Day 13 - Devil Island and Duese Bay - What a birthday!

Friday, March 6, 2020

Morning: I woke up feeling quite clumsy, and in the galley, they gave me a hand. Only when they said, “Happy Birthday,” did I realize why. They had decorated the common areas with colorful flags and made a beautiful drawing of a celebrating penguin on an iceberg. We landed in windy weather at Devil Island. From a small beach, we climbed onto the volcanic island, which is primarily made of basalt. We crossed a saddle to reach the beach on the other side, where we encountered some late Adélie penguins and a lone fur seal. Next, we climbed one of the "horns" of the Devil, and with a smaller group, continued to another horn. This part of the hike had no path, and the wind was especially strong before reaching the final ridge. Despite the conditions, walking wasn’t difficult, and the wind added a sense of adventure that I thoroughly enjoyed. All the glaciers we saw had clean surfaces without any snow, making them look strikingly different. The ride back to the boat was quite wet due to the strong wind.

Afternoon:  In the afternoon, Richard gave a talk about postproduction. Later in the day, we spent time in Duse Bay on the Antarctic mainland, surrounded by enormous glaciers flowing down to the sea. For the first time, we saw crushed ice from the glaciers covering large areas of the sea surface. It was mesmerizing to watch the ship navigate through it. During the 8 PM meeting, they surprised me with a cake topped with candles and a Europa birthday calendar as a present. It was such a thoughtful gesture, and I felt truly grateful for their kindness.