. A trip I had never thought I would be able to do. So many memories.

Looking back with 20 days ahead!!

I hope you have enjoyed reading my posts of this amazing trip, as much as I have enjoyed writing the posts.