Here we are back in Chile and one continent closer to home. It was a beautiful day so we went for a walk. It was great to stretch our legs after being on the boat coming across the Drake Passage. Punta Arenas is a nice place to wander around. The cemetery is amazing and the hills give you a beautiful view of the area.
Lisa, Irina, and Kristin look out over Punta Arenas pondering the last couple of months. We had a fantastic time.
As you can see from the smile on my face, this was a great trip. While I'm sorry it's over, I am ready to get back home.
While we were at port, the R/V Nathaniel B. Palmer docked behind us. You can see from this picture how much bigger it is than the Laurence M. Gould. If you want to see a more in depth look at it, check out Juan Botella's journals. He was on it for over two months!!
This picture of the R/V Palmer behind the Gould gives you a sense of how much bigger it is. I went on the Palmer and took a look around. It was huge. It has a helicopter landing deck/pad.
Just the size of the bridge on the Palmer in comparison to the Gould's should give you a sense of how large this ship is. This is a true icebreaker and is built to cut through serious ice down in the Southern Ocean.
On our plane ride up to Santiago, we got a bird's eye view of the smoldering Puyehue volcano that recently erupted in Chile. Here are a couple shots I took from the plane.
Puyehue Volcano as seen from the plane. Look at that plume of smoke.
Puyehue Volcano as seen from the plane. This picture gives you a better sense of the force involved. And this is just the aftermath of the volcano, not the full force of it.
Next stop...Chicago!