Shakin’ on the Drake

We’re here! Onboard Silver Wind, smack bang in the middle of the Drake Passage.

It’s certainly an experience and not as bad as I expected … but more on that in a bit.

We left Santiago at around 2.30pm to board a bus to Puerto Williams, the southernmost inhabited settlement in the world. As I mentioned in my last post, I’m not a great flyer which the charter flight south absolutely confirmed. While the view of the Andes Mountains was spectacular, we hit a lot of turbulence in the second half of the flight and I immediately went into panic mode.

flying south to Puerto Williams

It’s hard to explain to people who are not flight phobic but the sheer terror of being convinced you’re going to die is real. I was cold and then hot and there were tears. It probably didn’t help that I was seriously sleep deprived (having lain awake the previous night worrying that I would die either on the flight or the boat, so far so good on both fronts) and had just read a particularly emotional scene in The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah. By the time we descended through a woolly blanket of cloud and came to a stop on the rain-soaked runway I’d managed to pull myself together and climb onto the bus that would take us to the ship.

Silver Wind

And there she was, Silver Wind, lit up and sparkling against the black night sky. We clambered up the gangplank and went through the various registration stations before heading to our room. As a cruise virgin I had no idea how large—or small— the cabin would be but I was relieved to find it generously proportioned with a walk-in wardrobe, shiny bathroom, comfy bed and a living area complete with tea and coffee making facilities and a small balcony I hope to breakfast on once we reach the Antarctic in another 36 hours.

our cabin

Which brings me to our current experience, the Drake Passage. This is the body of water between the southern tip of South America at Cape Horn, Chile and the South Shetland Islands.Back on the day quite a few early explorers came undone crossing the Drake, with its sometimes raging winds and wild swell. 

hopefully I won’t be needing this

If (like me) you believe even half the Tik Tok videos on what it’s like to cross the Drake Passage these days, you’d be thinking you too may end up at the bottom of the ocean. Videos of towering waves smashing over the window panes while cutlery and crockery go flying, are definitely showing the Drake at its worst. When we went to sleep last night I could barely feel the ship moving then I woke to the creaking of timber, something like floorboards creaking overhead. There was a shimmy happening but nothing like what I’d imagined. 

sunrise over the Drake

That said, walking to the dining room for breakfast did require diving for a handrail and there may have been some clumsy stumbling as I perused the breakfast buffet (more like a breakfast banquet). But all utensils stayed in place as we sat gazing out at the jade-green wash at the back of the ship while we ate.

Then it was up to the Observation Deck at the front of the ship to gaze some more, and try to spy a whale amongst the whitecaps. This is where I got a glimpse of the Drake I’d seen on social media: the bow of the ship dipping and rising as it ploughs through the 4 metre waves and water lashes the windows. Speaking to staff revealed this is actually quite a rough crossing so I’m pretty chuffed with myself for not being green and horizontal. I do have a mild queasiness and have thrown back a few seasick pills as insurance, but with the weather apps predicting less wind and a lower swell from tonight through to Saturday morning when we arrive, hopefully we’re through the worst of it.

On the small talk front, like Poppy in Funny Story (by Emily Henry) I’m probably not as bad as it as I think. We chatted to a couple of lovely US/Russian women at dinner last night, and then Lisa from Florida at the Observation Deck, and Gabrielle, one of the Expedition Leaders in the lounge. 

a well stocked library

And with each conversation my writer’s brain has been activated, casting them as characters in a book, and wondering about their backstory. Maybe that’s the key to comfortable conversation: imaging the people I meet as fictional characters and ‘interviewing’ them in the same way. I’ll stop short of interrogating them about their childhood wound—that might be a step too far!

With the weather causing a serious bout of leg wobbles, the day has largely been spent in our cabin reading, ordering room service and staring out at the water which is actually pretty mesmerising. Tomorrow will be more of the same which I won’t bore you with but I will share a review of The Great Alone, which I loved.

And if I do happen to spot a whale out there amidst the dark grey depths I’ll share a pic of that too.