Month: July 2023

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Antarctica and Patagonia 2023: Sea Kayaking in the Yalour Islands

On the afternoon of our third day in Antarctica, it was finally time for the moment we’d been anticipating for years – the first dipping of our kayak paddles into Antarctic waters! Our sea kayaking group had met several times for briefings and gear checks, but we’d been stymied until now in our efforts to actually get out on the water. But finally, the weather and ocean conditions were good enough that the sea kayak guides, YT and Jess, decided that we could go out. YAY!

The Yalour Islands were scheduled to be a zodiac cruise only, so there was no shore landing. So as all of our fellow passengers lined up to board their zodiacs, we zipped each other into dry suits and neoprene booties, shimmied into kayak skirts, and clambered into Big Bertha, an oversized zodiac that was piled with paddles and dragging about a dozen or so sea kayaks, ducky-style, behind it. Mark, our zodiac driver, motored us out to a secluded spot where YT – the lead guide – decided it was calm enough to launch.

I’m not sure what my fellow kayakers were most nervous about, but for me the biggest worry was this – launching from the zodiac. I have launched kayaks in all different ways – from beaches, docks, and knee deep water – but the idea of a zodiac launch was nerve-wracking. I was picturing a graceless tumble over the huge inflated pontoon, ending at best in an unattractive slide into the kayak cockpit and at worst in a capsized boat, an embarrassing splash, and me in the water with one or more of my new friends. Fortunately – none of that happened, and launching from the zodiac was easier and quicker than I feared.

And before we knew it, we were all launched, bobbing gently in the rolling waves, and waiting to set off on our first sea kayaking adventure!

I’m planning a Q&A post for later in this series, and I’ll explain more about the mechanics of the sea kayaking experience then – so just briefly, for now, sea kayaking is an add-on adventure for most Antarctic tour companies (including ours). We paid extra for the experience and the idea was that we would kayak as much as possible on the voyage, going out whenever weather and ocean conditions permitted. Kayaking replaced zodiac cruising but we’d still have shore landings – we would just unload our kayaks at Big Bertha and zodiac to shore, then catch whatever zodiac we could to head back to the ship after a landing. On days like this one, where no shore landing was planned, we’d kayak the entire time.

I could immediately tell that kayaking in Antarctica was going to be like nothing I had ever experienced. We paddled through brash ice and past towering glacier walls and icebergs. (Giving the icebergs a wide berth, because as YT explained, if one decided to roll over while we were paddling past: “Death. Death. Death. Death. Human crushers.” Got it.) And almost right away, we experienced another of the amazing experiences kayaking in Antarctica brings: close-up wildlife encounters.

We spotted a crabeater seal hauled out and enjoying a nap on a little slab of pancake ice. In our almost silent kayaks, we glided up to the closest spot where we could watch and still be safe and respectful of international wildlife viewing laws. The seal didn’t seem to notice us or care about our presence at all.

This paddle was one of the most fun experiences of my life – that’s not hyperbole, that’s true. Between the sparkling brash ice (such fun to paddle; it was like kayaking in a giant slushee), the amazing scenery, the napping crabeater seal… it was just totally different, unique, and such, such fun.

Little known to us, this was just the first of eight kayaking adventures on this trip – the most of any voyage all season. We were truly blessed in the weather and ocean conditions. So – plenty more paddling pictures to come!

Next week: we go through the Lemaire Channel again, because why not? But this time, there’s SUNSHINE! Check in with me then…

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Reading Round-Up: June 2023

Reading is my oldest and favorite hobby. I literally can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t love to curl up with a good book. Here are my reads for June, 2023.

My Garden World, by Monty Don – The last book on my spring stack (although this one would be a good candidate for reading throughout the year as it follows twelve months in Monty Don’s gardens): I enjoyed this so much. I am a huge fan of Monty Don’s gardening programs – we binge-watch them on Britbox – and he is a beautiful writer.

The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels (Dangerous Damsels #1), by India Holton – This was an audiobook listen, mainly during commutes last month, and it was a lot of fun. A bit confusing to start out – it’s an alternate Victorian England where houses fly and lady pirates do magic and swashbuckle – but once you get into it, it’s a lot of fun. Warning for the prudes among us (raises hand): there is once scene that made me blush tomato red.

Crying in H Mart, by Michelle Zauner – This was a book club pick, and while we found a lot to discuss, I personally had a hard time with the structure. It felt a little disorganized and chaotic, which may have been an intentional choice but it makes for a difficult reading experience for me.

Poems for Happiness, intro Rev. Richard Coles – After Crying in H Mart I really needed to read something uplifting and a collection of poems around the theme of happiness was just what the doctor ordered. I was already familiar with some of the selections, others were new to me, and each poem was a delight.

Three Lives to Live, by Anne Lindbergh – This is one of my childhood favorites – one of the first time-slip novels I ever read, and I still love that genre – and I read it aloud to Peanut this past month. Mainly, I wanted to read it to her because there’s some stuff in there about siblings that I thought would be good to discuss with her. Bonus, though, we both really enjoyed it.

The Widening Stain, by W. Bolingbroke Johnson – I love reading in situ and when I heard – on an episode of the Shedunnit podcast – about this murder mystery that is set in a library at a fictionalized version of Cornell, I knew it was the obvious choice to read over Reunion weekend. I even spent an hour or so reading it in the actual library that forms the setting for the murders. (You don’t have to be a Cornellian to enjoy this, by the way – it was a lot of fun, the plot moved quickly and the main sleuth was a delight.) My only complaint was that while the author technically played fair with the conclusion, you don’t stand a chance of working out the solution unless you have a lot of esoteric knowledge about opera. I don’t, so once again I guessed whodunit but not why or how.

The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame – A re-read for me, but the first time listening on audio: it was as fun as it always is to revisit Mole, Ratty, Otter, Badger, and of course Toad. I do have a soft spot for that wild and irresponsible Toad.

The Small House at Allington (Chronicles of Barsetshire #5), by Anthony Trollope – I won’t say much here as a full review is coming for the Classics Club. This is the penultimate in Trollope’s Barsetshire novels and also the penultimate in my Classics Club reading challenge. It was the first Trollope I’ve read that did not include a tidy and conventionally happy ending, and I’m still deciding how I feel about that.

Appointment with Venus, by Jerrard Tickell – I’ve had this on my shelf to read in June (although most of the action, as it turns out, actually happens in September) for ages – and I can’t believe I waited so long. A World War II story of a daring rescue… of a prize COW… on the Channel Islands, this is funny, page-turning, and moving by turns. I read it in the midst of a move and could barely put it down.

Penguins and Golden Calves: Icons and Idols in Antarctica and Other Unexpected Places, by Madeleine L’Engle – Three audiobooks this month! That has to be some kind of record. So, this was okay but I didn’t love it. (I did, however, press through and listen to the whole thing.) I knew that it was one of L’Engle’s theology/philosophy books, but was still expecting a heavy dose of Antarctica and that wasn’t really there. And some of L’Engle’s comments about race and gender hit a little differently in 2023. For instance, at one point she muses “We can get a little silly about inclusive pronouns.” I couldn’t disagree more – there is nothing silly, in my view, about acknowledging the lived truth about a person’s deepest identity. It’s not all that surprising that a book written in 1993 by a 75-year-old doesn’t quite hit it on 2023 values, but between that and the insufficient Antarctica content, I think I’ll stick to L’Engle’s fiction.

Whew! What a month. If you’re still with me – thanks for hanging in. It was a busy June with not one, but two, moves – office in the middle of the month and house at the end. But through the chaos I still read – I will always read through the chaos – and had a couple of wonderful highlights. Appointment with Venus was definitely the high point of the reading month, and will probably be on my top-ten list for the year. And reading The Widening Stain at Cornell was such fun. (I wish the author had written more – I’d love to follow sleuth Gilda Gorham through more literary crime-solving.) In July, I’ve already finished a couple of good books, I have an excellent audiobook on the go, and I’ve got more summery reads on my stack. Happy summer reading, friends!

What were your June reading highlights?

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The Week in Pages: July 3, 2023

Welp. I’ve moved! New house, who dis? Unpacking is going to be a looooooong process – I’ve only just gotten started, really. The kids have basically unpacked and set up their rooms, which is the good news, and Steve and I have churned our way through about two-thirds of the reusable boxes that we rented; we still have a ways to go but things are looking good for all of the reusable boxes being empty when the rental company comes to pick them up a week from today. The bad news is that my books are all still in a sea of cardboard and will be for awhile yet – I wish unpacking books was a priority but I’ve got to get the kitchen and closets done. The result of all that is, predictably, I didn’t get much reading done last week.

I spent most of the week over A Sultry Month, which was really well-written and interesting, but probably not the best choice to engage my limited attention during moving week. I finally wrapped it up on Saturday and spent the weekend over The Thirty-First of June. How you can tell that reading time and energy is limited: at full power, I’d read that in one sitting and it would take me less than two hours; a comedic novella about time travel is very my jam. I did really love it, but it just took me longer to read than normal. (Also not helping: the lighting situation in my soon-to-be-set-up reading space is not finalized yet; once the sun goes down all I have is my cordless floor lamp, and the kids left that on and drained the batteries so the light was too dim to read last night. Blah.)

Anyway, I finally finished The Thirty-First of June over my coffee this morning and moved on to The Last Chronicle of Barset, unpictured in the gallery above because I started it today. It’s the last book in my Classics Club challenge – final reviews coming over the next few weeks – and it might be the longest at 930 pages. I’m on page 14, so. Won’t be finishing this one in a week.

Does this picture say “summer” or what? I’m setting a goal to find the best soft-serve in northern Virginia this season. Nugget and I made our first ice cream mission of the season on Saturday, to Nathan’s Dairy Bar in Manassas. Creamsicle-vanilla twist with rainbow sprinkles FTW. Do you say sprinkles, or jimmies?

What are you reading this week?