Antarctica Marathon 2014: First Night at Sea

This is a quick summary of my first day and night on the Valvilov crossing Drake’s Passage.

• Running A Marathon in Antarctica and Australia in 2014
• Planning
• Hotels, Flights, Final Deposit, Medevac Insurance
• Training
• Flight BOS-JFK-EZE (Domestic first, 777-200 business)
• Sheraton Libertador Review
• Marriott Park Plaza Hotel (San Martin) Review
• Shakeout Run in Buenos Aires
• Buenos Aires Daytime Bicycle tour (urban bike)
• Las Nazarenas and Argentinian Cuisine
• Marathon Tours Champagne Toast and Dinner
• EZE City Tour with Marathon Tours
• Flight down to Ushuaia (on Aerolineas Argentinas)
• OneOcean Ship Introduction (valvilov)
• First Night at Sea
• First Full Day at sea
• Ship Daily Routine
• Marathon Tours and OneOcean cruise
• Trip Clothing and Gear Recommendations
• Antarctica Camera and Tech Recommendations
• Staying Online in Antarctica, Tweeting and FB via Email
• Alcohol onboard Marathon Tours Antarctic Cruise
• Kayaking on Marathon Tours Antarctica Marathon Trip
• Day 1: Yankee Harbor, vacuum Party, and Zodiac operations
• Day 2: Half Moon Island
• Day 3: Race Day
• Antarctica Marathon Runner Highlight: Overall Winner: Bartek
• Antarctica Marathon Runner Highlight: Blind Runner: Henrick Wagner
• Day 4: Dahno Island, Michelson Bay
• Day 4: Race Award Ceremony
• Day 5: Curverville Island, Wilhelmina Bay
• Day 6: Paradise Bay, First and only Continental Antarctica Landing
• Day 6: Outdoor BBQ in Paradise Bay
• Day 6: Paradise Bay Zodiac Cruise and Seals
• Day 6: Champagne Toast and after dinner Pictionary
• Sheraton BA convention Center Review
• AA First EZE-MIA-BOS Review

Once we boarded and the ship left the port, we had a lifeboat drill. We had to find our life jackets and make our way to the designated lifeboats. There is a large life boat on each side of the ship and depending on which side of the ship you were on, the lifeboat on that side is yours.

As we sailed out into Drake’s Passage, we saw a double rainbow on our way out. It was the most photographed scene on our 10 days in Antarctica.

Dinner was served in the main dining room before we got to the Drake Passage. The dining room can hold about 110 people so it was enough to hold about the 100 guests onboard. The normal entrance is in the reception area as you can see from the third picture.

Before the food is served, the staff usually gives a short speech summarized what happened that day and also a quick schedule of the next day. They will usually say when the next meal is as it changes slightly from day to day. They will also announce any shore excursions and what to do there.

It was during this speech that we were told to “Drake Proof” our cabins. In Drake’s passage, the ship can get tossed around because of the waves so make sure that any object you place on a table cannot fall any further (like onto the ground). I kept everything in the dressers in our rooms and made sure to tie my camera to the railing on the table so that if it did fall, it wouldn’t fall onto the floor.

After dinner, I took another tour of the ship and then went up to the bar.

This screen is linked to the ship via wifi and shows the map. This device is usually up at the bar near the coffee/tea area by the bar. There are a few of these screens spread throughout the ship telling you where you are (like anyone would really know anyway), our heading and speed.

I had a drink or two with a few people the first night on the boat. The boat started rocking when we entered Drake Passage about 11pm. We played cards with the other passengers in the lounge and stayed up till about 1am.