This is an unusual and utterly fascinating icebreaker expedition to the incredible icy realms of the Ross Sea region of Antarctica. Focusing on the historic huts and celebrated sites from the Heroic Age of early Antarctic Exploration, this voyage will have a special guest onboard. Adrian Raeside is the grandson of Sir Charles Wright, who was a physicist and glaciologist on Robert Falcon Scott’s 1910 expedition. Adrian is writing a book to celebrate the centenary of the expedition and whilst on board will recount some previously unknown details found whilst researching his book. During the voyage you will visit Scott’s famous hut at Cape Evans and his remarkably preserved 1901-1904 Discovery Hut at McMurdo Sound, the site of Sir Ernest Shackleton’s hut at Cape Royds (built during his ‘Nimrod’ polar expedition in 1907-1909) and the 1899 hut at Cape Adare where Carsten Borchgrevink was the first person to overwinter on the Antarctic continent. Some of these huts are still stacked with tinned goods, along with seal blubber that was hoarded as emergency fuel. Sailing from Lyttelton, New Zealand on a fully classed polar icebreaker, your first stop will be the wildlife-rich sub-Antarctic islands of Campbell and Enderby for Royal Albatross and the rare Yellow-eyed Penguin. Your icebreaker’s onboard helicopters will be utilised for passenger flightseeing and landings at otherwise inaccessible locations. One such place is the remote and seldomvisited Dry Valleys with its amazing ‘otherworldly’ landscape of wind-eroded rocks and desert scenery unlike anywhere else in the world. As you approach in helicopters from the sea, the expanse of fast ice stops abruptly revealing a parched land with no vegetation other than lichen that grows inside rocks. Whilst sailing through the breathtaking scenery of mountains, glaciers and mile-long tabular icebergs of the Ross Sea, you will hear more about the many discoveries of James Ross after whom the sea and the ice shelf are named. Minke and Orca Whales are commonly found in this area and you will land at Cape Adare, home to over half a million Adélie Penguins. On your return journey, and subject to permissions, you will land on Macquarie Island a UNESCO World Heritage Site where huge numbers of Royal Penguins live. Your voyage ends in Hobart, Tasmania. Great Antarctic Explorers Visit historic huts left behind by the expeditions of Scott and Shackleton as well as the surreal Dry Valleys and the worldrenowned McMurdo Station. F O R R E S E R V A T I O N S C A L L U S O N 0845 130 6982 Itinerary Day 1. Christchurch, New Zealand Day 2. Embark in Lyttelton Days 3 to 5. Campbell & Enderby Islands Days 6 to 9. Sailing to the ice edge Day 10. Drygalski Ice Tongue Days 11 & 12. McMurdo Station, Scott Base, Cape Evans & Cape Royds Days 13 & 14. The Dry Valleys & the Ross Ice Shelf Days 15 & 16. The Bay of Whales Days 17 to 21. The Ross Sea Days 22 & 23. Macquarie Island Days 24 to 26. North to Hobart and disembark Vessel Kapitan Khlebnikov (see Vessel pages for more details). Things you need to know Embark Lyttelton, New Zealand Disembark Hobart, Tasmania, Australia Voyage nights 24 nights Departure dates 13 Dec 2008 to 7 Jan 2009 Price From £10,295 in a twin share cabin Single supplement On request. If you are travelling alone ask about our request share programme which enables solo travellers to share a cabin with another solo traveller. What’s included Pre-cruise hotel night in Christchurch, voyage including guided shore, helicopter & zodiac excursions, all meals onboard & transfers. Guide price for flights & accommodation package Around £1,495 including return flights from the UK & 1-night in Hobart. 178

Lying to the south of New Zealand are six wild and remote island groups that make up the sub-Antarctic islands; this region is a birdwatchers paradise with the most diverse collection of seabirds on the planet. More than 40 seabird species, at least 11 percent of all the world’s seabirds, breed here. Ten of the world’s albatross species breed in the region, five of them nowhere else. Penguins too are special: of seven penguin species the Snares Crested, Erect Crested, and Royal Penguins are endemic. The diversity of the land birds indicates just how long these islands have been isolated – no fewer than 15 species are sub-Antarctic endemics. This wildlife cruise visits four of the six island groups: Snares, Auckland, Macquarie and Campbell, offering a great introduction and understanding of the dynamic and diverse southern ocean eco-system. Embarking in Dunedin, your first sub-Antarctic island will be Snares: more birds nest on this small island than there are seabirds around the entire British Isles. As landings here are not permitted you will zodiac cruise around the sheltered bays on the lookout for endemic Snares Crested Penguins. Sooty Shearwaters are pretty likely too as an estimated six million nest here! Enderby Island, in the south of the main Auckland Islands, is the main breeding ground for the increasingly rare Hooker’s Sea Lion. You may also see Southern Royal Albatross, Northern Giant Petrel, Auckland Island Shag, Yellow-eyed Penguin and Red-crowned Parakeets. At Carnley Harbour, if you are feeling energetic you can climb up to the Southwest Cape Shy Albatross colony. Gibson’s Wandering Albatross will be nesting close by amongst the tussock grass and good views are likely. You should see vast numbers of Royal Penguins on Macquarie Island, while a zodiac cruise around Lusitania Bay will also give you great views of a huge King Penguin colony. Campbell Island is a magnificent island and you will sail into Perseverance Harbour, a sunken volcanic caldera that cuts across the island, and explore by foot. You will experience some great birding and photographic opportunities here, especially Southern Royal Albatross and the early flowering megaherbs – a spectacle to behold. Your voyage ends at the Port of Bluff in New Zealand. Galapagos of the Southern Ocean Wildlife cruising around the sub-Antarctic islands of New Zealand, an area with some of the most spectacular land and seascapes in the world, rich in wildlife and a biodiversity ‘hotspot’. S E E U S O N T H E W E B AT wildlifeworldwide.com Itinerary Day 1. Dunedin Day 2. Embark in Dunedin Day 3. Snares Island Day 4. Enderby Island Day 5. Auckland Island Day 6. At sea Days 7 & 8. Macquarie Island Day 9. At sea Days 10 & 11. Campbell Island Day 12. At sea Day 13. Port of Bluff and disembark Vessel Spirit of Enderby (see Vessel pages for more details). Things you need to know Embark Dunedin, New Zealand Disembark Bluff, New Zealand Voyage nights 11 & 17 nights Departure dates 27 Nov to 9 Dec (11 nights) 9 to 27 Nov (17 nights) Price From £2,895 in a triple share cabin From £3,295 in a twin share cabin Single supplement On request. If you are travelling alone ask about our request share programme which enables solo travellers to share a cabin with another solo traveller. What’s included Pre-cruise hotel night, voyage including guided shore & zodiac excursions, all meals onboard & transfers. Guide price for flights & accommodation package Around £1,550 including return flights from the UK & 1-night in Christchurch. 179 If you can spare the extra time you could join a 19-day trip sailing from Bluff to Dunedin also in November. You will visit the Antipodes and Bounty Islands in addition to those mentioned above, as well as the Chatham archipelago that lies just north of the sub-Antarctic region.