THE ICY ANDES

The glaciers along the Chilean Fjords of the Beagle Channel are simply spectacular -- especially five of them named after European countries. The blue ice starts high on the 5,000 - 10,000 foot mountain ridges, and flows within camera range into the channel, exposing bed rock and torrents of water threaded through ribbons of falls along the canyon walls. Our ship cruised the narrows slowly, which itself was once a pre-historic 150-mile long glacier. Not a hint of human life in these waters. We watched in awe as each glacier came closer than any we have seen in Alaska. A rare sun beam broke through the clouds, dancing on the ridges of the jagged mountain range. (Note: these are un-retouched photos.)

BEAGLE CHANNEL WILDLIFE

From the world's most southern town, Ushawaia, the gateway to Antarctica, we toured the Beagle Channel aboard a catamaran, poking our way into tiny rock islands inhabited by wild sea lions, seals, and birds like the Cormorant, a member of the pelican family. The sea wolves are either fighting for superiority of the harem, or posing for the photographers.

USHUAIA

Today we disembarked the ship at the crack of dawn. (Seems like too many people who are beginning to look like the penguins.) The upside was a day of unbeatable wildlife at the 'End of the Earth,' Ushuaia, Argentina, the southern-most town of 60,000 people overlooking a 150 mile long body of water named after the British ship HMS Beagle during Charles Darwin's missions of discovery in the 1800's. We were met by busses for transport to a picture post-card location of the Argentina National Park Preserve, which is set at the base of the Andes mountain chain in nearby Chile. Tonight we sail north through the Chilean fjords for a spectacular view of the remaining glaciers here ... most in melt mode for years. (See separate posting.) It's summer ... but many of the peaks are still snow-capped, and as they say --- "Winter is coat weather, and so is Summer." Neither is an extreme thanks to the tempering effect of the oceans, both Atlantic and Pacific.

Cape Horn

We're at the southern-most tip of the world, Cape Horn, in the Drake Passage, not far from Antarctica, where it's about 45 degrees, calm seas (for now), but cloudy with dense fog.   Not another ship in sight, where the weather changes four times before lunch and where the albatross soar just inches above the water looking for dinner.  People are gathering in the rain on the heli-pad of our ship, awaiting a photographic moment of landfall.  A rock juts out of the water to mark the final tip of the Andes Mountains as they submerge into the sea, ( see photos attached) and east meets west, the Atlantic and Pacific oceans converge. The weather thus far has been perfect, although a raging storm and huge low pressure system from Antarctica is expected tonight, as we hide among the Chilean fjords, archipielagos, channels and straits of the Cape and Tierra del Fuego.  This should be interesting. Given some improvement in weather, I'm hoping to kayak the Megallan Straits ... the same path taken by Darwin, Drake, Megellan and other explorers of the 16th century.  We'll see.

MORE PHOTOS

Catching up on a few Blog photos from the last few stops: 1) the sheep farm yard is a blend of shapes and earth colors -- one of my favorite images; 2) every night is a spectacular sunset aboard ship in the Atlantic; 3) a young spotted baby Burrowing Owl ... 4) and check out those talons! 5) The Penguin is a bird of a different color, feather, beak, and feet, all designed for different purposes. They say there are two kinds of penguins ... the white ones coming toward you, and the black ones going away from you. Ha.

FALKLANDS Pt. 2

Sailing all day and a nite, through some of the most trecherous and unforgiving waters on earth, we enter Stanley Harbor on the eastern-most island of the Falklands. A pair of dolphin greet us in front of shore batteries that protected the British from the attacking Argentine junta in 1982. It was a brief but bloody war, costly on both sides, and for what? A remote, barren and mostly gloomy rock, 8,000 miles from England, and 350 miles offshore from Argentina, which still lays claim to The Rocks, but lost the war. Life has changed for the remaining 3,500 British here ... good fishing, tourism andabout 240 sheep per inhabitant. Outside the village of Port Stanley, however, life is a bit bleak -- children are schooled by radio and phone calls, mail service connects to England once a month, and there are still about 17,000 land mines buried in the sand. (Which explains the text on a jeep at the pier, "Bomb Squad." We walked past an aging ship half sunk in the harbor, the "Jhelum" built in Liverpool in 1840, but condemned as unseaworthy in 1871 -- and now the most intact aged ship in the area (see photo). Christ Church Anglican Cathedral was built in 1892 -- the southern most church in the world, with a huge set of Blue Whale jaw bones near the entrance (photo). While both the summers and winters are more temperate than you might expect this close to Antarctica, many home gardeners raise edibles and flora in their sunrooms or glass green houses using hydroponic techniques. And lest we minimize the importance of penguins for tourism, they are the larger King variety here (3.5 feet high) -- while the Magellans in Argentina were knee-high, and the man-size Emperor Penguins reside in Antarctica.

PUERTO MADRYN

Located on the south-eastern coast of Argentina's famous Patagonia region, Puero Madryn is a relatively recent development, founded in the mid-1800's by the Welsh, although the first humans made it here 10,000 years ago, and dinosaurs roamed the area 250 million years ago. The city has a population of 60,000 -- although our tour encountered only a few dozen in the 100-degree heat of the bush country. We headed for the Valdes Peninsula by mini-bus, across 75 miles of dusty, rock-bed road., We enjoyed a sumputuous lunch at the San Lorenzo sheep farm -- with cheese, wine, olive and sausage starter, tender lamb, Empenada meat pastries, more wine, and a carmel flan to die for ... then we witnessed the breeding grounds of about 200,000 Magellen Penguins; hidden in nests under shrubs, or learning to swim and fish near the beaches that stretch to infinity. Down the road apiece was a separate colony of sea elephants -- measuring up to 20 feet long and three tons, which is a mere morsel for a 10-ton Orca Killer Whale. Then photographed a baby Burrowing Owl on a fencepost, saw a pair of Patagonian Cavy -- a rodent, which looks like a super-sized jack rabbit, and wild llama's roaming all over the bush, sometimes in battle for a mate (photo).

Day #1 - Montevideo

Our first leg in this 2-week journey to South American is a loooong flight from Minnesota to Buenos Aires -- about 6000 miles, cramped in coach class, made tolerable by a movie and a few hours sleep in the 12 hour fight. Everything was delayed from departure to land transport ... But the Royal Caribbean Radiance of the Seas sailed on time for Montevideo, Uraguay in calm seas at 9 pm.

Late to awake for breakfast ... Donna heads for a local wine tour, while I study the history and geography of the coastal towns in South America where we will visit ... soaking up some warm sun on the top deck. We'll visit the city center later ... Checking out the Kobi beef, leather goods and wines. The weather is in the "perfect zone" -- at 78+.

Below our balcony is a fuel ship topping off the oil for our day at sea tomorrow, while they bring on local foods and gifts. We hear the ocean seas here can be a little rough, so we're prepared with Bonine.

We meet interesting people -- less than 1/3 from the US, some Europeans, but mostly Latinos. A key part of these trips is enjoying the experiences, stories, culture and ethnicity of other travelers. (Every announcement is in 3 languages -- ENG, SPA and Portuguese.) There are a few kids aboard on "summer break" from South American schools. So we are learning a few basic words phrases (Bon dia is "good-day" in Portuguese). And the Concierge Club is still a bonus perk for frequent travelers in suites that we enjoy on Royal Caribbean, especially for breakfast and pre-dinner socializing .... As well as getting hot tips for tours or other special arrangements from our concierge Juan from Panama.

Dinner is on the "anytime" plan, so we decide when for the next day at our convenience and show up. Last night we joined a round table for 10, mostly Americans. But more often we could be in the minority, which is good too.

Our Blackberries are perfect for travel emails, altho will probably cost a fortune from sea. So we'll buy a WiFi connection for the laptop on sea days, which we can use throughout the ship. Yep, all the comforts of home ... And then some. Prepped my camera gear for wildlife and scnic shooting later this week. And we are on top of FOX and CNN for news and sports, but somehow that all seems less relevant as we contemplate a more serene life at sea. Bon Dia. Jim

FALKLAND ISLANDS INFO

The Falkland Islands lie exposed in the Southern Atlantic Ocean approximately 500 kilometres (300 miles) off the coast of Argentina. They remain British in territorial terms, population, and character although Argentina's long-standing claim to the islands led to a brief war between the two countries in 1982 for which the islands are probably best known.

There are two main islands, East Falkland and West Falkland, plus numerous smaller ones. The terrain is mostly hilly, becoming mountainous in just a few isolated places with areas of exposed rock. The highest peaks are snow-capped for large parts of the year with snow-cover descending to lower hills during the winter.

Because of the harsh climate there are no trees and the natural vegetation is mainly grassland. This supports over a million sheep, which produce the wool that was until recently the Falklands main export, now overtaken by the sale of fishing licences for territorial waters.

The islands are sparsely populated with less than 3000 inhabitants and just a few isolated but hospitable villages. However, they are home to an amazing variety of wildlife, including large penguin and seal colonies.

The climate is classified as sub-polar because in no month does the average temperature rise above 10°C (50°F). Rain falls throughout the year, becoming more frequent during the summer when cloud cover is at its maximum.

September and October sees the least amount of rain, and February and March the most sunshine. Temperatures during the winter are cold but generally only fall below freezing overnight. However in summer it never becomes particularly warm usually only rising to 15°C (59°F) in the warmest months.

Diary from South America

Our South America trip begins here -- watch this Blog for frequent posting as we begin the journey in Buenes Aires and travel around the Horn, through the Straits of Megallan, and back north to Valpariso, Chile. ... over 6,000 miles from home. Here's a map of the southern tip, the path taken by early explorers of 16th century. I invite your comments or questions, with a slight delay, as the administrator (me) needs to clear each one to avoid the spam. I will include both photos and some video along the way. Enjoy!

Christmas Note

Christmas is rapidly approaching, and we've chosen to share our greetings electronically. We send our best wishes for your happiness, health and peace throughout the Christmas holidays, and for 2009. We've also enjoyed holiday greetings from many of you already, and appreciate the thoughfulness and news updates. Time certainly flies by, so here's a 1-minute summary.

We're still working, we're always between trips, and we enjoy our kids and grandchildren in so many ways. Our plans for next year? More of the same. No, it's not dull. We are certainly blessed, with our lives, resources, friendships and family. There's much to give thanks for this Christmas, and we know you feel the same way. So, have a great celebration throughout the holidays, and keep the faith.

Meanwhile, we'd like to share one of our favorite places with you ... the Hawaiian Islands, through a brief slide-show (which we've also turned into a printed book via Shutterfly.com ). Just click on the URL below ... and then:

-- click the ORANGE link in center-bottom to 'View Photo Book,"

-- then click on 'SLIDE SHOW.' (Disregard the sign-in, or any commercial stuff)

-- select the icon for 'Single Page View' next to 'Options' at the top right

This 25-page album includes captions and photos from paradise. It certainly shows God's handiwork. Enjoy --- and consider the beauty of our planet wherever you are, and the need to preserve it. Best wishes for a joyous Christmas, and a very happy New Year. Hope to see you soon.

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0AbOXLZk3aMmTy4

Preserve Old Photos

I recently acquired an Epson Perfection V500 Photo flatbed scanner, for use solely with slides and negative strip films, but it will also scan prints. (I already have a Canon photo print scanner ... which will scan 6 prints at a time, which is great for volume jobs.) So ... if you're archiving family images from slides, this Epson might do the job. I intend to scan hundreds of slides I made as a kid, and later when we started our own family ... it was all slides in those days. The scan quality is SUPURB. The Epson does a few more useful things ... ie enhances colors and over-exposed backgrounds; and automaticallly removes dust particles and scratches that get all over slides and look awful when enlarged. So, this is a time-saver, avoiding PhotoShop. The downside? Well -- I see only one ... it takes awhile to scan and enhance just four-slides at a time ... several minutes each, not seconds. But this is a great way to archive and index old photos. A good investment at $179 on Amazon. The tech specs are: 6400 dpi for 17 x 22 inch enlargements, Digital ICE scratch/dust removal, Easy Photo Fix to restore faded colors, and a free copy of Adobe Photoshop Elements (worth $100 by itself).