One of my favorite parts of the cruising aspect of the voyage with Homeward Bound was riding in the zodiacs to go on land or to cruise around the islands. There is nothing better than the fresh ocean air blowing in your face even when it’s icy cold. Luckily, I had extremely warm snow gear so even during our 90 min zodiac cruises I kept cozy warm despite just sitting there, in a boat going through water filled with brash ice. Occasionally, it looked like we were swimming in a giant glass full of blue lemonade and ice cubes. It was unreal.
So many wonderful sites and views to take in — every time I could not get enough. My heart was surely on fire. Luckily, we had a total of 13 amazing landings and zodiac cruises. But for the crew and expedition team, this, once again, meant a lot of work behind the scenes.
Upon getting to a site, the fleet of zodiacs has to be lowered from the top deck of the ship via a massive crane. Drivers then go out and explore extensively if conditions are suitable for safe landings. If yes, folks are called upon to get ready, group by group, to avoid long waits and getting too hot in all the outdoor gear. I was in the green group. We were all wearing insulated pants and heavy waterproof boots which were provided by the ship. I was wearing special hiking socks and boot liners to keep my feet warm. Then a number of thin layers plus a puffer jacket as well as a soft shell jacket, also provided. Then a life vest, beanie, neck warmer, sunglasses, and a backpack. In addition, I had all my photo cameras.
Sitting in the zodiacs, there we no handle bars, just a rope, to grab on, yet occasionally, it got rather shaky especially when we were going at high speed. I loved every second of flying over the water, sometimes in dark gray mist with snow or rain falling. Being at water level made everything more real, significantly larger, and much more impressive. Icebergs became walls right next to us, floating ice became artwork, penguins jumping around next to us — priceless. Gazing in total silence into the absolutely crystal clear blue-green water and seeing penguins, rocks and the sea floor right under us, truly highlighted the immensely beautiful and yet to fragile nature of this place, of Antartica.
Each zodiacs is large enough to hold 10 people and the driver. From the back of our cruise ship, we would be helped in an out of the boats as it occasionally gets quite bumpy when waves are significant. A crew made sure to get us all in and then see the boat off. Upon our returns, they would be making sure that each zodiac was safely secured before letting us onboard again. In addition, we had our boots cleaned with a pressure hose before stepping into various brushes and buckets with soap and disinfectant to ensure we would bring nothing back onboard. Nothing but countless pictures, rich memories, a deep appreciation for nature, and a full heart.