GLACIER ALLEY AND USHUAIA

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GLACIER ALLEY, BEAGLE CHANNEL, USHUAIA AND TIERRA del FUEGO NATIONAL PARK - January 18. Wow! Spectacular! The Beagle Channel sail through Glacier Alley was worth the trip alone. Amazing scenery. We saw eight glaciers and even a rainbow at one of them. The narrator provided expert commentary which enriched the experience tremendously. I left the scenery for a short time and attended a future cruise presentation and then a cooking demonstration on a vegetarian wild mushroom, spinach and feta cheese strudel with Thai red curry sauce. The sample was very good.

I am now in the harbor at Ushuaia waiting for my tour to be called. The sun rises here at 5:28 and sets at 9:27. The sun is trying hard to shine through and it occasionally succeeds. Temperature is now 57 degrees and wind speed 32 mph, too much for the ship to pull into the pier and too much for the tenders to handle safely. Sorry that I missed out on Ushuaia. I was supposed to drive through some of the suburbs and cross the Pipo River valley on my way to the National Park and a stop at the southernmost place on earth that can be reached by road, the end of the Pan-American highway. I went up on the top floor to take pictures but the wind was so strong it blew me off balance several times.

We left the harbor early so, the good news, we’ll have more time in Antarctica and maybe, weather permitting, the political issue of going to the Falkland Islands from Argentina will not be a factor in visiting the Falkland Islands. We will have to be patient to see what develops. We’re beginning to see penguins and dolphins. We’re passing Cape Horn, but it’ll be dark. We can, however, count on heavier seas.

I lose track of time pretty easily on a cruise, so Holland America has helped me out by putting carpet inserts in the elevators naming the day. To remember the date, I have to refer to the daily “Explorer” which identifies all the activities on board each day, My stewards, I found out, are responsible for thirty staterooms twice a day. That’s a full days work! The Indonesian crew show was tonight. Well done.

Tomorrow, cruising the Drake passage.

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