We are in Buenos Aires and leave tomorrow at 10PM for the long flight home - first to New York and then home. Long night.
I don't think I have posted any food pics on this trip and this is often a staple of my travel posts. The food on the ship was excellent and always in far greater supply than necessary. I have picked out this special event for my only food post. I call it Chocolate Bar because I am a puny guy.
We are nearing the end of our journey and just rounding Cape Horn making our way to Ushuaia where we catch a plane. The map appearing below shows the location where I took some of these photos.
Today was our last opportunity to get onto the water in one of the small boats. We were to take a Zodiac and land on a glacier. It turned out that this was not possible as you will see in the following video, but it was an interesting trip nonetheless. I am more of a photographer than I am a videographer, but the clips should be good enough to give you an idea.
This glacier has a strange feature that is easy to notice. There is a vertical line near the middle. The line is the result of debris captured in the middle as two glaciers merge before heading to the ocean.
Another balloon launch, but for this one I took care to capture the surrounding scenery. The launch this morning was accompanied by the chefs preparing Apple Crumble and Irish Coffee. We are in the Garibaldi Fjord at the base of the Garibaldi Glacier. After tough seas through the night, the morning is calm and bright.
After capturing the video of the balloon launch, I decided to have another Irish Coffee. I thought I made a video of the bartender completing the preparation of my drink (a little coffee, a generous portion of Jamison, and whipped cream), but my phone is automatically set to photo when I activate the camera. Sorry.
Mark makes a rare public appearance.
We can now say we have viewed penguins in the wild in Australia, South Africa, and Chile. The birds were different across locations, but the latitudes would be similar.
Our visit was to the Island of Magdalena to see Magellan Penguins. This desolate island is a seasonal home to about 120,000 Magellan Penguins. These birds use this island from September through March as their breeding location. You can view chicks toward the end of this period. There are no birds and no tourists the rest of the year.
The island does very well attracting the birds and the tourists because a no-fishing zone of 30 kilometers has been declared around the island. The sea provides an abundance of sardines and without the competition from commercial fishing the penguins can find all of the seafood they need close to their nests. In other locations, the birds must venture up to 5 days away from their nests making them more vulnerable to predators and drastically increasing the mortality rate of the chicks as a parent may not make it home with food. This is not a problem on Magdalena.
During the voyage, there have been various presentations and some have involved technology. While I am an experienced iPhone user, I did attend a session on the iPhone camera, and as is so often the case I learned something I had overlooked because I tend not to explore new capabilities.
The new techniques makes use of the “shutter” button while in camera mode. It turns out that this button can be moved and the different movements accomplish different things. Slide the button to the left to enter “burst” mode. Slide the button to the right to take video even when taking photos. Slide the button up and down to zoom in and out. Maybe you already knew this, but it was new to me.
When in burst mode, the number of images captured is indicated in the space where the shutter button used to be. Note that when shooting bursts only one image will appear in your photo collection, but click on this image and you will see the entire sequence.
What is burst mode useful for? I think of it as “whale mode”. It is so difficult to capture that perfect whale picture because it takes some time for a camera to respond and the perfect time is never predictable. You see the whale arch its back to dive and by the time you get the photo at best what you capture is the tail. Burst mode allows a sequence of images to be collected and you can then select the shots you want. Action shots such as sports photos would be another good example of an application.
Finally, the use of the “shutter” button to zoom in and out. This move is especially useful while shooting video in order to get smooth transitions. You don’t have to pinch to zoom allowing one-handed operation and smooth transitions.
I don’t own an android phone to explore, but similar actions are available within the camera app on these phones.
I think travel is an important way to spend some of the money you have. You learn that the world is more complicated than what you experience daily and yet people have similar needs and aspirations.
During one of the first gatherings of the passengers on this ship, the presenter made reference to the globes in the southern hemisphere. I immediately found a globe and it looked just like the globes I had experienced whenever I had bothered to look at a globe. I then thought maybe he was joking around. Tonight I encountered a different globe and sure enough, it offered a different perspective. So, I guess up is not North,
I have been worried about the zodiac excursions. I assumed I would be fine once in the boat, but I doubted my ability to lower myself from the door of the ship into the boat. I am not the most agile fellow. Never was. I practiced my sailor's grip to be certain I was ready and it turned out not to be that big of a deal.
We have had (see final comment for clarification) very good weather. You hear how much rain this region receives in talk after talk and all we have had so far are nice sunny days. It turns out there is a downside to the sunny and warm days, the glacier we were to visit with the zodiacs had been calving a lot and there was so much ice in the narrow channel they decided it would not be a good idea for us to approach. They found a quiet bay and allowed us to explore a bit as an alternative. More zodiac excursions are yet to come so we will move more chances.
It turns out it is difficult to take photos from a zodiac. There are 6 people plus the guide and you all sit on the side of the rubber boat facing in, It is difficult to turn around and you should not stand. Only the pair in the very front have many open shots.
I think they felt bad because we could not view a second glacier so they sent out the champagne boat.
Two of the Viking Expedition boats participate in the launch of weather balloons. Weather balloons are launched worldwide twice a day at the same time (actually within the same hour). The Viking ships do not launch this frequently but do participate partly because they are often in remote locations. Data from these balloons is combined with satellite data to study atmospheric patterns and predict the weather.
Balloons are now made of biodegradable material in many countries and carry a very small payload that is capable of capturing quite an array of data types. The balloons rise for approximately two hours for approximately 18 expanding as the outside pressure decreases. Eventfully the balloons pop. These packages need not be recovered as in our case, but the devices in some cases do return to earth via parachute and some make a hobby of tracking and recovering the devices. You are allowed to keep them and there are evidently some applications for those who like to tinker.
We were able to watch as the data were being sent back during the ascent and the results were shared on a graph. Eventually, the data from all of the balloons are sent to the University of Wyoming where it is archived and shared for anyone interested to retrieve.
Why the University of Wyoming? I tried to find the answer and did discover a bit of the history of the involvement of this institution.
This map graphic shows active balloons and changes as the day progresses.
Pio XI, also called the Brugge Glacier, is the largest glacier in the southern hemisphere. It is located in southern Chile which is home to approximately 80% of the glaciers in this region of the world. Pio XI is unique in not receding at the rate of the world’s other glaciers.
We had the opportunity to view this glacier at fairly close range from our ship. The blue color is the result of the sun shining through denser ice. The ice at the face tends to be white because it is warmer and when the glacier calves the denser ice behind is revealed.
Pio XI is very active and moves at a rapid rate. We were able to witness it calf several times. I have come to think of catching a calving section with my camera very much like trying to photograph a breaching whale. At best, I might capture the tail. Cindy spent much more time with her phone and captured two great video sequences that are good as I have seen. Great luck comes from great patience.
We are in a two-day stretch during which the ship moves South and we watch what goes by. We have discovered an interesting diversion. We have a window in our cabin that can be lowered. If I position my phone on a tripod pointed out the window, I can use my watch to take photos and videos. The video captures our approach to the Pios XI glacier.
I think an advantage of the smaller expedition ships in comparison to a massive cruise ship is the opportunity to get into places such as the place we are now at. Puerto Chacabuco is a community of a little more than 1000 people within a fjord within an archipelago. I think archipelago is the correct term because we are certainly within a massive cluster of islands. You don’t bring a ship of this size to dock under these circumstances but make use of a tender to move people to and from shore
The views here are spectacular.
Many of the presenters describing Chile include a short description of the Chilean economy. I understood that copper is the top export, but I needed help understanding what they kept describing as the second leading export. Heavily accented English and poor audio equipment are not a good combination. As we sailed along and comments were made in reference to fish farms, I finally figured out the word I could not understand was salmon.
Salmon have a two-year life cycle beginning life in freshwater and maturing in salt water. Those from our part of the world may understand this from the salmon runs in Alaska with images of the mature salmon returning to the same freshwater streams in which they hatched to lay and fertilize eggs and die. This natural movement - fresh to salt water and return - is simulated by the fish-rearing industry in Chile.
What I knew about the farming of fish was not good. I remember shrimpers in Alabama were complaining about farm-reared shrimp and the unhealthy conditions under which these shrimp are raised. I know there are issues with the reputation of some of the seafood and freshwater fish you purchase in big box stores associated with similar issues. I am learning that there is a similar issue with salmon and half of the salmon consumed in the U.S. comes from Chile and is raised in the sea farms we have now seen. These farms are everywhere along the shore of the fjords.
My online searches indicate that Chile is second only to Norway in the export of salmon with Norway able to produce fish in what is regarded as a healthier way. A major issue in Chilean farming practices is the heavy use of antibiotics and growth stimulants. I read in one source that Chile used 1.2 million pounds of antibiotics in 2014 in comparison to the 2100 pounds used in Norway. Part of the concern is that these medications when used extensively can result in resistant organisms and some of the same medications are used by humans. Chile is attempting to reduce the level of antibiotics used and to rely on less protein-rich food made from wild fish by switching to more vegetable-based fish food. My guess is that the poverty level in combination with a history of few regulations makes changing such a lucrative industry difficult.
I have a couple more photos I wanted to post today because I should accumulate some great nature photos tomorrow and I want to keep up with the activities of our trip. I would describe these as tourism photos because I have seen similar shots before I visited and I ended up taking similar images myself. Click the second image to view it as a larger image.
When we first arrived and before we went through what amounted to security Cindy headed for the stall of a local vender with money to spend. The lady did not speak English and Cindy does not speak Spanish so they became acquainted and decided on the price for a piece of wood using Google translate. This is such a Cindy thing.
The wood she purchased ended up being related to a couple of experiences during the rest of our visit. The wood in the churches (previous post) and the stilts used to elevate the houses along the beach are made of this wood. Cindy thought it was a word she did not understand (alerce) that was translated as larch.
We visited wooden churches today. I will first upload some photos and then offer some comments.
I practice my tech skills whenever I can. But just to indicate when I can take credit and when I should not, I had ChatGPT write the following. I did ask the questions and I did review the responses. The content is certainly better than I could generate from memory.
Why are the churches of Chiloe famous
The churches of Chiloe are famous for their unique architectural style, known as Chilota architecture. These wooden churches were built by Jesuit missionaries in the 18th and 19th centuries and are recognized for their cultural and historical significance. The churches are characterized by their use of native wood and construction techniques influenced by both European and indigenous Chilote traditions. In 2000, UNESCO designated a selection of these churches as a World Heritage site, acknowledging their importance in the cultural heritage of Chiloe.
What kind of wood makes these churches unique
he churches of Chiloe are unique due to the extensive use of native timber, particularly a local wood called alerce (Fitzroya cupressoides). Alerce is a slow-growing, durable wood that contributes to the longevity and resilience of these churches. The extensive use of wood in construction, combined with the skills of local craftsmen, gives the churches their distinctive appearance and has helped them withstand the test of time and the region’s challenging weather conditions.
What else can I remember from our tour. The churches are larger than one might expect from the size of the communities because the residents wanted them visible from sea. It is not just the highly durable and now rare wood that is important, but also how the pieces of wood are joined allowing some flexibility in high winds. Most were built by boat builders. I am not certain what this his means as an engineering strategy, but I tried to include visible wood segments in my photos. I have included a link that provides information about UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
