Diary of a Journey under the World – Part 13 – Navigating Ross Island

David travelled aboard the magnificent Le Commandant Charcot by PONANT Cruises earlier this year on a half circumnavigation trip from Ushuaia, Argentina to New Zealand and what follows are his notes and highlights of a once in a lifetime trip to Antarctica in 2023.

David Heydon has been many things, nominated for Australian of the Year in 2016, the 2012 recipient of the Moore Medal, and a deep seabed mining pioneer. Most days David would be one of the expert naturalist guides aboard a ship, but today he is a guest on the Le Commandant Charcot.

David is an expedition cruising veteran, one who is uniquely specialized in the Polar. His extensive geological knowledge provides welcome insight into these regions’ many fjords and glaciers.

The Adventure Continues…

Mt. Erebus Volcano sits in the background as the Charcot navigates around Ross Island, searching for potential landing sites.

The ice is considerably thick between the island and the continent of Antarctica.

After it breaks off and rolls down, it soon settles and starts to refreeze into what are called “nilas” and then “pancake” ice.

The Charcot is also in radio contact with a sister ship, Ponant’s Le Soleil. The Le Soleil has been on a journey from Australia and back to New Zealand via the sub-antarctic islands. They are unfortunately not ice rated like the Le Commandant Charcot, so it has to remain in open waters.

A meeting was arranged between the ships as a sort of photo opportunity for each ship. It is extremely difficult to get photos that are not at low-angles of both ships in Antarctic settings, as drones are banned in these areas.