I’ve spent the past few nights anchored in the calm waters of Saldanha Bay, enjoying blue skies, mild winds, and pleasantly warm days....

In a nod to old maritime tradition, Captain Sasha delivered his final daily update: ship’s options, speed, heading, weather and sea...

Another sea day brought more opportunities to scan the horizon for seabirds, dive into a good book, and attend fascinating lectures. It...

I didn’t expect a seabird, a violin, and a pair of dividers to have much in common—but this voyage has a way of connecting strange dots....

Some sea days are for resting. Others, like this one, are for wandering—through memory, imagination, and the occasional fossil bed....

Now that we’re hightailing it out of the Tristan da Cunha group two days early, I have a few extra sea days to reflect on our earlier...

Today was meant to mark the beginning of a three-day expedition to some of the most remote islands on Earth. First up: Tristan da Cunha,...

At the heart of every great expedition voyage is a great Expedition Leader. This person doesn’t just manage logistics—they shape the...

Crossing the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) feels a bit like flying over the Himalaya when they’re shrouded in clouds. In both cases, a...

After four days of intense activity, we’ve begun our four-day journey to Tristan da Cunha. The swell is noticeable, but not too bad—I can...

It’s been a few days since we visited Grytviken Whaling Station. Today, we’re sailing in the open ocean toward our next destination, so...

Tucked deep in the Southern Ocean, South Georgia Island is a place few people ever see—and even fewer under perfect conditions. As our...

The Kings of Fortuna Bay   After landing at Fortuna Bay, we hiked about a kilometer to the King Penguin colony. Along the way, we passed...

Today, we spent time in Grytviken, once a hub of industrial whaling. If this were a typical live blog, I might tell you about what I ate,...

Today was a day of excursions. The morning brought us to Salisbury Plain, home to a colony of about 60,000 King penguins and many...

I thought we had crossed the Antarctic Convergence yesterday, but the ship actually crossed it sometime last night. When I awoke, it was...

The moon was still shining when I awoke, casting a soft glow over the landscape. By the time breakfast arrived, the sun had risen,...

A Restful Night After a Long Walk After taking 26,000 steps over two days, I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep last night. Losing an hour...

When the alarm went off at 6:20 AM, I jumped out of bed, excited for the day ahead. In just ten minutes, our butler would be arriving...

Introductions, Briefings, and Biosecurity The morning was packed with introductions. First, we met the department heads, followed by an...