T minus 24 hours

Heading to "The Ice". I feel this call to Antarctica and have felt it for the last six months. When my original trip was cancelled, I tried to squash the overwhelming feeling of disapointment, of a lack of control, of frustration. "Keep an open mind" I told myself; "something good will come of this". Easier said than done. Yet here I am, on the verge of heading to the ice once again albeit under different circumstances. I'm not sure what it is I hope to find there, or what I expect will happen. But I will travel once again with an open mind. Even still, I hesitate...nothing is ever certain and I won't feel settled until I am on the deck of the boat, looking out at the Beagle Chanel, waving goodbye to Ushuaia and setting forth for the southern end of the world.

Christmas Dinner....Freestyle...

It is amazing what you can pull together for Christmas dinner when a Brit, 2 Brazilians, 2 Germans, a Quebec-er, an American and an Albertan put their minds to it! We decided to have a little cooking fiesta last night and made ourselves a meal our mothers would be proud of! And when you think that we didn´t even have an oven, I´d say we did a pretty darn good job.
The menu: garlic ´smashed´ potatoes, steak (for those of the carnivore persuasion), mixed vegetables with blue cheese sauce, and for desert.....a stove-top apple/banana crumble with an oatmeal-type pancake topping! And of course, some good Argentinian vino.
So we feasted and enjoyed the company of previously complete strangers, and swapped Christmas and travel stories.
Today, some friends and I walked up to the Glacier Martiel in the pouring rain. Still a good time regardless of the weather.
I am counting down the days to the Antarctic departure...I have got my binoculars ready and will be charging my camera batteries to get ready!

Feliz Navidad in Tierra del Fuego!

Yesterday was an adventure! I wanted to go camping in el Parque Nacional de Tierra del Fuego, so I packed up my backpack with tent, sleeping bag and a bit of food and struck out from the hostal. I did what many backpackers here do (don´t worry mom!)...stuck out my thumb and caught a ride with a local. Hitchhiking is called hacer dedo (to thumb it, basically) in spanish. I caught a ride to the entrance of the park with Luis the construction worker and then hiked the rest of the way to the trail-head of the south coast trail -- la senda costera.
I spent a beautifully quiet night at Lago Roca -- much quieter than a hostal! -- and found a ride back into town this afternoon.
Now I´m showered (thank goodness for hot water!) and ready for the christmas party at the hostal. It seems to take a long time to upload photos on here, so I will try when I have a little more time!
Feliz Navidad and happy holidays to all!

Keeping an open mind...

Well I've arrived back in Stanley after 12 glorious days on Staats Island. We flew out by military chopper and landed safely on the island with the guanacos alarm calling like crazy!
I'll post more when I've got a bit more time, but just to update....right before I left Punta Arenas I got word that the vessel I was supposed to be taking to Antarctica had grounded and might be in need of some repairs. Yoiks! While on Staats we had a visit from one of the most notable sailors in the Antarctic region, Jerome Poncet (and part owner of Staats Island) who went to great lengths to tell me how the HMV Ushuaia would have to go into dry-dock to be repaired, which would take a few months.
So......my plans are a little unsure at this moment. I haven't received any other news from the Students on Ice folks, which is a little frustrating. If the trip is cancelled I might just have to charm my way on to another boat and find another way to get to Antarctica! So I'd appreciate some positive visualizations for the next few days.....

I'll post more tomorrow, once I get a shower and a sleep in a real bed (although I must say my little tent rocks!!!!).

Ciao ciao,
Daniella

I made it...at least the first leg!

I´ve made it to Punta Arenas at the south end of Chile. We´re going to the Instituto de Patagonia tonight where Dr. Bill will be giving us an overview of the work he´s done with the guanacos over the last few years. I spent a bit of time looking out over the Straits of Magellan this afternoon, nice and sunny weather...did a bit of journaling and just soaked in my surroundings.

When I met up with the rest of the group in Santiago, it finally felt real. I´m here, this is actually happening!
Hasta luego!

Muy emocionada!

I leave in less than 12 hours and I'm just about bursting at the seams. It feels as though it has been so long that I've been thinking about this journey and it is hard to believe it is really happening. I was picking up an adapter for my camera battery charger and the clerk at the store asked me where I was traveling. To which I blithely replied,"I'm heading to the Falkland Islands and Antarctica"....surreal. It is a phrase not commonly heard, yet it passes off my tongue so quickly!

I've been hanging out with my brother tonight which I believe is quite appropriate. The last time I headed to South America I spent 10 days in Toronto hanging out with my bro. I had just finished my undergraduate degree and was ready for adventure. (I distinctly remember his friends asking me if I had just graduated high school....so much for appearing to be the older sibling!) Well here I am, freshly graduated as a Master (of the Universe) and I am once again spending some quality time with my little brother on the eve of my next adventure.

I will do my best to keep anyone following me up-to-date, but I can't promise any total regularity. 1.....2......3.....here I go!!!!!

W5 -- Why, what, where, when, who?

As I move into the final countdown (four more sleeps!) I suppose I could elaborate a bit more on the plans for my trip.

Why? I've been working hard at finishing my masters thesis and working as interpretive supervisor in Kananaskis Country. So I figured it was about time to reward myself. 2008 has been a big year of change, growth and transformation for me and I want to go into 2009 in a positive, memorable way.

What and who? There are two parts to my trip:
1) Falkland Islands Research Expedition with Dr. Bill Franklin He's studying an population of guanacos (like a wild llama) that were introduced onto a small island in the late 1800's. They are an interesting population genetically (the island is a closed system) and their effect on the island's vegetation is also worth studying. Dr. Franklin has studied these animals in their native Patagonia for many years and this study is another branch of his work.
2) Students on Ice Expedition This program aims to increase awareness of global environmental issues that affect the earth's poles. They do an Arctic and Antarctic trip every year and this year I'll be joining them on the Antarctic voyage. They take students from all over the world (ages 14-19) and I'm going along as a "chaperone".

Where and when?
December 4th -- Leave Calgary, Alberta, Canada
December 5th -- Arrive in Punta Arenas, Chile and meet the team for the Falklands Expedition
December 6th -- Fly to Stanley, Falkland Islands
December 7th -- Get to Staats Island (either by helicopter or by plane and then boat)
December 7th- 17th -- Tenting on Staats Island doing field work (tagging newborn guanacos, completing vegetation maps of the island, observing family groups of guanacos, doing a population count to estimate the size of the Staats Island guanaco population)
December 17th - 20th -- Enjoy Stanley and surrounding area
December 20th -- Fly back to Punta Arenas, Chile
December 21st -- Leave for Ushuaia, Argentina (near Tierra del Fuego National Park)
December 23rd -- Fly to Buenos Aires, Argentina to pick up the first students for the Antarctic Expedition
December 26th -- Head back to Ushuaia, Argentina to get ready for our departure
December 28th -- Set sail for the Drake Passage
December 29th -- Crossing the Drake Passage (hoping not to get seasick!)
December 30th -- Attempt a landing at the South Shetland Islands
December 31st - January 4th -- Exploring Antarctica (with almost 24-hour sunlight!)
January 5th -- Start crossing back over the Drake Passage
January 7th -- Disembark at Ushuaia, Argentina
January 8th -- Start heading homeward
January 10th -- Arrive back in Calgary (tired, inspired and transformed!)