Just before midnight on Thanksgiving Day we were now sailing southwest through Bransfield Strait having spent the morning at Elephant Island; we were not heading to Antarctica. Bransfield Strait is south of the Drake Passage, the body of water between the southern tip of South America at Cape Horn and Antarctica. The cruise was titled the “The Spirit of Shackleton”, no one knew when we left Ushuaia how aptly this cruise was named.

I was particularly keen to go on the Explorer as it is well known for being the only purpose built ship for exploring the Arctic and Antarctic. Unlike my first cruise to Antarctica aboard the Ushuaia, the Explorer cruise included visits to the Falkland Islands, South Georgia Island with King Penguins, as well as Antarctica.

When we weren’t boarding Zodiacs, visiting historic sites or viewing the wildlife, we were onboard the Explorer attending lectures given by prominent scientists in ornithology, geology, sea mammals, climate and glaciology.

Damian, the historian, was present in the Falklands during the war in 1982. Brad Rhee has been leading GAP tours to Antarctica for twenty-seven years. GAP is an acronym for Great Adventure People, no connection to the jeans.

We spent Thanksgiving Day visiting Elephant Island where Shackleton’s crew waited while he sailed about 970 miles to South Georgia Island in a twenty three-foot boat. By now we were accustomed to hoping from the small platform at the side of the Explorer into Zodiacs, with assistance from the crew. Zodiacs are small inflatable boats and the most common form of transportation between ships and beach landings in Antarctica. We were all very adept at boarding the Zodiacs in rough seas and accustomed to riding the swells and getting drenched by the waves breaking over the bow.

The twenty-second of November was an overcast dull day, windy with choppy seas; a typical day in Antarctica. Another disappointing day for photographers challenged to get the lens clear of salt spray. I was already resigned to totall writing off this camera due to the daily saltwater drenching.

That morning we explored Cape Wild on Elephant Island, where Shackleton’s men spent 120 days while he sailed to South George Island to get help. We were only able to view the rest of Elephant Island’s rugged shoreline from the ship; it was too rough for anymore Zodiac excursions. We rounded the tip of the island and changed course for open waters and Antarctica. I then turned by lens from Elephant Island to the beautiful sculptured icebergs forms.

It is named Elephant Island because it looks like an elephant’s head on a map. It helps to have a couple of shots of rum to see it more clearly.

Our Thanksgiving dinner was neither turkey nor penguin. I don’t recall there being any mention that it was Thanksgiving Day. Being a major holiday, Sola and I tried unsuccessful earlier in the day to call friends and family from the ship’s satellite telephone on the bridge.

After dinner I went to my cabin to read and watch a movie on my computer. Sola came down from the lounge to say good night before returning to the bridge to retry using the satellite phone. I went to sleep.

Sitting in my bed with my back against the bulkhead had been uncomfortable throughout the movie. The combination of the noise from the ice scrapping along the side of ship and the sudden jerking motion made me think it was going to be a long sleepless night. The scarping sound was loader and more frequent then other nights when we passed through ice floes.

Our cabin was at the waterline or ice line when we were passing through the ice floe. This was the first night I felt the ship being pushed from side to side by the ice. Load noises usually don’t keep me awake but I thought the sudden movement might as it was not a regular frequency or pattern. If I wanted to I could fall asleep at the Rolling Stones’ concert. The sudden movement gave me pause and I wondered if this might be the exceptional sleepless night. I wasn’t concerned about the ship but I was concerned about my ability to get back to sleep under the circumstances.

Sometime before midnight Sola returned from the bridge, woke me and said she had just heard there was a problem with the ship. Just then Captain Witman announced an emergency instructing everyone to meet in the Penguin Room and to dress warmly. I had just been startled awake by Sola, so I was a little groggy. Putting together what Sola and the Captain had just said hit me like a bucket of cold water.

Sola was very calm when she woke me, thank you Sola. Captain Wimen was equally as calm but it was clear this was a real emergency. I remember thinking when he said, “Dress warm.” that this is not a good thing.

As I stood in the middle of the cabin in my pajamas staring at Sola I recalled my first thought. What came to mind were the thousands of airline departure announcements I have sat through. I have over one hundred thousand miles this year alone, so I’ve heard this announcement many times. Sometimes, I even pay attention and look for the emergency exit. When I am paying attention I always think to myself, no matter what do not reach for the backpack with camera and computer, just get off the plane. This entire thought process was not more than 14 nanoseconds. It was then I was hit with the imaginary ice water.

In retrospect, I wish I had been a little more alert and hadn’t engaged my emergency airline procedure brain. I was about to embark on the photographic opportunity of a lifetime… without a camera. I always carry a small pocket camera in the unlikely event a spaceship lands nearby or I see the Yeti walking down Fifth Avenue. I’m always prepared for the Kodak moment, except today.

Sola and I realized this “is” an emergency. I think she realized it more than I did. I was still thinking along the lines of “don’t wake up too much, just enough to get up to the assembly area and then back to bed”; my first instance of denial. Sola, on the other hand, kept talking to me, stayed calm and offered sound advice.

Sola was already dressed, so she was changing into her waterproof boots. I just put my clothes on over my pajamas. There was a pair of cargo pants at the foot of the bed and my external hard drive on the nightstand, so I put the drive into one of the large pockets. She and I were moving very quickly now.

From recent experience, I knew it was time consuming putting my waterproof pants over my Choda boots which I was already wearing. Choda’s boots are for activities like walking in frigid waters; which we often had to do when boarding and exiting the Zodiacs. It was a daily struggle getting my waterproof pants over the boots; I decided to forego the waterproof pants so as not to waste time. This was simultaneously, both a good and a bad decision. I left the cabin faster but my legs were vulnerable once in the lifeboat.

Lastly, I put on my REI jacket over a fleece. I can’t say enough about this jacket. It had performed extremely well during the landing excursions, the Zodiac rides, retracing Shackleton’s walk from Hasvik over the Allardyce Range on New Georgia Island concluding with sliding off the glazier on our butts into Stromness Station. I went through the cabin door putting my arm into the sleeve of my jacket and turn out the cabin lights.

Before I left the cabin, I opened the closet with my backpack containing my three c’s ( camera, computer and cash). As the continuously traveler I have perfected packing for an emergency, putting all my important documents, cash and equipment in one place, so they are easy to grab and go. It was all there ready to go. I opened the closet but stopped just short of grabbing the bag. Even now I see my hand reaching for the backpack and thinking the airlines always say to leave it behind so I closed the door and left the cabin. I was thinking we’ll be back shortly. My second instance of denial.

If I have one reoccurring image, near nightmare, it is my hand less than four inches from grabbing my backpack. Agh!!!!!
My faith in the Explorer was relentless. This lead to naively believing this would al be over soon and I would be back in bed and hopefully asleep.

The M/S Explorer, nicknamed “The Little Red Ship”, formerly MS Lindblad Explorer (1985) and MS Society Explorer (1992), was purpose built in 1969 for Arctic and Antarctic cruises. The MS Explorer was originally commissioned and operated by the Swedish explorer Lars-Eric Lindblad. G.A.P. Adventures, a Canadian based travel company, acquired the ship in 2004. I had complete confidence in the ship; it had a proven record.

The ship’s first include:

• First ascent of the Amazon River by a seagoing vessel
• First passenger ship to traverse the Northwest Passage unescorted
• First ship to open the Antarctic to tourism
• Has reached the furthest north (82°12N) and south of any passenger vessel
• First passenger ship to transit entire Herbert Sound (Antarctica)
• First passenger landfalls on Antarctica’s Bouvet, Paulet and Snow Hill Islands
• First ship to sink in Antarctica in recent times

We turned left out of our cabin, went ten feet down the passageway to another left turn in the passageway leading to the stairs to the upper levels. The bottom step was under water. As I climbed the two flights of stairs, I’m thinking this is not possible. There is an engine room and at least another level or two below us. I’m now in advanced denial.

The top of these stairs leads to the activity level where the reception counter, bar and dining room. We now had to walk through the dining room and go up one more level to the Penguin Room, to our emergency assembly area. In the unlikely event we would ever have to abandon ship.

The hard drive I put so nonchalantly into my pants pocket contained every single photograph I had taken on the entire trip up until that night. Thank you.

© Copyright Michael Morrissey, All Rights Reserved.

Article by Michael Morrissey is considered one of the new generation of adventure and travel photographers. Based in Bangkok, Thailand with a passion for travel, Michael got hooked on photography while driving a bus from Istanbul to Katmandu in the 70’s; an obsession briefly interrupted with a twenty year career in business. You can view his photography at: www.mjmorrissey.com

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