Aitcho Island, South Shetlands
With all due respect to rock lovers and glacier-huggers, penguins are what we came for. Which is why our first stop today at this northern outpost of Antarctica was such a success. The place is crawling with the little flightless devils and, despite the driving snow and strong wind, we hit the beach with our enthusiasm set on "high". Penguins like the chinstrap pictured here were waiting for us on the landing beach and our forays into the island's interior yielded further delightful views of these feisty residents on their nests. Most of us took advantage of the many sights Aitcho has to offer by hiking to the far end of this somewhat spiky island where we had excellent opportunities to see southern elephant seals, nesting pintado petrels, luxurious moss, and even a second species of the penguin: the less boisterous gentoo. All in all, it was a truly wonderful way to be initiated to the wonders of Antarctica.
With all due respect to rock lovers and glacier-huggers, penguins are what we came for. Which is why our first stop today at this northern outpost of Antarctica was such a success. The place is crawling with the little flightless devils and, despite the driving snow and strong wind, we hit the beach with our enthusiasm set on "high". Penguins like the chinstrap pictured here were waiting for us on the landing beach and our forays into the island's interior yielded further delightful views of these feisty residents on their nests. Most of us took advantage of the many sights Aitcho has to offer by hiking to the far end of this somewhat spiky island where we had excellent opportunities to see southern elephant seals, nesting pintado petrels, luxurious moss, and even a second species of the penguin: the less boisterous gentoo. All in all, it was a truly wonderful way to be initiated to the wonders of Antarctica.
