Antarctic journey inspires teen

DALBY student Drew Gibbons has just returned home after a life-changing 13-day voyage to Antarctica.

The 18-year-old came face to face with emperor penguins, bathed in a volcanic spa and watched as giant ice shards the size of houses fell from towering glaciers.

"Now I realise how connected we are with the Antarctic. Decisions we make can have an impact down there," he said.

The budding environmental crusader kept a diary of his trip into the icy world.

Here are some highlights.

 

Day 1 - Elephant Island

LAND ahoy. There it was in the distance covered by a thick grey mist - our first sighting of Antarctica.

As we got closer to a cliff face, structures rising up from the waters became visible and we were completely surrounded in a horseshoe shape by the island.

We drove past a rookery of thousands of penguins and, up along the glacier, we got to see one calve up close.

 

Day 2 - Heroina Island

TODAY we went on another zodiac dinghy cruise where we drove up to icebergs and touched the ancient ice - a few of us even ate some of it.

We saw leopard seals hunting penguins and one of the zodiacs even saw a penguin being eaten.

After the cruise we made a landing on Heroina Island and walked through a rookery of half a million penguins.

The sound and smell of penguins is like nothing you've ever experienced before.

Their faeces are bright red from all the krill they eat and it isn't the nicest smell.

 

Day 3 - Ice floe and Brown Bluff

WE planned to land at Snow Hill Island this morning but found the ice too thick and difficult to get the ship through.

Instead, we turned 180 degrees and headed towards a giant ice floe (a flat mass of ice floating at sea) we had seen earlier in the day.

To share an ice floe with 88 other people in complete silence and deep reflection is special and extremely rare.

An opportunity like that might not come around again.

After this we made our way through the Antarctic Sound towards Brown Bluff to make a landing on the actual continent.

We saw seals sun baking, penguins porpoising, killer whales breaching, skuas bathing and a lone emperor penguin. Truly amazing.

 

Day 4 - Ronge and Danco Islands

TODAY we had more zodiac cruises, watched glaciers calve, leopard seals sleep and even penguin highways!

Because these gentu penguins have built their rookeries and nests higher up the mountain, they've had to adapt to the snow.

So they walk the same paths over and over again until they make little organised roadways.

 

Day 5 - Koerner Icecap and Palmer Station

WE made our way to the Koerner Icecap, a site of an ongoing Students on Ice research project.

We learned how to build a proper snow hut that could save your life if you were ever stuck in a cold climate, then headed to Palmer Station, an American Base Station doing scientific research to help preserve the environment.

It was a little disappointing because after our tour around the base they served us hot chocolate in Styrofoam cups.

Oh well, at least they're trying.

 

Day 6 - Whalers Bay on Deception Island

WHALERS Bay on Deception Island was a great place for a long hike, exploring the old whaling station and learning about its rich history and then going for our polar dip in the freezing Antarctic Ocean.

Thanks to the volcanic geothermal activity on the beach, we were able to dig a hot tub which helped to warm everyone up. It was a beautiful 47 degrees.

In the middle of our swim a blizzard hit us which added a nice touch to the scene.

We got back to the ship and warmed up with coffee and soup.

The weather prevented us from making any more landings so Deception Island was the last time I would set foot on Antarctica... for a while at least.