Winter wildlife on the Antarctic Peninsula

It was well towards the end of the season and approaching winter when we voyaged to Antarctica for our honeymoon from Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world.

I’d been lucky enough to find a surprisingly affordable Russian research ship that was happy to take a few passengers alongside its scientists. We took part in a very rare hiking expedition, setting foot on both the Antarctic Peninsula and Antarctica itself – and got to go on an unscheduled expedition to some of the surrounding islands that tourists seldom get to see.

It was late enough in the season to get stuck in pack ice, as the temperature plummeted and our eyes narrowed against freezing winds. Most newborn life had already headed north for the winter so only a few of the hardiest species remained. They don’t see many humans, so the vast majority were trusting enough to get up close and personal with.

Here is a glimpse of some of the wildlife we saw as Antarctica approached winter that year.