We obviously knew that we would see penguins in Antarctica, but I had no idea how many we would see (or that I would be able to identify 3 different types by the end of the trip!). We saw penguins every time we landed and they never got old.
We had rules about how close we were allowed to get to the animals, but luckily the penguins didn’t have the same rules and were pretty curious. If you just sat there, they would come check you out.
At the beginning of the summer in Antarctica, the penguins are coming ashore to build nests, find a partner and mate. We saw a lot of penguin lovin’.
We also saw several different types of seals.
And whales! (You have to look closely for the water spouting up just left of center)
One afternoon the ship’s captain spotted a group of orcas off the ship.
He stopped the ship and dropped all the Zodiacs into the water and we chased after them – and got really close!
{Photo credit to our friend Emma Capel. We weren’t quick enough with our camera to catch an up close shot}
We also saw a lot of other birds besides penguins.
The last day, we did a polar plunge. The water was -2 degrees C and felt it.
Here’s our last look at the continent as we were sailing away. Although it is supposed to be a “once in a lifetime” trip, we know we’ll be back again someday.