Passengers aboard Adventure Associates’ “Wonders of the Ross Sea” expedition can add another first to their list when they landed atop the world’s largest iceberg, B15a.
The world record-holding* icebreaker, Kapitan Khlebnikov, forced a passage inside McMurdo Sound last week despite the dense pack ice corralled by the now-grounded B15a.
The huge iceberg, the size of Jamaica, was predicted to collide with the Drygalski Ice Tongue, but grounded just kilometres short, trapping the winter pack ice inside of McMurdo Sound.
“The Expedition Leader reported they’d landed by helicopter on top of B15a for a look around, “ said Adventure Associates CEO, Stewart Campbell, himself a veteran of numerous voyages to the Ross Sea region, ‘Of course the going is tougher than normal, but the Khlebnikov is a very powerful vessel.”
“Impromptu sightseeing is a feature of cruising in the deep south, “ continued Campbell, “ the weather and ice can be unpredictable, so you take advantage of whatever presents itself.”
The expedition continued on schedule to visit other highlights of the Ross Sea, including the historic huts of Shackleton and Scott as well as the penguin colonies at Cape Evans and Cape Royds.
* The Kapitan Khlebnikov holds the record of furthest south by any vessel, reaching 78 degrees 37 minutes in the Ross Sea in 2001.
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