Drake Lake or Drake Shake??

Probably the single most-dreaded activity of any cruise to Antarctica is crossing the Drake Passage.  It typically takes two full days, so four days of cruise time is spent crossing back and forth.  The Drake Passage is where the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans merge south of Tierra del Fuego at the tip of South America.  It is reputed to have some of the roughest and choppiest seas in the world, with swells measured in meters. Sometimes the swells are small or non-existent (Drake Lake) and sometimes they can be 10 meters or more (Drake Shake).

One of the scientists on board gave an excellent lecture on the Drake Passage and why it can be so rough.  We won't bore you with all the science-y stuff, but it was fascinating to hear how it operates and how the convergence of oceans affect the jet streams and weather patterns in the rest of the world.

Fortunately, we experienced more of a Drake Lake with swells only 2-3 meters.  This new ship handled it superbly, the effects were minimal, and our preventative sea-sickness meds have served us well. Our ship has state-of-the-art stabilization systems and we can tell.  Hopefully the next Drake Passage voyage will go as well.