On a jaw-droppingly beautiful morning, I climbed into a tiny inflatable zodiac boat at Paradise Bay in Antarctica. Wide swaths of sea ice stippled a dead calm ultramarine sea. On the horizon, mountains huddled beneath a blanket of unsullied snow, showing only their jagged black peaks. From every direction, crevassed glaciers marched from the mountaintops … Read more
The giant, ice-covered landmass at the bottom of our earth may be the remotest, coldest, driest environment on earth, but it’s paradise to the penguins of Antarctica. I was fortunate to have an up-close and personal experience with three of the four Antarctic species during my recent expedition cruise. I was quite surprised by how … Read more
The tour guide promised the trail to Salto Grande Waterfall in Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park was easy. “Just a 20 minute walk,” he said. As a casual aside, he advised us to take our jackets, as it “might be a little windy up there.” The first 15 minutes were a breeze. A graveled … Read more
What struck me most about Torres del Paine National Park in the Patagonian region of Chile were the colors. Depending upon the angle of the sun, the mountains of the Cordillera Paine Massif range from the deepest black to pale gray, lavender, and Wedgwood blue. As the sun sets, abundant feldspar in the granite flanks … Read more
When my tour van entered Torres del Paine National Park in Patagonian Chile, our guide enlisted us as wildlife spotters. She ticked off some of the species we might see. The Patagonian Puma is the most sought after sighting, however they are reclusive and usually stay far away from the only road through the park. … Read more
