Day 1, and the first place I was able to touch land, was Peterman Island. The winds were too strong where we had planned on going, so the crew rerouted us to there. I don't know what I missed at the other location, but I'm so glad we stopped at Peterman Island. We were instantly thrown into the middle of thousands of penguins.
Peterman island is a small island in the Antarctic Peninsula that is covered in rock, snow, Gentoo penguins, and a lot of Gentoo penguin poop!
Immediately after we got off the boat we were right up close with them.
The penguins were adorable. We mostly saw Gentoo penguins that day. They were a great first penguin to see because of how curious they were. If you sat still, they would get right up next to you. Many times I didn't see one and I'd about trip over it. It really helped with photographs because they would walk right up to your camera.
Gentoo Penguins range from about 20-35 inches tall. Most penguins are much smaller than I imagined them to be.
One of the coolest parts about the island was it's backdrop. The surrounding land was incredible. There were huge mountains and glaciers in every direction.
Look at the size of the glacier in the background! Everything was on a super sized scale.
This side of the island was a lot like I expected Antarctica to look like. It was massive, white, and endless. Imagine having to hike up over this, it would never end!
I could have spent hours looking at the intricacies of the large glaciers. I am a very imaginative person and can picture myself exploring all of the many crevasses! I've always secretely wished I ran away and became an explorer.
I sat at the end of this little canyon and watched these three penguins come towards me. Every few steps they would get distracted from their journey, and then once they saw their buddies pass they would start up again. Imagine the simplicity of their life. I had so much fun watching them navigate the area and interact with each other along the way.
Even though we spent most of the day on Peterman Island, I had way more that I wanted to explore, and some people headed back to the boat early! They were crazy!
Aren't these penguins lucky to have that view to look at all day? There are a lot of penguins out there, and I feel like they were lucky to be born where they were. I hope they can appreciate it like I do.
Traci and I watched a seal eat a penguin from here. We were enjoying the beautiful little cove when all of the sudden the seal came out from no where. It was really crazy/awesome. Traci also almost had a terrible tumble while watching this go down. She walked a lot closer to the water to see the seal, and was apparently standing on top of a glacier hanging over the water. Some of the people saw her and started yelling and waving, so she hurried and got back from the edge. It could have been really bad!
I know, I know. This is way to many pictures. But seriously, look at this! Every photo I look at makes me want to go back!
Here is our usual super lame shot. It has to be done though! Beause again, we are in Antarctica!
I loved the scale of this shot.
You're going to hate me by the time I'm done with this trip! There are just way to many pictures that I love and want to remember! This is just the beginning!
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