Team members say

Still in middle of Drake’s Passage while writing this at 3pm. Well, I was hoping to experience a little more of the harsh side of Drake’s reputation during our return voyage to Ushuaia. I’m sure you’ll get the color of our “Storm” event from many other Bloggers……..here’s just the facts. First Google the Beaufort Wind Scale (with corresponding sea state codes)……so you can follow along. This is the scale where you’ll overhear a person talking about going through a horrid sea storm that was a Force 8,10, etc. rating. Lowest barometric pressure during most intense part of storm was 975 mbar. At one point sustained winds were just over 105 mph. Beaufort scale is actually a 0 to 12 scale…….we went thru a Force 12 storm. At Force 12 here are the characteristics of the worst possible storm one can experience at sea: *Effects observed far from land: air filled with foam and sea spray, sea completely white, visibility greatly reduced. *World Meteorological Organization classifies a Beaufort Force 12 storm as a Hurricane. *Sea State Code under the Beaufort scale during a Force 12 storm is the highest level (9)!! Under the nine code…rather than Beaufort going into detail to describe what the sea is like at this level (swell size, wave size, etc.) rather it simply says Code 9 seas are “Phenomenal”. Cheers….Peter

Just got back from a shore excursion to an island in Port Lockroy. Well, there were lot’s of Penguins just standing around digesting a hard days work before they lay on their bellies for the night. Oh, they smell beyond the realm of foul….but I was well prepared….Alan Brill, who was on the excursion with me this evening was going in testing a new product from Israel that is a gel for the nose that is used for when one is recovering human remains after a disaster………nuf said!

Waking up tomorrow at 6am to get on Zodiacs to extract half of our group that is camping this evening in 35 mph winds and temps in the teens. I was lucky enough to have camped last night in mild winds, light snow and temps in the twenties.

Leopard seals are cool. Got a Landscape shot the other day with a Leopard seal three feet in front of me at bottom of frame with towering snow peak glacial mountains in distance….this has been the most awesome photo journey to date in my life. Friends and family get ready for quite the slide show!

Happy Easter Mom and Dad!

Even in flat light and looking over at King George Island right now I can tell this is a very special place of Creation. To think that in this environment there is an eco-sustainable base (2041´s e-Base) protecting its inhabitants and operating modern communications technologies….wow!

Problem is…….thought things might be different with me having travelled the farthest I possibly can……and still, wherever you go there you are, still rings true

Peter’s initial thoughts on climate change…

[I’ve been] creating the world’s first scientific/empirically based green rating system for hotels, cruise lines, airlines, rental car companies, etc, worldwide, through my company www.professionaltravelguide.com working in conjunction with the Captain Planet organization (Laura & Ted Turner) and Georgia State University J. Mack College of Business (Cecil B. Day School of Hospitality Administration).