Saturday, February 11, 2017

Cruising Amalia Glacier

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Amalia Glacier

Despite Day 5 being a sea day, we set an alarm for 7 AM.  We were scheduled to arrive at Amalia Glacier around 8 AM depending on conditions.  Unfortunately, the weather wasn't cooperating - we arrived on time, but it was overcast and raining.  That didn't stop guests from lining the open upper decks to get a glimpse of the glacier and ice flows.  Guests adorned rain gear, warm clothes, umbrellas and captured memories on cameras and other devices.

If you've cruised to Alaska, the experience is very similar.  The ship anchors and does a 360 degree
rotation to allow all passengers the opportunity to see the glacier. We spent about an hour there before continuing our journey toward our next port of call, Punta Arenas. They also had a lifeboat in the water.  We didn't see for sure, but suspect they brought an ice flow back onboard to show guests.  Since it was raining, most of the day, we never went outside to see if they did or not.


Day 5 at Sea

The Horizon Cafe was packed with guests after the glacier viewing.  Nevertheless, I decided this would be a good day to have a made to order omelette.  You tell the chef what you want and he writes up a slip that you give to your waiter once you find a seat.  It was an excellent omelette. 


Scenic Cruising


The Southern Patagonian Ice Field covered the entirety of southern Chile just 10,000 years ago. Today, this region gives way to the awe-inspiring channels and islands that comprise the fjords of southern Chile's Pacific Coast, which extend as far south as Tierra del Fuego and the Strait of Magellan.

While cruising through the sparkling waters of Chile's legendary inlets, you'll be graced by the presence of snow-capped mountain peaks, majestic forests and spectacular blue-tinged glaciers that will take your breath away. The unspoiled scenery is filled with dramatic rock formations and abundant wildlife known for making their homes here, including sea lions, Peale's dolphins and a variety of seabirds that soar amid the splendor.

After breakfast, we headed to the cabin to get a few things (book, laptop, etc.) and headed up to deck 18 aft to SkyWalkers Lounge.  There's plenty of seating with floor to ceiling windows just perfect for viewing the passing scenery without having to contend with the elements which as we mentioned wasn't cooperating. It also was a great place to work on our blog while enjoying the view.

The winds were howling and the seas were covered in white caps as we made our way slowly towards Punta Arenas.  The captain made an announcement that we might not actually be able to get into port tomorrow as the winds were forecast to be 50 knots and the safe operating limit for the port is 35 knots.  This port is the first scheduled destination for seeing penguins, so all we could do was to wait and see what the weather would bring tomorrow.

The scenery we could see reminded us of Norway.  We've cruise thru the fjords there in both summer and winter time.  When we sailed there in winter time, we'd had similar overcast / rainy days.  It is a shame since this would be gorgeous with clear skies.



diary-of-south-america-voyage


Related Albums:

Amalia Glacier


Note:  we will be adding to these albums as we continue our journey.

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