Day 11-12: Glaciers
After leaving the quaint town of Tortel, we went into the glacier stretch of our trip. This expedition has a unique set of naturalists, including one who is getting his PhD in Glaciology. It has been great to have such deep expertise when we’re out in the field.
The first glacier we went to was the Bernardo glacier. This was a glacier that terminated in the fjord and meant that we were able to take a zodiac through the floating icebergs. Similar to Antarctica, it’s amazing to see the variety of ice structures and the blues in the water.
After seeing the icebergs, we had a chance to walk across the terminal moraine and see the flora that has grown in the area. Through the walk, we saw a bunch of lichen, moss, and small trees. We also had a chance to see the Huemul Andean deer, one of the national animals of Chile. They were amusing to watch since they seem to have no fear of humans. We ended up getting quite close to them as they were eating their berries.
After we got back on the ship, we spent some time at the bow looking for wildlife. It didn’t dissapoint! We saw two packs of Peale’s dolphins come by the ship and take a free ride for a bit along the bow. It was a ton of fun to see the dolphins enjoying themselves in the current of the ship. (Videos to come!)
After the dolphins, we navigated our first of three narrows of the trip. It was impressive to see the navigational skill of our captain and pilots as we navigated the tricky passage.
At dinner in the evening, we saw a traditional “Patagonian sunset” (as made famous on the Patagonia clothing logo). The colors were absolutely amazing and not done justice through the photos.
The next day, we saw a totally different glacial formation. The Bernal Glacier terminates on land. Instead of seeing floating icebergs, we saw the remnants of the glacial geology in the landscape. There were excellent examples of terminal, frontal, and lateral moraines in the environment. We also had a chance to walk up to the front of the glacier and see the poorly sorted sediment along the way. The front of the glacier had some facinating geometric patterns that made for great photos.
We’ve been having a ton of fun and are excited to see the ramp up of wildlife over the next few days.
