Around the Cape

Sailing around Cape Horn was the primary reason we booked this trip.   Only 500 miles from Antarctica!  We got up around 6:30 am and there was a heavy fog preventing us from seeing anything.  However, after a few cups of coffee, the fog lifted right as we got near the Cape.   I’m not sure if the two events are related or not, but it’s possible.  Richard was on our balcony trying to get some video!

After traveling south for a while, the captain turned the boat westward.  At first we were totally confused as we were expecting to travel south and then go east, around the Cape, and then turn northward on the east side of South America.  This is where my lack of paying attention in geography class shows.   What is considered the “Cape” is actually an island off the southern coast of South America instead of the most southern tip of the mainland.   The captain went around the entire island, before making his way northeast towards the Falkland Islands.   There were several towers and a monument honoring the sailors that had lost their lives making this journey.    

We have been cruising in the Pacific Ocean for 7 days now, and we entered the Atlantic Ocean when we got to the east side of the Cape, then because we circled the Cape, the Captain took us back to the Pacific, then once again back into the Atlantic.  So we went from the Pacific to the Atlantic, back to the Pacific, and then back to the Atlantic in a matter of a few hours.   Pretty cool!

The water was unusually smooth as we were protected by small islands, but soon we were out further from land, headed to the Falkland Islands, and things picked up a bit.  At one point the wind was blowing 79 miles per hour.  It was coming across the ship on the port side and I was unable to open our balcony door.   There were extremely dark clouds off in the distance and you could tell a huge storm was coming our way.  The captain did an excellent job steering us away from this storm, but in the distance we could see water spraying up in a circular motion.  Pretty scary!   

On a different subject, I’ve taken several Windows 8.1 classes while onboard.   I guess I’ll be looking to upgrade my operating system when I get home.