Cape Horn
Our approach to the South American continent this morning was bumpy. While crossing the Drake Passage we felt a fairly benign ride. Once the National Geographic Explorer passed from the deep water of the Drake to the shallow water along the continental shelf then the sea state changed quickly. The ever-present wind in this region of the ocean was also on the rise. The air freshened to about 30 knots so the ride was different than the previous day. Our sighting of Cape Horn (home to more than 2,000 shipwrecks) would be later in the morning, just enough time to watch an entertaining black and white video entitled Around Cape Horn. This was filmed and narrated by Captain Irving Johnson who signed on as an apprentice sailor in the late 1920’s on board a four-masted barque and learned to sail the mighty seas of Cape Horn. Once our ship was turned east and was with the wind and close to the Island of Cape Horn we could see the grand cliff that so many sailors had heard about and few seen over the centuries—for if you’re aboard a sailing ship and could actually see the cliff then you were too close and could be dashed ashore easily.
The later morning and afternoon were spent packing our belongings and memories from the past 10 days. As we looked out at the green landscape of the Beagle channel we suddenly realized how much we would miss the stark black and white of Antarctica. Perhaps another visit to the great white continent will be in order.
