Remote Weddell Sea Explorer

Your voyage begins where the world drops off. Ushuaia, Argentina, reputed to be the southernmost city on the planet, is located on the far southern tip of South America. Starting in the afternoon, you embark from this small resort town on Tierra del Fuego, nicknamed “The End of the World,” and sail the mountain-fringed Beagle Channel for the remainder of the evening.

Enroute to South Georgia, you now cross the Antarctic Convergence. The temperature cools considerably within the space of a few hours, and nutritious water rises to the surface of the sea due to colliding water columns. This phenomenon attracts a multitude of seabirds near the ship, including several species of albatross, shearwaters, petrels, prions, and skuas.

Entering the South Georgia Maritime Zone, one of the largest protected waters in the world, you’ll sail past the Shag Rocks. These impressive rocks lay 240km (150 miles) west of South Georgia and are home to several thousand South Georgia shags. The area around the rocks is known for its abundance of larger marine mammals, which feed on this comparatively shallow area of the South Georgia Ridge.

After reaching South Georgia, you will have the chance to visit some of the following sites:

Fortuna Bay – A beautiful outwash plain from Fortuna Glacier is home to a large number of king penguins and seals. Here you may also have the chance to follow the final leg of Shackleton’s route to the abandoned whaling village of Stromness. This path cuts across the mountain pass beyond Shackleton’s Waterfall, and as the terrain is partly swampy, be prepared to cross a few small streams.

Salisbury Plain, St. Andrews Bay, Gold Harbour – These sites not only house the three largest king penguin colonies in South Georgia, they’re also three of the world’s largest breeding beaches for Antarctic fur seals. Literarily millions breed on South Georgia during December and January. By February the young fur seals are curious and playful and fill the surf with life and fun and large elephant seals come to the beaches to moult.

Grytviken – In this abandoned whaling station, king penguins walk the streets and elephant seals lie around like they own the place – because they basically do. Here you might be able to see the South Georgia Museum as well as Shackleton’s grave.

In the afternoon of day 6 and depending on the conditions, you will start sailing southwards in the direction of the South Sandwich Islands.

Like Shackleton in December 1914 on the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, also known as the Endurance Expedition, you leave South Georgia and aim for the South Sandwich Islands and the Weddell Sea.

There may be sea ice on this route, and at the edge of the ice some south polar skuas and snow petrels could join the other seabirds trailing the vessel south.

While you are unable to land here, you may be able to make a Zodiac cruise among the amazing scenery of this active volcanic area. Passing between Thule and Cook Islands will be one of the trip’s many highlights and will make an everlasting impression.

There is a good chance you’ll encounter humpback and minke whales in this area. On and around the islands, you also have the chance to spot brown skuas, chinstrap or Adélie penguins, and several species of albatross: grey-headed, black-browed, and wandering.

You next sail toward the Antarctic continent in the direction of Queen Maud Land and Neuschwabenland (New Swabia) on the northeast side of the Weddell Sea. As you venture further south, closer to the edge of the pack ice and into the Weddell Sea proper, the chances of encountering emperor penguins on the ice increase. In Shackleton’s accounts of the Endurance expedition, emperor penguins make frequent appearances in this region, and in two successful voyages, the expedition team has enjoyed superb encounters with these iconic birds. So it pays to keep eyes peeled and cameras at the ready.

Your first destination in Antarctica is the region historically known as New Swabia in Queen Maud Land. This area was explored by the third German Antarctic Expedition of 1938 – 1939, led by Alfred Ritscher. The purpose was to find an area in Antarctica for a German whaling station and scout a possible location for a naval base. In an attempt to claim the region, Nazi flags were placed on the sea ice along the coast. Survey flights also airdropped aluminum arrows with swastikas, none of which remain today.

Sailing deep into the Weddell Sea, your chances of spotting crabeater, leopard, or Weddell seals increase, and emperor penguins will be more frequent the further south you venture. You will also likely spot humpback, orca, and minke whales, along with varying birdlife. As you head to extreme latitudes, you will enjoy the raw beauty and power that make Antarctica so special, and it will become apparent how tough it must have been for Shackleton’s expedition. You’ll make a circular route toward the Brunt Ice Shelf and along the Luitpold Coast, where, if conditions allow, you will have opportunities for a Zodiac cruise and possibly an ice floe landing. It is in this area that a farthest south world record was set, reaching Vahsel Bay in 2025 and 2026. You then head west toward the Filchner–Ronne Ice Shelf before changing course north along the eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula, close to the spot where Shackleton’s vessel Endurance was trapped in pack ice before ultimately sinking. While you can’t get close to the wreck site, you will be in the area where the ship was trapped and abandoned, and with colonies of emperor penguins nearby, your chances of further encounters on the ice are good.

Your course, landing sites, and direction depend entirely on ice conditions, but it is likely that you aim directly for Elephant Island, the desolate spot from which Shackleton and five of his men sailed a small lifeboat, the James Caird, to South Georgia, then walked 36 hours to Stromness, a herculean feat. Twenty-two members of his expedition were stranded on Elephant Island, where conditions are severe, and it took four and a half months to complete the legendary rescue. If possible, you will take Zodiacs to Point Wild, where the marooned members survived against all odds. Ice-dependent, you may then enter the area of Erebus and Terror Gulf, possibly via the spectacular Antarctic Sound, where a large Adélie penguin rookery, gentoo penguins, and nesting snow petrels can be found, with possible locations including Brown Bluff, Kinnes Cove, and the famous Madder Cliffs. If you are lucky with the ice, you may reach as far as Snow Hill Island, home to the northernmost colony of emperor penguins, and, if conditions allow, you may also attempt a landing on James Ross Island.

Your return voyage is far from lonely. While crossing the Drake, you might see some of the same wildlife encountered at the start of your voyage: albatrosses, petrels, maybe even a minke whale spouting up sea spray.

Every adventure, no matter how grand, must eventually come to an end. It’s now time to disembark in Ushuaia, but with memories that will accompany you wherever your next adventure lies.