We reached the end of Andvord Bay which is called Neko Harbor. It was named Neko Harbor for an old whaling ship that anchored here in the early 1900s. This was our third land excursion and our first time stepping on the Antarctic Peninsula, or mainland Antarctica.

Our expedition crew was very adamant to us that we needed to get off our landing boats and immediately move to higher ground. They told us that Neko Harbor was one place with glaciers that constantly calved. When a big glacier has a big calve, it can send a wave (like a small tsunami) that is fifteen to twenty feet high across the bay.

You can see the end of Andvord Bay and Neko Harbor in the first picture. If you look on the lower portion of the picture and on the left side, you can see one of our boats landing and people starting to walk ashore. The boat and people look a bit insignificant in the photo.

You can tell how bad I was at following directions by looking at the second photo. Just as I came ashore, a large Weddell seal gave me a high five (a raised flipper) and I had to stop and take a picture of it. After I got the photo, I moved to higher ground.

The third photo was something that I found interesting. We all know what white snow is. I suspect that most of us know what yellow snow is. But who knows what red snow is? Look at the third photo.

The Antarctic is a harsh environment. The red color comes from algae that has evolved over time to be able to grow at extremely low temperatures, but while algae can grow at those low temperatures, it can’t produce chlorophyll which is what makes plants green. If you look at the upper edge near the rocks, you can see a few places where there was enough sun and warmth to turn the algae green.