Conquering Vinciguerra

Got on the bus this morning at 8AM. Let's rewind first and review yesterday's events:

We had lectures in the morning. Just finished finals last Friday and already listening to lectures. Truly the most wonderful time of the year.

A little bit about Darwin and the voyage of the Beagle. Then some information about rocks and ice. That lecture really rocked my world, I have to say. (Oh please forgive me!) And lastly a lecture on special adaptations for extreme conditions. Weddell seals, for instance, have a more efficient form of hemoglobin. They also have a thick layer of blubber. Now, my sister promised she would bake me lots of cookies before I left, but apparently all those cookies were for a holiday party. So I lack this special adaptation and fear I will freeze. The notothenioids, or Antarctic cod (though they are not true cod; got to love these confusing names, right?) have natural antifreeze.

We then had lunch at a nearby cafe and wandered around the port. A woman was putting up a beautiful mosaic near the artisan market. A scene with a native Fuegian. We were all awestruck. Such skill and patience.

Boarded the boat around 3:30. Our leader seems to forget we are on Argentinian time, so 3 really means 3:15, if you're lucky, and more likely 3:30. Boat ride through the Beagle Channel. Very windy (my fingers froze, but this is not unusual, really). We saw skuas, and cormorants, and sea lions, and even a couple Magellanic penguins swimming near the boat. We ended with a landing on Bridges Island, (where we saw orchids!), and, before leaving the boat for the evening, a shot of homemade coffee liquor.

After getting changed, we went out to dinner at a cute little pizza place. Thank goodness one of us (I assure you, not me) speaks Spanish, as the woman at the restaurant clearly did not know English. We got a nice table in the corner. It was empty when we arrived. People usually don't eat dinner till about 9PM. So, we sat down, ordered pizza and wine. I'm from NJ, everyone else I was with is from Michigan. I said flat out I know pizza better than you do, I'm a bit of a snob, and I will be the judge. As is proper. I mean NJ/NY pizza versus Michigan. No contest. The pizza was not half-bad. And the Malbec wine (2008 Don David) was not bad either. Good food, good people, and bright green decor, how much better could it get?

Well, gelato makes things better and we found a gelato place. Again, language barrier came up. But things worked out. Very well. Chocolate mousse gelato. No need to say more.

Back to the hotel then. We worked on our field notes (yes, homework...straight back to work!) and went to bed.

Then another early start today (and even earlier tomorrow!). A beautiful sunny day. Perfect for hiking to a glacier. Vinciguerra is the one we visited. We walked through a peat bog, through muck and mud, uphill, up rocks, took off layers, put on layers, went through wind. (I am not from the postal service, nor do I mean to copy their little slogan, I don't think they deal with as much mud either, at least not in Tinton Falls or New Brunswick, though they may deal with other dangerous things...hmm...). I hugged quite a few trees (okay, maybe more than hugged) along the way), went knee-deep in muck more than a couple times, and had quite a few scares. A couple classmates were discussing how hard the trip down would be before we even made it to the top. These are not happy thoughts, by any means, but I made it! And it was so worth it. I am not a religious person, but when I got to the top, I had a strong desire to open a prayerbook (which I did not have) and say the appropriate blessing for seeing a glacier (though I don't know if there is one so specific to this event).

We stopped at the bottom edge of the glacier. The glacial lake that is now there formed about 20 years ago.

The way down was much better than I had anticipated. I was honestly freakin scared. My friend wondered aloud how many toursists had died and/or been seriously injured doing this. Again, not happy thoughts. That is a question you ask when sitting home with your family after coming back from Antarctica. Not going to lie. I was really nervous about the trek down. But I didn't fall! My boots were muddy, but my ass was clean! (Pardon the language, I am really darn proud of myself.)

We truly lucked out on the weather today. Gorgeous, sunny, a little windy at the top, but not terrible. It could have been A LOT worse.

Now that I've made it up that, I feel it is only proper my father actually take me hiking in NJ/NY for once.

Change of clothes. Then off to dinner at the Irish Pub. Haha! And a short excursion to the grocery store (umm...most confusing shopping experience of my life). Now here. In the hotel room. Exhausted and really wanting to go to sleep but knowing I should probably type up some field notes.