Last leg to Ushuaia

The seas in the Drake Passage settled last night and our final sail to Ushuaia was relatively comfortable, with flatter seas, but strong winds. It was easy going on Viking Octantis, but if you went out onto the deck, you felt the full force of the wind.

We also experienced light rain for all of the morning and early afternoon, so going outside for a bit of exercise was not an attractive option. To fill in the day, tours of the hangar and laboratory  have been organised for early afternoon. They were both widely supported, so there was a bit of a line up, particularly for the lab that could only accommodate about 25 visitors at a time.

The tour of the hangar was a lot easier as it is a very larger area and a number of the expedition crew we on hand to answer questions as we were free to roam around.

At the entry to the hangar, one of the Science team was there to explain to us the role of one of their pieces of equipment that is located in the hangar. It is called a Ferry Box but is really a sampling device that takes regular samples of the water as were travel along and filters it through a series of sieves. The material caught is then analysed. Most of the focus of the current research is on micro plastics.


Sampling station



Sieve stack 

Of course the main interest in the hangar is that this is where all of the toys are stored and deployed from for use by the expedition team. It is an impressive setup. Special Ops boats sit on the slipway, they each weight about 8 tonnes and were built in Finland, based on a military design with 800 hp motors and capable of 40 knots. Overhead gantries handle to movement of zodiacs, the submarines, and the submarine support boat, with loading out either side of the hull.







Next was a tour of the laboratory. It is largely a research space available to scientists from Universities that are sponsors of the Viking Science program. The current focus of research is learning about phytoplankton. The lab concentrates on genetic work, trying to identify the distribution of different types of phytoplankton in the areas visited, and looking for correlations that support their findings. Different phytoplankton are identified by genetic sequencing. Samples are collected and through a lot of preparation DNA isolated and then sequenced.


Samples are collected by towing this small torpedo shaped device behind zodiacs


It is a small lab but seems to have the equipment it needs, which is currently being upgraded

By early afternoon, we are approaching the entrance to the Beagle Channel and pass Isla Nueva on the Chilean side. and soon we are in the channel.


Inside the Beagle Channel

The pilot came on board at around 2 pm, and we are motoring into a 30 knot breeze. it is pretty rough in the channel.


We arrive at Ushuaia at 6 pm, but stand off for about 1.5 hours before being allowed to dock, at a prett empty wharf. With the strong winds and the windage of a cruise ship, it took almost an hour to ease into the blow off berth we were given and to secure the ship.


Standing off Ushuaia waiting to berth

The wind abated by 10 pm and some passengers opted to go into town after dinner.  We have an early start in the morning so opted not to. We have a midday flight to Buenos Aires and have a tour of Tierra del Fuego National Park in the morning.


Ushuaia at 10 pm


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