Day 3 and 4 of South America and Antarctica

Day 3 and 4 Dec. 19 and 19/08

DARWIN CHANNEL, CHILEAN FJORDS

We leave behind Puerto Montt, Chile and begin our journey down the Darwin Channel and Chilean Fjords for two days of cruising before our next port.
Beautiful isn't it!

We are now cruising into the Darwin Channel and through the fjords. Beautiful scenery very close on each side as we cruised by, running from one side of the ship to the other to capture every incredible bits of beauty. The breathtaking Chilean fjords, fed by glacier ice from the ice fields in the central highland valley , are laced with active tidewater glaciers. The powerful "show", however are evidence that the ice is melting at an alarming rapid rate. Just a little more thn a century ago, when naturalist Darwin saw the narrow Chilean passages, he reported far more ice. Warming cycles are natural, but there is now evidence that human acitivity has accelerated the process.

The weather forecast was to be bad weather, but instead, it's beautiful and warm. There are whales here, lots of birds and dolphins, although I haven't been lucky to see one. Many birds, called Cormorants and Imperials. There is a very ugly bird called a Petrol, that is like a vulture. If I can remember the story right, if Darwin's men where causing problems, and we're to be punished by death, they would rather have something heavy attached to them before being throw overboard , because the Petrol's would just pick you to bones. They would follow those old ships waiting for something to eat on! I wish, I had copied down more interesting tidbits as our commentator spoke, but can't snap pictures and write at the same time.

Look at that very calm sea, beautiful blue sky. The long, fjord-studded archipelago is one of the planet's most inacessible, pristine and stunning places. The ship does not dock in the region, it's beauty is certainly a big highlight of this cruise.

Every twist and turn the ship makes as we travel the Darwin Channel is beauty upon beauty! This is also the tailbone of the Andes range.

I mean.....just look at that!!! Incredible!! We have an incredible speaker, Chris Fisher, who speaks on the loud speaker on the deck to point out different places .

Mostly uninhabited except for very few salmon harvesters. Puma is the main predator here and opossum. Too cold here for cougars or bears or deer.
Many of these islands remain unnamed, so I picked one and it's now called "Linda Island" I forget which one now!

Not sure what this was on the shore, maybe a marker or one of the salmon harvesters.

I think that might have been sea lions laying on that rock, but my camera wouldn't zoom any closer, and my binoculars where in our cabin! Somebody told me later it was sea lions.

Getting darker now, however, it sure stay light for a very long time!

Now coming into the Amalia Glacier Canal for a day of cruising. But first Breakfast in the Lido.

Note: To make it much easier to add photo's, which have to be adjusted and fixed and moved and it's frustrating as all get out, I'm going to end this blog here and make a new page for the Fjords. I have company coming any minute anyway...stay tuned, I'll get it done today.