Today we experienced a part of Antarctica that reminded us more of the American Southwest than of anywhere else in the world. Shortly after breakfast we found a lee from the wind on the east side of James Ross Island (a very large island indeed). With the sun shining brightly the temperatures soon climbed near fifty degrees Fahrenheit. We anchored close to shore in Rum Bay and began our excursion where a small stream flowed into the Weddell Sea. Bright green beds of cushion moss (background photo) grew profusely wherever sufficient moisture allowed, and we took care not to walk there. A towering cliff of volcanic breccia dominated the landscape and many hikers walked inland some miles to where one could scramble up scree slopes to a high ridge. Many of us perambulated across the mostly barren, rocky landscape, taking in the vistas and every now and then drawing the ire of the skuas (large predatory gulls) nesting on low ridges.
Back on board, the galley and hotel department had arranged a delicious deck buffet for lunch, which we enjoyed while underway to our next destination, a landing on the Antarctic mainland itself. This part of Antarctica lies in the lee of the mountainous Antarctic Peninsula and so is quite dry. What snow had fallen over the winter had largely melted away by now. The landscape supports lichens, moss and algae. The sea here is not overly productive and no penguin colonies were near where we spent the day.
