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Antarctica in November or February?


safarigal7072
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My husband and I are doing research on which would give us the best experience -- early November or mid-February for the 24-day trip to Antarctica, Falkland Islands and South Georgia offered by Nat Geo. My husband and I are avid photography buffs (he does stills, I shoot video), and we love both spectacular scenery AND wildlife (have done many safaris to Africa, but this Antarctica trip will be a once-in-a-lifetime trip to that part of the world, so we just get one shot at it). We are trying to decide if November is better because it's more pristine, even if it's a little colder, or February is better because of penguin chick activity. We're not so much interested in whales. We'd love to hear from those who have experienced one or the other, or both. We wish Nat Geo offered the extended trip in December or January since we hear that those are the best months, but apparently they only do the shorter version of their trip (just Antarctica) in those months. We're pretty set on doing Nat Geo's trip and not another cruise line, as we like their smaller Orion ship. Also, we are now in our early 70s and just feel more comfortable doing it with Nat Geo.

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I have been in November and December, but not in February.

 

On my trip in November, we saw a few nesting penguins with eggs at the northernmost landings, but farther south most of the penguins were still courting and waiting for the snow to clear to begin building their nests. We still had a lot of snow on the ground, so landings were fairly limited in terms of distance we could cover, but I loved the landscape scenery, because it really was a "white" continent.

 

We missed a lot of landings because of the remaining sea ice. This turned out to be a benefit for me, because I loved the zodiac cruising and am enamored with the variety of shapes and colors in the icebergs and glaciers. As an ice lover, the November trip was incredible, but I suspect I'm in the minority. I've also been told by the expedition staff on my first ship that we were quite lucky with our trip, because many of the subsequent November departures had even more missed landings.

 

I'm also not so sure how pristine the landing sites will be, because with so many ships and so many visitors, the season is starting even earlier, with trips as early as October. I know that there were a few sailings before mine (and we still found ourselves trudging through deep untouched snow), but I think the early-season market has picked up a lot since then.

 

If December/January is your ideal, then I think you would probably be happier going in February. The big draw in November is the ice, and with the even higher than usual unpredictability in conditions, that could end up being most of what you see.

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Thank you so much for taking the time to reply! If I might ask one followup question -- did you go to South Georgia on your November trip? If you did, what was that like at that time of year? Were your landings limited there?

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We are trying to decide if November is better because it's more pristine, even if it's a little colder, or February is better because of penguin chick activity. We're not so much interested in whales. We'd love to hear from those who have experienced one or the other, or both.

 

You have a tough decision to make, with probably no wrong answer. :)

 

Which would be "better" of course is really subjective and probably depends in large measure on what you would prefer to see. Four years ago, we traveled with Nat Geo (on the Explorer) on their Antarctica trip in late January/early February. (We were not on the longer trip so I can't comment on that.) Lots of activity in the penguin rookeries! Chicks had hatched, they were demanding to be fed by their parents, they were running around, some had fledged, etc. (You said you aren't interested in whales, but they were incredible. Humpbacks, minkes, killer whales. And lots of seals of course.)

 

But just as amazing was the ice. We loved zodiac cruising around the icebergs, it was simply spectacular.

 

I think it would be incredible to be in Antarctica early in the season when it's more pristine, but I think only you can decide what would be more interesting to you.

 

I have a very detailed photo journal of our trip at this link, in case you find it useful:

 

https://antarcticjourney.wordpress.com/

 

Happy to answer other questions if I can.

 

Gentoochicks1024x804_zps6fa46000.jpg

 

 

Gentoosgreettheship1024x768_zps7fc3fea1.jpg

 

Adeliemealtime1024x679_zps30d21833.jpg

 

(photos by turtles06)

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Thank you so much for taking the time to reply! If I might ask one followup question -- did you go to South Georgia on your November trip? If you did, what was that like at that time of year? Were your landings limited there?

No, South Georgia was part of our December trip, so we were there during the first week of December.

 

Sea ice isn't a problem that far north, so that wouldn't impact landings. The only seasonal issue I know of that would is the fur seal mating season, which begins in late November. We encountered a lot of male fur seals guarding their harems, and we had to be very observant and stick to carefully curated routes. However, we didn't miss any landings due to the seal presence.

 

The Shackleton hike may be impacted by remaining snow early in the season if that's a concern. However, the hike (like everything else) is extremely weather-dependent, so it's not a guarantee in any season.

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I have done all of Nov, Dec, Feb and March - plus beginning and end of Jan. There is no "bad" time to go. There is a lot more to it - the entire destination - than just penguin chicks.

 

I get the impression when people are referring to "pristine" landscapes they have images of acres of pure white ice. and yep - you will potentially see that - but no where near a penguin colony! Those little dudes are chock full of poop and it comes out constantly. Nothing pristine about it!

 

FI and SGI are some of the most spectacular geography you will ever experience - very photo/video intensive days. For SGI the first few weeks of Dec are serious Fur seal coverage and you do have to be wary and very careful on shore.

 

In Nov on SGI the beaches will be covered in tens of thousands of Elephant Seals and they are fabulous to watch and capture on film. The big males fighting, the young weaners being all snuggly like kittens. By Feb the weaners are gone and only a few big males left. So for me Nov is more spectacular for the sheer numbers. Same with the amount of Kings - way more in Nov than Feb.

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We did this trip from mid Jan to Feb. Lots of chicks, aggressive fur seals and passive elephant seals. That was on the Hapag Lloyd vessel Bremen.

Back in November this year on Noble Caledonias Island Sky. Bit more luxury!

So we should see more ice and snow, and the springtime rituals. But no Chicks. I am hoping to see more whales, especially humpbacks as they are my favourite.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

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i have done all of nov, dec, feb and march - plus beginning and end of jan. There is no "bad" time to go. There is a lot more to it - the entire destination - than just penguin chicks.

 

I get the impression when people are referring to "pristine" landscapes they have images of acres of pure white ice. And yep - you will potentially see that - but no where near a penguin colony! Those little dudes are chock full of poop and it comes out constantly. Nothing pristine about it!

 

Fi and sgi are some of the most spectacular geography you will ever experience - very photo/video intensive days. For sgi the first few weeks of dec are serious fur seal coverage and you do have to be wary and very careful on shore.

 

In nov on sgi the beaches will be covered in tens of thousands of elephant seals and they are fabulous to watch and capture on film. The big males fighting, the young weaners being all snuggly like kittens. By feb the weaners are gone and only a few big males left. So for me nov is more spectacular for the sheer numbers. Same with the amount of kings - way more in nov than feb.

 

perfectly perth -- thank you for your reply. Sounds like you've done it all! Since i made this post, we have since found a small ship antarctica cruise that comes highly recommended and that is less expensive than nat geo (the hebridean sky). Its extended trip starts in early november (november 3) or there is one that starts at the very end of december. So now we are looking at those two possibilities. I suspect we'll see more wildlife in the late december/january trip and maybe get on land more than we would in november, but we're still leaning towards the november trip because of the chance for more pristine ice landscapes and less tourists. Ironically, even the nat geo person we spoke to said that the guides tend to prefer november. I understand what you are saying about the penguins. But surely in november there will be some opportunities to capture penguins on snow...

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We did this trip from mid Jan to Feb. Lots of chicks, aggressive fur seals and passive elephant seals. That was on the Hapag Lloyd vessel Bremen.

Back in November this year on Noble Caledonias Island Sky. Bit more luxury!

So we should see more ice and snow, and the springtime rituals. But no Chicks. I am hoping to see more whales, especially humpbacks as they are my favourite.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

Thanks for your reply. I'll be interested to hear how you liked going in November when you return from your trip this year. I'm wondering if it's harder to navigate on land with the potential for a lot of snow on the ground. My husband is 72, and in reasonably good health, (walks every morning), but his balance isn't great and I am mildly concerned about him slipping and falling on ice and snow in November. Hope you'll get back to me after your trip. All said, we're still leaning toward the November trip.

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No, South Georgia was part of our December trip, so we were there during the first week of December.

 

Sea ice isn't a problem that far north, so that wouldn't impact landings. The only seasonal issue I know of that would is the fur seal mating season, which begins in late November. We encountered a lot of male fur seals guarding their harems, and we had to be very observant and stick to carefully curated routes. However, we didn't miss any landings due to the seal presence.

 

The Shackleton hike may be impacted by remaining snow early in the season if that's a concern. However, the hike (like everything else) is extremely weather-dependent, so it's not a guarantee in any season.

 

We're not too worried about the fur seal mating season, as we will be hitting South Georgia and the Falklands early in the trip, at the beginning of November. No guarantees on anything, I realize. We learned that in twenty years of travel to Africa to photograph the wildlife there. Thanks again for your followup reply.

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You have a tough decision to make, with probably no wrong answer. :)

 

Which would be "better" of course is really subjective and probably depends in large measure on what you would prefer to see. Four years ago, we traveled with Nat Geo (on the Explorer) on their Antarctica trip in late January/early February. (We were not on the longer trip so I can't comment on that.) Lots of activity in the penguin rookeries! Chicks had hatched, they were demanding to be fed by their parents, they were running around, some had fledged, etc. (You said you aren't interested in whales, but they were incredible. Humpbacks, minkes, killer whales. And lots of seals of course.)

 

But just as amazing was the ice. We loved zodiac cruising around the icebergs, it was simply spectacular.

 

I think it would be incredible to be in Antarctica early in the season when it's more pristine, but I think only you can decide what would be more interesting to you.

 

I have a very detailed photo journal of our trip at this link, in case you find it useful:

 

https://antarcticjourney.wordpress.com/

 

Happy to answer other questions if I can.

 

Gentoochicks1024x804_zps6fa46000.jpg

 

 

Gentoosgreettheship1024x768_zps7fc3fea1.jpg

 

Adeliemealtime1024x679_zps30d21833.jpg

 

(photos by turtles06)

 

Turtles06 -- Thanks so much for your reply and the link to your wonderful site! Haven't read through all of it yet, but we have enjoyed the photos. We will, of course, be reading your full diary, as I'm sure there will be tons of useful info. After a lot of quick research, at this point we are leaning towards a trip on the Hebridean Sky through Polar Lattitudes. My husband has talked me into letting go of Nat Geo because it is so much more expensive than all the other tours. The Hebridean appears to be a very nice ship, with only 114 passengers, and it does the same itinerary we want -- Antarctica, South Georgia and the Falklands. So now our choices are early November (departs on November 3, 2018) or very late December (departs on December 31). The December trip has two less days. I think we are still leaning towards November.

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Thanks for your reply. I'll be interested to hear how you liked going in November when you return from your trip this year. I'm wondering if it's harder to navigate on land with the potential for a lot of snow on the ground. My husband is 72, and in reasonably good health, (walks every morning), but his balance isn't great and I am mildly concerned about him slipping and falling on ice and snow in November. Hope you'll get back to me after your trip. All said, we're still leaning toward the November trip.

It is definitely more difficult to walk when there's more snow. When there's deep snow, both of my experiences have been that the expedition staff marks out pre-walked routes (created either by the staff themselves or by earlier visitors). These are typically very narrow, and depending on the snow conditions, it can be difficult to step off of them. Towards the end of our December trip, we had some particularly tricky snow to deal with at Neko Harbor, and a lot of people chose to cut their landing short, because they found walking difficult. If this is a concern, I would recommend finding out if the ship has hiking poles available or consider bringing some along. (Also super-valuable for directing away fur seals in South Georgia! I was very glad someone nearby had one when a seal decided we were a bit too close!)

 

A further note re: pristine landscapes - Penguin poo aside, you'll still never actually experience pristine snow conditions, because the expedition staff will always be the first people to go ashore. ;) And visitors are advised to stick to the paths and minimize their traces in the snow (partly, because penguins can actually fall into deep footprints and have difficulties getting back out)! I've heard mixed messaging on this front, but as the number of visitors continues to rise, it's more and more important for each individual to limit his/her impact on the environment as much as possible.

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Yep agree re collapsible hiking poles. I carry a couple as a matter of course for all landings because I get wobbly and unbalanced on pebbly shores - of which there are far more than fully snow/ice covered ones.

 

Do you find that two poles are better than one for walking on uneven or slippery surfaces? My husband is an avid photographer, and I'd imagine two poles would be difficult to maneuver along with a camera.

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Do you find that two poles are better than one for walking on uneven or slippery surfaces? My husband is an avid photographer, and I'd imagine two poles would be difficult to maneuver along with a camera.

 

I'm not Perfectly Perth, but I did always have a camera with me, and I used one pole in Antarctica. It was sufficient for me when needed on slippery surfaces, and enough extra gear to have in my hands.

Edited by Turtles06
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It depended on the terrain. I usually had both with me but one was collapsed in my bag as a "just in case" - like for going up the snowy side of a hill or something. For hobbling around on the pebbley shores I stuck with one stick and two cameras - both around my neck.

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  • 5 weeks later...
Is late February and early March too late? Chicks all gone?

 

We are looking at a Hurtigruten cruise.

 

It depends on which region you are specifically looking at - and which penguin breed. The regions differ - as do the breeding seasons.

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It depends on which region you are specifically looking at - and which penguin breed. The regions differ - as do the breeding seasons.

 

 

 

Thank you!

 

Another question, I am also looking at a late October/early November itinerary that includes FI and SGI. It seems to me Nov is a very good time to go to both, might even be better than Dec or Jan if I want to see elephant seals, is that correct?

 

Or is early Nov too early?

 

PS we are more interested in seals and penguins than whales.

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Mid Nov into Dec is excellent for SGI as its when you get the tens of thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of seals and penguins all along the shores. Photographers dream. For the Kings its their fluffy kiwi fruit look times when they are moulting. No chicks - but many many juveniles and adult pairs. Always a lot of Adelies hanging around too. Should be macaronis and rockhoppers at certain landings.

 

You will still get whales at least daily - just not in mass numbers at that time.

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  • 3 weeks later...
Mid Nov into Dec is excellent for SGI as its when you get the tens of thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of seals and penguins all along the shores. Photographers dream. For the Kings its their fluffy kiwi fruit look times when they are moulting. No chicks - but many many juveniles and adult pairs. Always a lot of Adelies hanging around too. Should be macaronis and rockhoppers at certain landings.

 

You will still get whales at least daily - just not in mass numbers at that time.

 

 

Thank you PP.

 

After a lot of consideration DH and I decided to go for the November trip which goes to FI SGI as well as the peninsula.

 

In November on SGI we will be able to see large fluffy King chicks and females with new eggs as well as hundreds of thousands of elephant seals, and at the sea we will see huge spectacular icebergs before they all melt in late Nov and Dec, and on the peninsula we will be able to experience ice and snow on the ground and see some mating behaviors. Although no new hatchlings, to us that seems to be the best compromise.

 

I think February might not be the best time for us to visit since we are more interested in seals, penguins and spectacular icebergs than whales.

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