Antarctica

Expedition to the Great South Land

11 days, 3 departure dates (4th, 16th, 25th November 2010)

A true adventure to the world's most remote wilderness!

This once in a lifetime opportunity is open to anyone who has ever dreamed of The Great South Land, an Antarctica Expedition.

Our 11 day Antarctic expedition focuses on the South Shetland Islands and Antarctic Peninsula, home to some of the planet's most impressive wildlife and dramatic landscapes. Search for seabirds and whales against a backdrop of snow capped mountains and icebergs. Throughout our voyage, our team of lecturers and guides will share their knowledge of the region's remarkable natural history.

Tour Price:

$4,770 ex Ushuaia, Argentina (triple share cabin per person)

$5,990 ex Ushuaia, Argentina (twin share cabin per person)

For more information contact Women’s Own Adventure.

www.womensownadventure.com.au Ph: 1300 883 475

Taking you to the Polar extremes aboard the newly retrofitted M/S Expedition, our expeditions will take you to places you never dreamed possible. From the great white wilderness of Antarctica, these adventures deliver the very best in wildlife and nature, along with awe- inspiring scenery. 

Physical grading: Light walking and hiking that is suitable for most fitness levels.

Ushuaia: Your journey begins and ends in the southernmost town in the world - Ushuaia, in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, which nestles between the spectacular snow-capped mountains of the Andes and the Beagle Channel. You will travel across the infamous Drake Passage (an experience in itself) accompanied by albatrosses and other seabirds and watching for whales and dolphins along the way.

Sitting on the shores of the Beagle Channel, Ushuaia actually means 'the bay facing westward' in the language of the original Yamna inhabitants. Once a penal colony (the presidio was disbanded in the 1940s) for political prisoners as well as hardened criminals, Ushuaia is now a major tourist attraction, particularly for people such as ourselves cruising to Antarctica. The town of 40,000 is also a major ski resort area for both alpine and cross-country skiers and offers magnificent hiking in Parque Nacional Tierra del Fuego, the only coastal national park in Argentina.

Your first stop will be the South Shetland Islands, where you visit enormous penguin rookeries, land on beaches ruled by Antarctic Fur Seals and observe wallowing Elephant Seals. A highlight of your visit here will be sailing into the flooded caldera of Deception Island and perhaps even taking a dip in the warm thermal waters inside. Your expedition team onboard will attempt an average of two landings each day although many factors will influence the daily programme such as ice and weather conditions, and of course wildlife behaviour.
Then you move on to the Antarctic Peninsula where you will have plenty of time to experience the special magic of this awe-inspiring wilderness.

The Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands abound with wildlife activity. Penguins gather with their fast-growing chicks, whales are seen in great numbers, seals haul out onto ice floes and beaches, and numerous albatross and other seabirds trail in our wake. We may visit scientists working in modern research bases, and there is plenty of time to enjoy the sheer beauty and the breathtaking scenery of ice-choked waterways, blue and white icebergs, impressive glaciers and rugged snow-capped mountains. The Peninsula also has a remarkable history and, during the voyage, we will learn about some of the most important and dramatic expeditions to this remote corner of the world. Keeping a lookout from the Bridge or the deck of the ship, as we thread our way along the continent, you'll feel the same sense of excitement as many of those early explorers.

Teeming with wildlife, the Peninsula is made up of hundreds of tiny offshore islands and is one of Antarctica’s richest breeding grounds for seabirds, seals and penguins. The peninsula is highly mountainous, these mountains are considered to be a continuation of the Andes of South America, with a submarine spine connecting the two.

Whales

Thanks to the abundance of the small, shrimp like krill as the basis of the food chain, many species of whales make the water south of the Antarctic Convergence their summer home. Some of the species found in the frigid southern waters include: the Humpback Whale who consumes over a ton of krill each day; the Southern Right Whales easily identified by the whitish callosities on the jaws and forehead; the Sperm Whales made famous in Moby Dick; the Killer Whale which is actually not a whale at all but the largest of the dolphin family; the Sei Whale which can achieve speeds up to 55 km/h over short distances; the playful Minke Whales very common in the peninsula area; the Fin Whale who can attain a length of 25 to 27 meters making them the second largest whales; and the Blue Whale which is not only the largest whale in the oceans but also the largest animal that has ever lived.



The common name for all flightless, aquatic birds, penguins are only found south of the equator. Penguins have been grouped into 18 species and 6 genera, with most making their homes in Antarctica and the sub Antarctic islands, though others are native to the coasts of Australia, South Africa, South America, and the Galapagos Islands. Penguins are speedy and agile swimmers, but extremely slow on land. The regions we visit aboard MS Expedition are inhabited by 6 different species including the giant King Penguin who can grow up to 1 metre in height (found only on South Georgia Island); the Adelie Penguin named after French explorer Dumont d’Urville’s wife; the Chinstrap Penguin identified by the distinctive black line connecting the black cap to below the chin; the Gentoo Penguin with its orange bill and white flash above and behind its eyes; the Macaroni Penguin (Only on South Georgia Island) who number roughly 12 million and are easily identified by the orange tassels meeting between the eyes; and the Rockhopper Penguin (Only in Falkland Islands) who are similar to the Macaroni in appearance but slightly smaller and have yellow tassels.

Historical Figures 

Some of the bravest and best known explorers have sailed south in search of adventure and recognition. James Cook, the most travelled explorer of his time, was the first to circumnavigate Antarctica and the first to cross the Antarctic Circle. Roald Amundsen, who led the first expedition to reach the South Pole and reached the pole on December 14, 1911. Captain Robert Scott, famous for being 35 days late, arriving at the South Pole on January 17, 1912 only to find the dark green tent and a note left by Amundsen. All 5 men in the Scott expedition perished on their way back from the pole. The best-known adventurer would have to be Sir Ernest Shackleton. On his attempt at the South Pole his ship, Endurance, was captured by pack ice in the Weddell Sea on January 19, 1915. The ship was destroyed by heavy ice, forcing him and his men to travel over the ice and sea to Elephant Island. However, because the island was uninhabited, Shackleton and 5 others made the 1300 km voyage for help to South Georgia, amazingly arriving at Stromness Harbour whaling station on May 20, 1916.

Women’s Own Adventure

Ph: 1300 883 475

www.womensownadventure.com.au