Having roamed to some pretty remote locations, including Alaska, Iceland, and even down to the Strait of Magellan, I have not made it to Antartica. As an adventure seeker that adores spotting wildlife in their natural habit, Antartica is very high on my list to see. However, as I wait to check off my seventh continent, I have asked a peer travel writer and blogger, Lauren Owen, of The Traveller's Guide by #lLJOJLO to give us all some travel musts for Antartica.
Let's travel vicariously to Antartica through Lauren's travel tips!
4 Adventures in Antartica
Hang with Penguins
Penguins are, without a doubt, cute through their clumsiness on land and awe-inspiring in their stealth in the water. When wandering the 7th continent, you must stay at least 5 metres from the penguins unless it is physically not possible due to the sheer number of them or they merely waddled over to you. Oh….and waddle to you they do. While taking in the spectacular view while on land my poor other half had to deal with a pesky penguin chewing on his pants. Clearly it was a horrible situation. Also, it must be known you could watch them for hours run down their slippery ‘penguin highways’ and porpoise out of the water. They are mesmerising, and I would love nothing more than to hang out with penguins again.
Kayak in Antarctic Waters
Does this one even need explaining? Kayaking through a thin layer of ice, circumnavigating icebergs, coupled with the constant fear that you may fall in makes kayaking in Antarctica an intense adventure. I was lucky enough to do a kayak course while in Antarctica, which allowed me to kayak in the frigid waters for four days straight. I must admit I may have been a horrible student due being distracted by wildlife and the scenery, but I wouldn’t have changed it for the world. Hanging out with seals, cracking ice with my paddle and failing miserably at keeping up with penguins made kayaking the adventure of a lifetime.
Take The Plunge
If there is one thing I regret from my trip to Antarctica, it was the fact I didn’t take the plunge correctly into Antarctic waters. I mean I did go for a swim through my kayak course in my drysuit and trust me it wasn’t warm but I didn’t get in properly, bathers and all. I know it is easy to say as I sit on my couch in 30 degree Australian heat that I would happily jump in if I ever went back. But I would hope that if ever lucky enough to visit for the second time I would be the first person to go for that refreshing dip. What a wuss I was not to do it the first time, don't you think?
Zodiac Amongst the Whales
So I may have mentioned penguins but have I mentioned whales? Jumping on the zodiacs, amazing inflatable, well I think they are partially inflatable, boats to scoot around the Antarctic waters is a perfect way to go whale hunting. While zipping around the icebergs, taking the photos of the scenery you may, in fact, be one of those lucky lucky people who witness a whale within very close proximity. I know many people from our trip south were this fortunate to observe humpback whales surface right next to their zodiac. I mean can life get much better than that?
**Post contributed by Lauren Owen of The Traveller's Guide by #ljojlo, which specializes in affordable yet luxurious couples travel.**
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