Antarctic skies . . .

are SO dramatic—like pretty much
every part of this incredible
corner of the world.

[Linking back to Skywatch Friday and
The Weekend in Black and White.]

Antarctic shadows

This is Half Moon Bay, on the Antarctic Peninsula.
The thing we're all so fascinated with
out there in the snow . . .

is the only leopard seal we spotted
on the whole trip.  Looks like it's smiling
doesn't it?  (It's not.)

[Linking back to Shadow Shot Sunday.]

The Weekend in Black and White

This king penguin was actually one of many
I saw on a stretch of beach in
South Georgia, the Antarctic Islands due east
of the Antarctic Peninsula.  There were
also fur seals—but those we avoided (pretty
nasty and faster than you'd think).

[To see more b/w images, visit
Dragonstar's meme.]

Skywatch Friday

Everything was over-the-top in South Georgia:
the landscape, the wildlife, even the clouds.

[To see more Skywatch pics, go here.]

Don't even think about it

This is the old whaling station of 
Strömness, on South Georgia.

Even the penguins have enough sense to 
keep (relatively) clear of this place.

[Linking back to signs, signs.]

ABC Wednesday—V is for "vain"

This proud chinstrap penguin seems to be
saying, "look at me. Look at me."
Actually, I think that's exactly what this
behavior means—he's lookin' for
love in all the right places.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Weekend Reflections

All decked out in special cold-weather
gear to enjoy the beauty of Orne 
Harbor, in Antarctica.

[To see more Weekend Reflections,
visit James's meme.]

uphill

I learned quite a few things while I was on my trip to
Antarctica (and I'm just posting this now due
to welcome-home computer issues).  One of the things
I learned is that you can go almost anywhere if 
you just have sticks—including to the top of a  
snowy, icy, very high hill (though going down that hill
was actually harder than going up).  

[Linking back to Ruby Tuesday
and Our World Tuesday.]

Thursday Challenge—"travel"

I thought I'd use a photo from Paris or 
Venice or Rome—but finally decided to share
this shot of my daughter Lila reacting to her first
up-close encounter with the locals in
Antarctica.   It was taken by her sister, Katie,
when they traveled there last year.

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, visit Dale's meme.]

ABC Wednesday—I is for "ice"

Makes me shiver just looking at this scene—
welcome to summer in Antarctica.  I
borrowed the picture from my daughter Lila
(who traveled there with her sister last year).

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—P is for "penguins"

Credit for this one goes to my daughter Katie,
who shot it from a speeding boat (!) when she and
her sister were in Antarctica last January.
Most of the Adélie penguins they saw were
gathered together by the hundreds—I guess this
couple was looking for a little alone time.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Thursday Challenge—"wet"

These wet women are my intrepid daughters,
who took the challenge and went for a
swim (more like a quick dip) in Antarctica.
Granted, it was summer—but still . . .
(and yes, those are penguins back there).

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—U is for "upside-down"

Who knew?  Apparently, icebergs (even really
big ones like this) sometimes flip over—and you can
see what the action of the ocean's constant movement
 does to the part of the 'berg that's underwater.
My daughters learned this when they traveled to Antarctica
earlier this year (and I borrowed this shot from Katie).

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Weekend Reflections

This majestic reflection is compliments
of my daughter Kate—from her
recent journey to Antarctica.

[To see more reflections, visit James's meme.]

Skywatch Friday

Apparently, I'm not done pilfering photos from
my kids' recent trip to Antarctica.  But can you blame
me?  This spectacular sunset (not that it ever completely
sets there at this time of year) was shot by my daughter Lila.

[To see more Skywatch shots, go here.
To see more things that are orange, visit
Orange You Glad It's Friday.]

The sky at the bottom of the world

At first glance this looks like a mountain
range with a fairly flat top—but look again,
 because those are clouds rolling over those peaks!

See?  This amazing Antarctic sky
was captured by my daughter Lila.

[To see more Skywatch pics, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—E is for "eligible"

According to my daughter Kate, who took this
shot of an Adélie penguin in Antarctica, here's
the penguin equivalent of match.com.  This bird is
puttin' out the word: I'm free and I'm looking!
(Must say, the others seem a bit underwhelmed. . . . Hope
you all have better luck with your Valentine tomorrow.)

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Thursday Challenge—"water"

My daughter Lila took this shot as the good ship Fram
crossed the Drake Passage, between the very bottom of
South America and the tippy-top of Antarctica.  Its width
 (500 miles/800 kilometers) allows for the flow of
the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.  Storms here can be
a little hairy, but the one my girls experienced 
was not quite as bad as some, I believe. 

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, go here.] 

Bahia Esperanza

This tiny church (picture by my daughter Lila)
serves about 55 people who live at this 
Argentine Antarctic station.  The first person 
born in Antarctica was born here in 1978.

[To see more Ruby Tuesday posts, go here.]

The place was named Hope Bay for the
three Argentine sailors who were
shipwrecked here in 1902 and survived
the winter in this snug DIY dwelling.

A Sea of Ice

My daughter Lila captured this one
of the sky and these towering
icebergs reflected in the glassy waters 
of Antarctica's Southern Ocean.

[To see more Skywatch shots, go here. To see
more Weekend Reflections, visit James's meme.]