OAT - Patagonia and Beyond

January 9 - Day 1 – On Board Stella Australis

Stella Australis serves a very good breakfast buffet. Lots of carbs, protein and fat. The bacon is especially good – nice and salty. There are eggs, cereal, breads, fruit, vegetables, etc. Coffee is strong.

From Our Tour On An Island In Ainsworth Bay

Our first excursion was to an island on Ainsworth Bay. We shuttled to it via zodiacs passing a very small islet where several elephant seals were resting on the shore. Francisco from the ship was our guide. As we walked around the island, he talked about the birds, the flora and the culture of the original inhabitants. We saw oyster catchers, cormorants, steamer ducks, geese, lichen, moss, canelo trees and much more. When we reached the zodiacs for our return trip, the crew had a table set up for hot chocolate, tea, coffee and scotch whiskey.

Back on the ship, we had a plentiful lunch buffet with wine, beer, etc. The desserts were especially good – calafate and vanilla ice cream, flan, cakes and fruit.

On A zodiac Tour Around A Tucker Islet

In mid-afternoon, we got onto the zodiacs again and went on a photo excursion around Tucker Island. The islet is special because it is a breeding ground for Megellanic penguins and cormorants. There were also some steamer ducks and chimango caracaras.

After we returned to the ship, we had some down time until lecture time at 7:00 and dinner at 8:00. Our OAT group has several tables reserved for all meals. Ann had hake and I had slices of beef.

Bed time was around 11:00.