Sir Ernst Expedition . Friday 4th February.

The wind has calmed down but it would have been upwind to continue our route south. Also, to save on diesel we preferred to stay in this beautiful mooring an extra day to take advantage of tomorrow’s downwind conditions. We made the most of another calm day to fill up our water tank with melt water from the creek and practise roped-walking and mountain safety procedures for future outings. We filled our water bottles using melt water near the boat.

Mid-morning and it is still sunny, an iceberg is passing in front of the cove. Weather is calm. We are going to take some photos.

 

 

The sky was so clear this afternoon that we set off to climb to the summit of our island, Gamma Island which peaks at 160m. Visibility was perfect for 360 degrees. We could see countless enormous glaciers. Every bay and valley floor has one as far as the eye can see. To the east we even saw the peninsula’s ice cap. We are all captivated by this rugged mountain by the water’s edge. Towards 19:00, after a two-hour ascent leaving our tracks on this snowy dome in absolutely ideal conditions we finally reached the summit. It is an exceptional evening, the light typical of the long end to southern summer days served to further magnify the terrain. After a few photos, a minute’s silence was only natural, just to admire and try to tap into this nature which is so intense. No other boat or sign of human life on the horizon, just our Sir Ernst securely moored in the cove. 21:00, we reached the boat as the last rays of sunshine disappeared, put away the mountain equipment and tender, and prepared a meal.

23:00, it’s still light and we are going to bed to be in good shape for tomorrow. We feel like we’ve lived two days in one!