Neko Harbor and Useful Island
The austral summer solstice is rapidly approaching us here in the southern hemisphere, so of course the days are getting longer and the nights are all but non-existent here in Antarctica. The sunsets and sunrises are only separated by a short period of what might be best considered as civil twilight. The translation for photographers is that the “golden hour” literally lasts several hours, with the only disadvantage being that it all occurs from about 11:00 p.m. until 3:00 a.m.! But what glorious light can be had at these hours!
Early this morning National Geographic Explorer sailed deep into Andvord Bay for a continental landing at Neko Harbor. Many guests enjoyed the satisfaction of having stepped upon their seventh continent, while others celebrated achieving a landing of the hardest continent of them all to visit! Whether hiking ashore or cruising in Zodiacs, the magical reflections of the surrounding snow-capped mountains and deep blue glaciers made the entire morning a surreal experience for one and all.
The afternoon found us at a small island surrounded by rocky reefs called Useful Island, discovered by Gerlache in the 1897-99 Belgian Antarctic Expedition. This site is seldom visited, other than by gentoo and chinstrap penguins, which come ashore here to breed. Weddell seals and grounded icebergs are strewn around the periphery of the main island, just seemingly waiting for our inspection. The actual origin of the name of this small island is in some doubt. The name seems to be appropriate for the animals using the island as a summer residence. However, the usefulness of useful island to us humans is readily apparent, if one but takes the time to have a closer look.
