Icebergs & Emperors - Commonwealth Bay & Beyond
Ice-Breaker, Mawson’s hut, East Antarctic coast, French base Dumont d’Urville, Ninnis & Mertz Glaciers, Oates Land Coast, and Macquarie Island
27 Days   |   Departures: 12/11/09  |   From $12, 290

Day 1: Embark in Hobart
Today you will board Marina Svetaeva in Hobart, Tasmania. Aurora staff and Russian crew welcome you onboard, before we set off down D’Entrecasteaux Channel and turn south along Tasmania’s east coast. Being at sea means different things to different people. Some face going to sea with trepidation, but by the time your journey ends you’ll find you’ve developed a special relationship with this wide and bountiful ocean.

Days 2-3: At Sea
As you make your way towards Macquarie Island, soaring albatross and shearwaters will follow the ship as you navigate southern ocean swells. Informative talks enhance your understanding of the wildlife, oceanography, geology and history of the mighty Southern Ocean and the great white continent. You also learn about safety procedures for Zodiacs and environmental guidelines for your activities ashore.

Days 4-5: Macquarie Island
Macquarie Island is the peak of a submerged mountain range, 850 miles south of Hobart. Now a World Heritage Area, it was designated a wildlife sanctuary in 1933 and is home to some three million royal penguins, hundreds of thousands of inquisitive king penguins, and nesting albatross. On the beach you may encounter elephant seals and frisky fur seals peeking through strands of bull kelp. This is truly a unique place, a jewel in the Southern Ocean, mysterious and lonely. You may visit Sandy Bay, cruise along the shore of Lusitania Bay and land at the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service base.

Douglas Mawson set up his communication base here in December 1911, and the island is now the year round home to approximately 20 Australian Antarctic Division and Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife personnel.

Days 6-9: At Sea
Your busy lecture program will continue and days at sea are also time for reflection, reading or pursuing creative activities. You’ll also show informative and historical videos, as indicated by the daily program – the newsletter informing everyone of the proposed "plan of the day". While you have darkness at night you will ask the crew to watch for the Aurora Australis, that incredible display of undulating curtains of light.

Between Macquarie Island and the Antarctic continent you’ll cross the Antarctic convergence and then the Antarctic Circle (at latitude 66°32' S). Each day will be a little colder and light a little longer as you approach the continent. No one will forget the sight of their first iceberg.

Days 10-12: South Magnetic Pole and Commonwealth Bay, George V Coast
One of Australia’s most famous explorers, Sir Douglas Mawson, dubbed Commonwealth Bay "the Home of the Blizzard." You may land at Cape Denison to visit the hut built for his 1911-14 expedition. Hope for calm conditions, as high winds here can thwart attempts to land.

With luck you may see Wilson's storm petrels, Weddell seals, Adélie penguins and perhaps some skuas.

Since Mawson’s day, the South Magnetic Pole has migrated off the land and is now located out to sea. Ice and weather permitting, your Captain will attempt to manoeuvre your ship into position over the South Magnetic pole.

Day 13: Dumont d’Urville
Overnight you wind your way through iceberg-adorned seas towards Petrel Island, home of the French research station Dumont D’Urville, and the nesting ground of snow and Wilson’s storm petrels. You may visit the station, walk the island shores and take Zodiacs or helicopters to admire the ice-front of the Astrolabe Glacier.

The research station was named after the French explorer Dumont D’Urville, who proclaimed the territory for France in January 1840. He also named the Adélie penguin after his wife. This is the predominant penguin species along these coasts, and insists on nesting among the station buildings.

There’s a chance you can post letters from the French post office, but who knows when those back home will receive their mail.

Days 14-15: East Antarctic Coastline
You follow the route taken by Captain John King Davis in 1912 as he pushed Aurora through pack ice to find a place for Mawson’s Western Party to winter. Like Davis, ice and weather will dictate your path, but you hope to get close to the Dibble Iceberg Tongue, and push along the Wilkes and Sabrina Coasts as far west as time allows, watching for emperor penguins along the way.

Day 16: Port Martin
Heading east again, you may stop at this rocky toehold on the Antarctic Plateau, usually out of reach of the renowned katabatic winds of Commonwealth Bay. Here you may visit the French Base abandoned after a fire in the 1950s, and now home to a lively Adélie penguin colony. What a Christmas treat!

Day 17: Mertz Glacier
Leaving Port Martin, sail past Commonwealth Bay again. If you were unsuccessful with your first attempt to land at Mawson’s Hut, this will be another opportunity. You then pass the awesome ice tongue of Mertz Glacier, which floats many, many miles out to sea before disgorging its quota of icebergs into the Southern Ocean. This natural barrier attracts wildlife including the larger whale species. Should the opportunity arise, you could take a closer look at its crevassed ice cliffs from the Zodiacs.

Days 18-20: Oates Land Coast
Your leaders have long dreamt of threading through the maze of icebergs formed by the Mertz Glacier to reach open water along the Oates Land Coast. With the helicopters they hope to chart a route to explore as much as possible of this seldom-visited coast.

There is no way to know how far the ice edge will stretch out from the coast of the polar plateau. You will experience the delight and comfort of being in a strong steel ship rather than being on a wooden square-rigged sailing vessel! The ice edge is a marvelous place, where nutrients rise to the surface and many different species of whales, seals, and penguins can be seen.

You’ll then reverse your course, swinging north to avoid dense pack ice, and relax on board and recap your experiences thus far as you enjoy your final views of life along the ice edge.

Days 21-23: Southern Ocean
As you head north you welcome time at sea to assimilate the rich experiences of the past few weeks. Lectures and seminars will help consolidate what you’ve seen and felt.

Day 24: Auckland Islands / NZ Sub Antarctics
The Auckland Islands are a small archipelago made up of one large and five smaller volcanic islands. You may land for a leg stretch or take a Zodiac cruise to view breeding grounds of both shy and wandering albatross. The vegetation is varied and interesting with several endemic plants. And, about 52 species of birds breed on the Auckland Islands. More than half the species are seabirds, and there are three species of penguins including the rare Yellow-eyed penguin.

A year after Captain Bristow discovered the Auckland Islands in 1806, 14 men were put ashore there and gathered 11,000 sealskins. This was just the beginning, and many thousands were slaughtered. It has taken 150 years for the seal population to recover. Thankfully, these islands are now a flora and fauna reserve.

Days 25-26: At Sea
This morning you may continue your explorations of the New Zealand Sub Antarctic islands. You then start the journey home across the Southern Ocean towards Australia.

Day 27: Hobart
You dock at Hobart in the early morning. Disembark and farewell new friends, or join them to explore this lovely, historic seaport.


Included:
Accommodation and all meals on board Marina; All sightseeing, shore excursions, Zodiac rides, helicopter flights and other surface transportation as required for the cruise itinerary; All port landing service charges imposed by local administrations and government authorities; Lectures, slide / film shows and video programs on board; Service of the vessel's expedition staff; Basic attention and treatment by the ship's medical staff; Padded expedition jacket.

Not Included:
Fuel surcharge ($1,040 per person for 12/12/2008, subject to change); Air or land transportation to or from the ship, including any departure taxes, noise levies, or other associated taxes or charges; Excess baggage on any flights; Vaccination costs / passport / visa fees (if required); Items of personal nature, laundry, bar charges, wine, phone calls, cable / telex / fax charges, etc; Tips to ship’s crew; Any travel insurance or insurance of a personal nature; Any hotels, meals, transfers or other services prior to embarkation or after embarkation of the vessel; Any medication or treatments by the ship's medical staff other than basic day to day necessities.