Wonders are many, and none is more wonderful than the power that crosses the white sea, driven by the stormy wind, making a path under surges that threaten to engulf him. ~Sophocies.
I figure my cabin was a good 60 foot above the ocean surface. I was on the calmer, lee side of the ship. My deck and the one above mine, were awash. The sliding door windows and deck ceiling were dripping spray. When I awoke, this was the scene from my berth.My notes written before breakfast: "What a night!!!!! We made up for the relatively easy southerly passage on our way back north. Ma Nature is throwing everything she has at us. The top of the sliding door was being hit with wave spray. Lying on my berth, I could feel the brief pause whenever the ship hesitated on the top of a particularly high wave. A grinding noice and vibration of the hull followed each of these suspensions then, it felt like the ship was falling. (Later I learned that the props coming out of the water as we went over a wave, created the noise and vibrations.) It took until after 0400 to find all the cabin noise makers, including the chapstick with free access to the sides of and everything in my desk drawer. My rock collection (on the shelf above the desk) clattered until I placed the rocks separately on the carpet. Poor Waldo (my stuffed penguin) must have take a nasty fall from the bed. This time it wasn't CJ that hid him, cowering, under the berth. I had to be careful when getting off the toilet not to end up in the shower. Last night trips to the head (bathroom) were pinball games, in the dark".
The following pictures do not show the horizon, they are of the top of the swell after it has gone under the ship.
When I arrived in the galley, a line of waiters awaited me. They were there to physically escort you and your chosen breakfast to the table. The waiters carried the plates. With some diners, it was two escorts per person sashaying down the isle. Not many of us made it to breakfast. However, my usual table mates did show. We shared humorous stories about what wayward items rattled in our cabins. Stuffed penguins were found in all sorts of new places. We all agreed that the metal tissue box scraping across the bathroom counter and crashing to the floor was probably the worst.
No one was allowed outside. After breakfast, I went up to the bridge. The current sea swells were 12 meters high and the winds in excess of 80 mph with higher gusts. The decks below were awash and the bridge windows were getting hit with spray. The bridge was 2 decks above my cabin. The only known casualty was the wall of mirrors in the yoga studio. Unfortunately, I did not have my camera with me to capture the scene from there.
An Albatross using the updrafts of the powerful waves to soar freely.
Our morning activity was watching the historic movie Around Cape Horn from our berths. I am not sure if the message wasn't "it could be worse. You could be furling sails in a 1800's, wooded, tall sailing ship."
In reality, the Resolution was relatively stable in these seas. I could be up and walk the halls, though always within reach of the handrail to avoid careening across to the other wall. Glasses and dishes stayed on the table as we ate. I was not the least bit sea sick, even confined inside. I would however, dread the experience of making this crossing in just about any other vessel.
Hot lemon ginger tea was always available in the Ice Lounge and Tupaia. The day continued with many staying in their cabins. For the more ambulatory of us, there was a naturalist's presentation on "Working for Uncle Sam, the Ice Science Man" and after lunch a presentation "Seals of Antarctica" followed by a recap given by the Global Explores (teen passengers who took part in the program) showcasing their Remote Ocean Vehicle driving lesson; conclusions from the science experiments and; presenting challenges to the adults about the environment in the teens' future.
Once again fog and rain totally obscured any view of the Horn. Late that afternoon we entered the Beagle Channel. While offering calmer seas, it was pouring rain, very windy and so foggy that shore was invisible. We docked in Ushuaia in time for a non-tossing-about dinner followed with a showing of passenger pictures.
The port of Ushuaia was full of a dozen or so cruise ships, from all over the world, waiting to cross the Drake until after the storm had passed and, the Resolution and her sister-ship the Endurance, ending their voyages.
In the morning after breakfast, we left the ship carrying our bags, heavy with memories.
Having smiled in the warmth of the sun on the other end of the world, I am not the same. ~Kay Lee Brown
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