My Antarctica adventure began when I stepped aboard the 98-passenger Corinthian, along with 87 other passengers, on February 2012. Leaving the Port of Ushuaia (the most southern city in Argentina) we cruised through the Beagle Channel headed for the dreaded Drake Passage into a magical world of sea, sky, ice and land - and of course, penguins!.

Day 2 - Having survived the Drake Passage and safely tucked into the channel between the South Shetland Islands and Antarctica we made our first landing - and totally enjoyed the antics of the penguins living there.

Our excursion on this very grey and chilly morning was to Damoy Point - where British Antarctic Survey established Damoy Hut in November 1975 as a summer transit station to support the airstrip on Damoy Point. It was used as such until 1994. The Hut and storage shed accommodated personnel and stores arriving by ship until they could be flown south to the Rothera Research Station on Adelaide Island. This facilitated fieldwork to begin early summer

Palmer Station is the home of the United States Antarctica Program. Because the visits are limited, not every tour gets to visit Palmer Station. We were very fortunate to be able to visit and chat with the dedicated staff. It was their last week at the station before it closed for the winter.

Cuverville Island stands at the entrance of the Errera Channel and is a 826-foot rock with a long shingle beach. Flanked by the precipitous mountains and glaciers of the Antarctic mainland, it has been identified as an Important Bird Area by “BirdLife International.” The Island supports a breeding colony of about 6500 pairs of Gentoo penguins, the largest colony for this species on the Antarctic Peninsula. And, Sea Lions visit regularly.

Port Lockroy, situated on Gourdier Island, was originally used as an anchorage by whalers. In 1944, the British established it as a British Antarctic Base. The original “Nissen” Hut was used to store food, equipment and emergency supplies, but was abandoned when the base closed in 1962. Reopened in 2010, the new hut was constructed to replicate the original hut and established as a museum in addition to being designed to accommodate seasonal staff, some of whom we met when we visited the site.

Within the volcanic caldera of Deception Island lies Whaler’s Bay. The bay was an ideal protected location for early whalers and the whaling industry after their ships entered the caldera through a break in the rim named “Neptune’s Bellows.” Because, artifacts, buildings and tanks from the early whaling period - 1906–1912 - remain on the shores, the area has been designated an Historic Site.

Hannah Point is on the south coast of Livingston Island and separated Walker Bay and South Bay. The Point is home to over 1,500 breeding pairs of Gentoo penguins, 1,000 pairs of Chinstrap penguins, and on occasion, a few pairs of Macaroni penguins. This area is consistently occupied Southern elephant and they can be found lounging along the beaches.