Yacht Pelagic's Sailing Programme

PELAGIC AUSTRALIS IN ANTRACTICA 2005 - MOUNTAINEERING EXPEDITION FEB 2005

Our purpose built 23 meter sailing vessel will be making a 21 day expedition voyage to the Antarctic Peninsula during the austral summer of 2005, catering specifically for climbers wishing to attempt peaks in the most scenic part of the Antarctic. See detailed itinerary below which can include Mt Scott. See below for detailed itinerary. To find out more about the destination generally see charter options link above. Please e-mail Skip Novak for more information or to make a booking.

DATE
January 31st to February 20th 2005

LOGISTICS
The voyage will begin and return to Puerto Williams in Chile. Located on the south side of the Beagle Channel, the team will embark on the 31st of January 2005 (first night on board) and the day after set sail across the Drake Passage for the Antarctic Peninsula. Expected return to Puerto Williams is the afternoon of the 20th of February 2005 (last night on board). Clients would fly back to Punta Arenas on the 21st and connect to Santiago.

Left: Alex Lowe on Mt Scott one of our proposed destinations

HOW TO GET TO PUERTO WILLIAMS

This may confound your travel agent. Puerto Williams is serviced once daily by air by DAP from Punta Arenas on the Straits of Magellan, that is in turn serviced three times daily by Lan Chile from Santiago.

The plane is usually a Dash 7 and you land on a runway right next to the Beagle Channel. We will be there to meet you on arrival. The boat is a five minute car ride away.

To contact DAP:

Tel: +56 61 223340
Fax: +56 61 221693
E-mail: ventas@aeroviasdap.cl

COST

12,000 EUR per person which is all inclusive of food and drink once on board. A maximum of eight guests is possible in addition to two mountain guides if needed.

This cost includes the use of Musto HPX sailing four weather gear, all personal safety equipment for sailing (lifejacket, harness) and the use of the Inmarsat communications equipment.

THE ROUTE

The traverse time across the Drake should take no longer than 60 hours, although a day or two waiting in the Cape Horn archipelago may be necessary for a weather window and therefore a safe passage.

The intention is to make a landfall and then spend a day on Deception Island, the semi active volcanic island where we enter and moor in the flooded caldera. Here we would rig the boat for inshore sailing and brief the team on the Antarctic guidelines with respect to the wildlife. From Deception we sail overnight through the Gerlache Straits and next morning traverse the scenic Lemaire Channel, a narrow ice filled cut separating Booth Island from the mainland. This opens out into the Penola Straits where we will base our climbing activities from the vessel for the next ten to twelve days.

THE CLIMBS

Unless a group has another specific target in mind, we will concentrate our efforts on Mt. Scott and Mt. Shackleton which are visible from the Penola Straits.

Mt. Scott’s summit (800 meters right from the shoreline) can be reached by a ski mountaineering route on the east side, or by several technical rock and ice routes on the west side. The views from the summit up and down the coastline are superb. This is a one day climb.

Mt. Shackleton, 1300 meters, is a day inland with skis and will require up to three nights of camping to make an attempt.

Because of the possibility of stormy weather in this part of the Antarctic, a ten to twelve day period is a reasonable window to accomplish both of these climbs, but of course, conditions can never be guaranteed.

ADDED ATTRACTIONS

In the event of success and with time remaining, other peaks in the area can be attempted, or we can make visits to wildlife sites and some of the manned national scientific bases. Humpback Whales, Leopard Seals, Crabeater Seals and Weddell Seals are always present in addition to Chinstrap, Gentoo and Adelie Penguins as well as many other bird populations. These visits can also be made in periods of bad weather when the climbing is untenable.

THE RETURN JOURNEY

By Day 16, we should be watching the weather closely for an opportunity to re-cross the Drake Passage. The downside is an early departure, but any spare days can be spent near Cape Horn with a visit to Horn Island possible. The risk of a late departure is missing a favourable pattern and still being there on Day 20! When needed, we are using a weather router in America so we can predict the situation for about five days in advance.

We would aim to be back in Puerto Williams on the night of DAY 21 in order for the guests to fly to Punta Arenas the following day.

Equipment List 3 - For expedition cruises to Antarctica, South Georgia, Spitzbergen, Greenland, Iceland and Labrador.