Trekking the World

[amara-adventures]

All the right stuff: sunglasses and sunscreen

As we continue to prepare for Antarctica, we’re working through all the other “stuff” we’ll need as we travel. The ship has shampoo, conditioner, body wash and water bottles, so we don’t have to bring 10 days’ worth of those. But we do need the basics for Buenos Aires, Ushuaia and Mendoza. We now have a box of all the things we think we’ll need, from medication to camera lens cleaner to eye masks to clothespins.

Everything we’ve read says that two things are important for health and safety: the right sunglasses and sunscreen.

Having sunburned my lips in Kenya due to not reading the sunscreen bottle closely, I no longer mess around. I buy high-quality sunscreen, usually with zinc in it. I’m fair, and while I don’t usually burn, extended exposure to the sun wreaks havoc with my skin. Extended exposure near the south pole could lead to real problems because the Antarctic ozone hole was quite large in 2021.

The UVA and UVB rays not only harm skin, but also harm the eyes. We’d have a triple threat: A sun that never fully set, light reflection on ice and light reflection on water. We read reports and scientific studies. We checked out packing lists for anyone working in Antarctica. I asked my eye doctor what he thought.

And then we started the search for sunglasses.

While others might find this the easiest part, I found it daunting. Visible light transmission, or VLT, was a factor. UV protection was necessary. The reports on whether you need polarized lenses varied.

When traveling to Patagonia in 2018, my husband’s sunglasses essentially melted in the direct sun. The coating peeled off, looking like they’d melted. We knew the danger was real. We needed good eye protection

Everything said the same thing though: Do not expose your eyes, either from the front or the sides. Get lenses that offer protection on all sides, and be sure they work with hats, balaclavas, scarves and anything else that might go on your face.

All my testing was done in Chicago, where the UV rays aren’t too bad and the ozone hole is not as treacherous. But we have snow and cold, so I’m pretty confident I’ll be OK.

My husband and I selected different options. We both picked sunglasses with sides blocked from light that had the correct UV protection, but from there, we varied. Not many companies make the correct products, but Julbo came through with an option for each of us.

For a second pair, I went with photochromic ski goggles, he went with photochromic biking glasses. I’m confident my goggles will be perfect when on land or moving in the Zodiac, but then again, they might be too much.

[amara-adventures]

The suitcase doesn’t quite close!

[amara-adventures]

Clothing for Antarctica

Countdown clock: 24 days!!

About two days ago, we got the “official” paperwork emailed to us for Antarctica. This is really happening!

Today we decided to try packing. We pulled out everything we wanted to bring, and sorted through it. We’ve tested clothes (my black long underwear are warmer than the white ones), culled the items that don’t fit or won’t work for at least three days and settled on how to pack.

One big problem is that we’re spending five days in 80°F+ weather (Buenos Aires and Mendoza), a few days in 40°F weather (Ushuaia) and 10 days in 30°F or below weather (Antarctica). After watching the weather at Esperanza Base in Antarctica — the base closest to our Weddell Sea destination that has weather tracking — we knew the temperature was hovering around 20°F each day, with some fierce winds.

Most of our clothes are geared toward Antarctica, and some will work for our time in Ushuaia. I’m bringing:

Three wool boot socks.

Two fleece-lined waterproof pants.

Two poly-something blend long underwear.

Two performance shirts (SPF 50 and breathable).

Two zipper fleece tops.

Two sleeveless shirts.

Two warm hats.

Two pair gloves/mittens.

Two balaclavas.

Two pair sunglasses.

One fleece scarf.

One fleece leggings.

One bathing suit. 

One pair convertible, breathable pants for moderate/warm weather, for plane travel and for hanging out on the ship.

One casual knit shirt (long sleeves).

One workout outfit, including sports bra (CrossFitters never stop).

One polypropylene glove liner.

One polypropylene boot liner.

One pair waterproof pants to fit over layers.

One pair shorts.

One pajama set.

One gaiter.

Underwear and short socks.

One pair each: flip-flops, walking shoes and low hiking boots.

Another big problem: This doesn’t all fit in the suitcase.

[amara-adventures]

All the right stuff

Traveling to Antarctica requires you to buy all the right stuff in preparation. While tour operators give you lists — and lots of them — it’s really up to you to decide how you plan to travel. Do you want to focus on photography? Is hiking your thing? Do you want to spend the day with penguins?

For us, living in Chicago is a benefit. We already have cold-weather clothes. We’re familiar with the importance of layers. Long underwear is part of our normal attire in February.

But did we truly have all the right stuff?

It turns out we had about 75% of what we needed. Fleece-lined leggings, fleece-lined waterproof pants and long underwear are part of our standard winter wear. Because we try to hike as much as possible (in Chicago and elsewhere), we had layers of protection.

What we didn’t have:

Ultraviolet and peripheral protection on our sunglasses or goggles. This turned out to be tough, so more on this later.

Polypropylene sock and glove liners.

The right filters for our camera.

Enough boot socks.

“Performance” layers that breathe and keep you warm at the same time.

Waterproof pants.

Seasickness medication.

We already had:

Long underwear.

Fleece-lined pants.

SPF/UPF protection in shirts.

Layers of clothing to choose from, including many of the required specialty items.

Detergent for washing all these clothes in our cabin.

Because they are supplied by Quark, we didn’t need a parka or snow boots. These items are cleaned and sanitized daily by the operator, so we had to work with their untested products. 

We shopped virtually, and carefully selected items to try over the course of several months. While some items couldn’t truly be tested in warmer weather, we could at least try things on and wait for the chill to come.

We also talked to doctors about seasickness remedies, consulted friends about their favorite clothing and looked back at previous vacations to see what we’d really used a lot of.

By one month before the trip, we were pretty sure we had all the right stuff.

[amara-adventures]

The money talk, part 3

We suddenly had an opportunity. February 2021 travel was completely cancelled, and February 2022 in Antarctica was our new goal. And we still had that savings account going.

Saving $1,800 each month over the course of 24 months may seem insane. Or maybe brilliant. You can decide, but that extra 12 months brought our savings up to almost $38,000 plus interest. We’d settled into an uncertain COVID routine of wave after wave of worldwide illnesses, border openings and closings and dogged personal determination that we’d go somewhere.

We decided that, with the extra money on hand, we’d spend an additional few days on the road. We had spent some extra time reading, viewing travel shows and daydreaming, so we hatched a plan for about 19 days of travel.

And, because we sometimes travel with a friend, we extended the invitation for her to join us. If we’d saved all this time, surely she had, too! (I’ll come back to the topic of traveling with friends. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. With her, it works.)

Alisa politely declined our offer to join us on the cruise because of cost. A single traveler incurs higher expenses, unless he or she is willing to share a room with a stranger or can afford a single supplement. On a ship, which often doesn’t allow for unused beds, the costs can become astronomical. 

So she opted to meet us in Ushuaia, which was now a post-cruise visit. 

[amara-adventures]

Antarctica is closed

By mid-March, COVID had rocked the world. Chicago had shut down. We were in a strange limbo like the rest of the world. We felt lucky that we’d booked our Antarctica cruise because we had something to look forward too. We also felt lucky we hadn’t booked our flights. April would be better. We’d book then.

April, May, June ... we still thought COVID would be gone by the fall, and that some semblance of normalcy would return. Looking back, we even had emails with our Pique Travel adviser asking us if we wanted to kayak for a day or a full week. Apparently, the Quark Expeditions cruise line we’d selected booked up quickly for these kayaking excursions. 

By September 2020, Quark cancelled all of its cruises and the trip was officially cancelled. We had a choice to make: Get all of our deposit money back or book for 2022 and hope for the best. We hadn’t booked any flights or hotels. For the first time, I was happy I’d procrastinated. 

We went with optimism. We booked a new cruise for February 2022, and left our deposit with the cruise company. They didn’t have a lot of details, but they said that, because we were retaining our booking, we’d be upgraded. 

Antarctica didn’t have any COVID cases, but everything between Chicago and Ushuaia sure did ... and most countries’ borders were closed. Antarctica travel options closed for us. All travel closed for the vast majority of the world. 

[amara-adventures]

The money talk, part 2

Money plays a big part in everything. We both work full-time, which helps immensely, but our travel tastes are different. I try to save every penny so that when it matters, we have a few left over. My husband is more extravagant. Over the past several years, we’ve learned to meet in the middle. Saving a lot helps.

Our initial Antarctica planning started in mid-2019. The cruise line choices and down payment were made in January 2020. But now we had to figure out the rest of the trip.

I had no desire to spend any time in Buenos Aires. I live in a big, dirty city right now. I tend to enjoy mid-size cities and smaller towns while traveling. I wanted to spend extra time before the cruise in Ushuaia, the port city, and time after in Mendoza, several hundred miles to the north (read: warmth). 

And, because we travel frequently to both international and U.S. destinations, we knew it was important to book flights and hotels so we had choices and good prices. 

In January 2020, we started looking at flights. We eventually settled on ORD > USH > ( Antarctica comes into play here) > MDZ > ORD. We also considered adding in the Atacama Desert at the end of the trip in lieu of Mendoza. We knew we’d have to fly a U.S. carrier to get to Argentina and back, and then local flights while in-country. 

I’ve always loved travel. I started traveling when I was little, and visited Las Vegas for the first time when I was three. I remember none of it, but my mom says we spent a lot of time in the hotel room because Vegas was no place for a baby, and my dad was hooked on poker or blackjack. She didn’t gamble, so Las Vegas at that time was boring for a young mother.

My first international trip to Europe at age six was memorable. I was the only girl in pants on the playground, I spoke enough French to order my own food in Paris and staying up late was normal. 

So I’m comfortable traveling. I don’t always do it well, but I feel like I can get around on my own. I’ve traveled extensively in the U.S. and abroad for work and pleasure.

In February 2020, flights with our departure dates were now available. We considered and reconsidered, and decided to book in March.

Then COVID.

[amara-adventures]

The money talk

Saving for the trip was high on the list of things to do. While we try to always have a little tucked away for travel, this trip would require some rigorous saving, with some of the expenses paid for afterward (hello, credit!).

We had to have “the money talk.” How much were we willing to spend? Would we be able to take this trip in the next year? Were we crazy to spend this much on travel (short answer: no)? Where could we save?

We did a little math and realized that we’d be able to pay for a lot of the cruise if we dipped into savings and saved extra over the course of the year, but we’d have to put everything else on the credit card. Not ideal, but we were willing to float the funds a few months past the actual trip. It wouldn’t be the first time, and it definitely seemed worth it. 

We had to prepare for:

Cruise (and any extras)

Plane travel

Hotels

Equipment and clothing

Insurance

Gratuities and specialty items.

Because we’d been to South America’s Patagonia region a few years before, we knew how difficult it was to get to/from it. Plus, we’d be traveling in February, which is winter in Chicago. We wanted to tack on a few extra days of travel in Argentina and Chile so that all the plane travel was worthwhile. And so we could have warmth and sun in February.

The cruise is about $11,000 per person, and we had to put a down payment on it to secure our date and cabin. Pique Travel Design walked us through all the details, helped us select a cabin and worked with Quark Expeditions to ensure we had the dates and details squared away. We got a $2,200 discount for booking early.

We pulled the $4,400 down payment out of savings and started prepping for the remaining expenses. Someone recommended Synchrony Bank for a high-interest savings account, so we opened an account and put away $1,800 per month. That would give us nearly $22,000 by the end of the year of saving. 

We estimated the whole trip would cost closer to $30,000 by the time we’d checked off everything on the list. Flights were running slightly less than $2,000 per person to Argentina, so we had our general budget ready to roll.

[amara-adventures]

Travel research: How to pick a cruise company

We selected Quark Expeditions because we thought the other passengers might match our demographic. We’ve been to some bucket list places before, like safari in Kenya, and learned that many travelers were much older than us. In our mid-40s, we wanted to travel with people who enjoyed trekking, education, food and overall adventure. 

We wanted to be with active, adventuresome travelers who were willing to spend more than an hour or two off the ship. While we’re not exceptionally fit, we do both work out five or six days a week, both weights and metabolic conditioning (maybe I’ll start a blog about CrossFit for mid-40s athletes some day!). 

We wanted to see wildlife, take the small Zodiac boats close to land and ice and discover as much as possible in our 10 days.

Lindblad Expeditions was considered, too. Its connection to National Geographic was really appealing. We both love history, geography and animals and plants. 

There are plenty of cruise and travel companies that take you to Antarctica. In our research, we learned that ship size mattered. The smaller, the better. These ships are allowed to do more, and get closer to things. Anything with more than 500 passengers was a “no” on our list. 

Because we don’t have a history of taking cruises, the ship itself didn’t matter too much to us. Yes, we wanted good food and drink. Yes, we wanted comfortable accommodations. But we knew the adventure was really outside the ship, so we picked the one we thought was better. 

The 10-day cruise includes two days on the Drake Passage, and eight days of adventure and trekking. We’d made up our minds and it was time for a down payment. 

[amara-adventures]

Travel research: the when and how

Once we’d signed on with Pique Travel, we had some things to think about. 

We had to pick dates and a cruise company. Antarctica is “open” for tourists only a couple of months during the Southern Hemisphere summer. To avoid any conflicts with conferences or work travel, we selected a date in mid-February 2021.

We booked it. We put our down payment on a cabin on a Quark Expeditions ship, which matched our requests, age and lifestyle options.

That gave us a year to prep, and time to save some extra money.

One of the first choices was whether we wanted to fly from Ushuaia, Argentina, and then get on the cruise, thus avoiding the Drake Passage. It was a little more expensive, but it would allow us to avoid the seasickness that often comes with the “Drake Shake.” 

There are definitely pros to skipping the Drake Shake. I’d been on a deep-sea fishing boat off the coast of Aruba a few years before, and had gotten seasick. That was a morning of puking (I puked only one time, thank you). This would be at least 24 hours of puking. Yes, there are seasickness remedies, but they don’t always work. 

Our travel adviser talked to us a lot, and shared a lot of detail via email. Eventually, we decided that the rite of passage of crossing the Drake Passage was something we wanted to experience. Seasickness be damned. We were doing the whole thing. 

We opted for a 10-day cruise via Quark Expeditions, which fell within our price range, gave us enough options for adventure and seemed about right for the time we could take off (yes, we both work full-time). 

Full disclosure: Neither of us has ever been on a cruise. We even considered going on a brief one before we booked to see how we’d react. We knew this wasn’t quite a “normal” cruise, so we decided it wasn’t worth our money or time to go on a calm, relaxing Caribbean cruise to try out the concept of seasickness. 

[amara-adventures]

In the beginning

Planning a trip to Antarctica is unlike any other vacation or travel planning I’ve done. We’ve been fortunate to travel a lot, and Antarctica would be my last continent (my husband’s sixth continent). While the logistics were daunting, we knew we could handle it.

My husband and I started thinking about Antarctica shortly after our big vacation in fall 2019 and earnest preparations in early 2020. We began with a lot of research, focusing on what we needed to prepare and how we could accomplish everything.

We read books, watched movies and asked everyone we knew. No one we knew had been to Antarctica, so our research was important. 

The first step was finding a tour operator that offered what we wanted — a cruise with options for various adventures by sea and on land. A coworker’s college roommate owns a company that specializes in adventure travel, so the hunt was simplified dramatically. Plus, I’d met this CEO in a bar over beer and appetizers several years before, so the deal was sealed.

We are working with Pique Travel Design (hi, Liz!!), based out of Minnesota. There were so many things to think about. We realized that a cruise was probably the best option in our price range, so we started thinking about the choices thrown at us. 

When looking at everything, we had to make some key decisions, which I’ll break down separately.

1. When did we want to go, and how did we want to get there? What did we want out of this trek?

2. Cost is a huge issue, and should be factored into planning. Finances would determine what we could do.

3. Details, details, details. There are a lot. 

These will be broken down in different sections because there are so many details!