Packing questions

We will be on Le Boreal in December; we're already reviewing our packing lists :o As we will also be touring South America while we're at that end of the world, we're trying to weed out as much weight/bulk as possible. A few questions:

- What were you the most glad that you packed?

- What did you pack that you could/should have left home?

- What didn’t pack that you wish you had?

We will be on Le Boreal in December; we're already reviewing our packing lists :o As we will also be touring South America while we're at that end of the world, we're trying to weed out as much weight/bulk as possible. A few questions:

- What were you the most glad that you packed?

Water-Proof Pants, Thermal Underwear, Thermal Socks.

Bought a "cheap" pair of 3/4 high boots. Left on the Ship.

Wanted to ensure that I had a pair of boots that fit.

Sun Glasses. Ski Gloves.

 

- What did you pack that you could/should have left home?

Heavy wool turtle neck sweater. Only wore once.

Was too warm with the Thermal Coat that the Ship provided.

 

- What didn’t pack that you wish you had?

Can not think of any thing that I wish that I had.

Click on my Screen Name -- Profile Pic from Antarctica

Enjoy Antarctica !!! It's a "once in a life time"

We will be on Le Boreal in December; we're already reviewing our packing lists :o As we will also be touring South America while we're at that end of the world, we're trying to weed out as much weight/bulk as possible. A few questions:

- What were you the most glad that you packed?

Leather coat, wool beanie, thermal longjohns, sealskin or fleece socks, sunshades, pocket camera for use while on the zodiacs, lightweight sweater, waterproof pants, seasick meds

- What did you pack that you could/should have left home? Spare waterproof pants, space fleece socks, spare gloves

- What didn’t pack that you wish you had? Should have brought a balaclava instead of the wool beanie

We generally brought to many clothes and to many "spare or backup" items.

The best thing we brought was spare memory cards for the cameras, and a small pocket camera to use while on the zodiacs.

It will not be as cold as you might think. For us the coldest time was while on the zodiacs with the wind, good eye protection and something that covers most of you face is sufficient. We had many days on outside decks wearing just a long sleeve shirt.

It's a stunning, unforgettable trip of a lifetime. We are going again next year.

Happy sailing.

RonC

I took a padded 'fisherman's/photographer's' jacket. It kept me warm underneath the 'wind and waterproof' but not warm jacket supplied by Hurtigruten on our Fram trip and it also had the advantage of having a whole lot of pockets into which I could stuff quite a lot of items that would have taken me well over the airlines' carry-on luggage limit.

Do check that your gloves have actually been packed! Ours were left at home by some freak oversight and we had to pay £45 per pair for two pairs on the Fram when the oversight was discovered.

We took too many long sleeved, polo necked shirts. Only a couple each were needed as they could be washed and dried overnight in the heated bathroom. Taking fewer would have helped with keeping down the weight of the luggage.

Do remember to take thin garments that can be layered, rather than thick ones that make temperature regulation difficult.

A scarf is useful for keeping out the wind when on deck: it was very cold in the strong winds we encountered in Antarctic Sound and the wind found its way through any gaps we had left.

A small backpack is useful for landings where you will want to take camera equipment ashore and, when there, possibly take a layer of clothing off if the exertion of walking around in your several layers makes you too warm. It also has the advantage of leaving both hands free when getting in and out of the Polar Cirkle or zodiac.

In addition to all the good advice above, I was quite happy to have taken a pair of thin "undergloves" to wear inside the big gloves. They are very useful if you are an avid photographer, you can take off the big gloves and keep your fingers somewhat warm while still allowing for use of the photographic equipment.

And spare batteries for my camera, they wear out rapidly when it's cold.

a. What were you the most glad that you packed?

4 point power board. Brilliant for charging multiple things at once.

Sunscreen and SPF 30 lip balm.

Thin liner gloves.

b. What did you pack that you could/should have left home?

Fleeces. Packed 3 huge bulky ones, could have got away with just one and a fleece vest instead. And as someone else said - too many choices of tops. Really just needed 2.

Scarf. Useless. Wind catches them and you risk them flying off into the mouth of a seal. Replaced it with a neck gaiter - much more efficient.

Fancy neoprene "photographers" ski gloves. Absolute waste of money - nearly got frostbite on the first outing in them - relieved a fellow passenger had a spare set of gloves to loan me.

Expensive single use handwarmers. Never needed them at all - even in minus 37 celcius. Ended up selling them to the ships shop !

c. What didn’t pack that you wish you had?

On the first trip which was 30 days - I longed for my own comfy pillow. So I took my own for the second trip - nicely sucked into a compression bag.

Get some Argentine Pesos before you leave.

Banks would only convert $ 100.00 USDs minimum.

Went to a Cambio (Money Exchange) to get a lesser amount.

Take your PassPort with you.

Buenos Aires will be quite warm in December.

However, wear a jacket when you fly to Ushuaia.

It is a tad cool there.

Get some Argentine Pesos before you leave.

Banks would only convert $ 100.00 USDs minimum.

Went to a Cambio (Money Exchange) to get a lesser amount.

Take your PassPort with you.

That's expensive. We use the ATM at the airport and get the amount we want at the wholesale rate of exchange. There are cards, we have two, which don't charge for their use 'abroad'.

We are considering an antarctic cruise for next year. I have seen several people mention having walking poles to help them. How do you pack these? Really enjoy everyone's input and question.

You can buy collapsible walking sticks. They fit neatly into a soft case and take up little room in your suitcase.

How important do folks think it is to have a walking stick? (I do have a collapsible Leki hiking stick, but I'd rather not bring it if it's really not necessary....)

Thanks for the info on this thread. We go in January, and I've been working on our gear list... Got the Muck Boots months ago... :)

I am defeinitely taking my collapsible REI hiking pole - I have horrible balance and am too independent to hold onto my husband :o

Mine telescopes into itself to fit into my checked luggage quite nicely.

I took one for the Galapagos and found it indispensable. I tried going without it one day, but went back to bringing it after that. It depends on how slippery and rocky the surface is where you are walking/hiking.

On my trip to Antarctica I had a travel walking stick for the shore trips. I was really glad I had brought it. It telescoped up and had a little bag to put it in. While on shore, if you happen to step off the people path, you can end up in snow up to your knees or higher. The walking stick is very helpfull to get you out. The Explorer did have walking sticks for people to borrow but they looked very awkward to have in the zodiac because they didn't telescope up small. They basically looked like ski poles. While on the ship I left mine with my boots in the mud room.

I had two cameras, a small one for the zodiac rides and video, and a larger one for on shore. I had brought some thick mittens for on shore but ended up only using my thinner gloves because it was much to hard to take pictures with the heavy mittens. It really wasn't that cold on shore, around 30°F or so, and sunny.

Julie

Thanks to all of you for the hiking stick info; I will go ahead and bring mine.

One more question: what did you wear on the landings from your waist down? To be more specific, I don't think anything really thick and heavy like jeans (which aren't that practical in cold anyway) would fit under my Muck Boots. I'm thinking maybe something like winter running tights inside the boots, with the waterproof pants outside. Any thoughts on this? Would I want "long johns" as a base layer?

What did you folks wear? Did it work well? Would something have been better?

Thanks again!

Not sure which ship you are on but waterproof trousers were mandatory on the Fram. I wore long johns underneath (and my wife managed, almost, to stifle a laugh) with the waterproof trousers over the Muck boots to create a seal of sorts. As you say, jeans are a no-no as they soak up water and become very heavy and cold.

Not sure which ship you are on but waterproof trousers were mandatory on the Fram. I wore long johns underneath (and my wife managed, almost, to stifle a laugh) with the waterproof trousers over the Muck boots to create a seal of sorts. As you say, jeans are a no-no as they soak up water and become very heavy and cold.

Thanks! We'll be on the Nat'l Geo/Lindblad Explorer. I will definitely have waterproof pants (over the boots), but I'm trying to get a handle on what to wear under the waterproof layer -- are the long johns enough, or do I want a layer on top of that (beneath the water proof pants)?

What have others worn? Thanks!

We went in February and found that it really wasn't as cold as many might imagine.

I had thermal long johns on underneath the waterproofs and they were more than adequate on landings. When I was on deck with my camera (and long lens: very useful!) I wore a pair of jeans without the long johns and, even though I was out for long periods, I was more than comfortable.

Inside the boots I had started off with two pairs of socks, one thick, one thin, but soon changed to just the one thick pair.

Thanks to all of you for the hiking stick info; I will go ahead and bring mine.

 

One more question: what did you wear on the landings from your waist down? To be more specific, I don't think anything really thick and heavy like jeans (which aren't that practical in cold anyway) would fit under my Muck Boots. I'm thinking maybe something like winter running tights inside the boots, with the waterproof pants outside. Any thoughts on this? Would I want "long johns" as a base layer?

 

What did you folks wear? Did it work well? Would something have been better?

 

Thanks again!

Long johns - nylon travel pants - waterproof pants.

Too much clothing can impair your agility so layers are best. Also, there was an ongoing debate on whether to wear the pants inside or outside the boots. The ship wanted us to wear the pants outside the boots, but we liked wearing them inside. They will get dirty with poop, and on getting back to the boat you will be hosed down, especially the boots. We could not see getting our pant bottoms covered with poop, plus we wear muck boots a lot here on the Gulf coast and are use to wearing them inside. At least it kept the smell out of our cabin from poopy pants and it was easy to wash the boots off. We wore sealskin waterproof socks which solved any problem of a bit of water getting into our boots. Just a thought, I am sure there are tons of opinions on this.

RonC

We found that our waterproof trousers remained remarkably clean and, because we wore them outside the boots, they got a good hosing down each time we returned to the ship. Being outside the boots also meant that water from the hosing down couldn't get over the tops of the boots and down inside! But, in the end, it's down to personal preference.

My waterproof pants were insulated so there were some days that I only wore my longjohns under them. On our first landing in a snow storm I was glad to have my fleece pants along with my longjohns under them. Also on the zodiac rides I wore three layers. On the boat I just wore my jeans on the bottom and was really bundled up on top. The wind could be really cold on the bow of the Explorer.

Since my waterproof pants were similar to ski pants they had a little liner at the bottom of the pant leg. I would put that liner inside my boots and have the longer pant leg on the outside.

Julie

Thank you all for the tips about waterproof pants and what you wore underneath. I ordered insulated waterproof pants yesterday from LL Bean and should get them soon. Sounds like they may be sufficient on certain landings just with long johns underneath, but we'll be prepared with another layer for colder days and zodiac cruising.

If I may ask a different question: for you folks who brought a DSLR along (as I will be doing), did you have it in a waterproof backpack (or similar bag) in the zodiac? Cougfan, I believe you said on another thread that you did. Lindblad recommends this, and I've actually bought one they suggest (made by Outdoor Research), but my partner (who is not into photography) kind of thinks I'm nuts to bring this along. (It's actually quite light, she just thinks it will be a pain when we are ashore.)

For folks who didn't use a waterproof bag, did you wing it with plastic bags; were they sufficient? I just don't want some big splash, wave or a fall to take out my camera. I watched a webinar by Nat Geo's Director of Expedition Photography, and he really recommended the waterproof bag. He said at least one person on every trip has a camera ruined by water. :(

If I may ask a different question: for you folks who brought a DSLR along (as I will be doing), did you have it in a waterproof backpack (or similar bag) in the zodiac?

I have a Lowepro Camera Bag that has a built-in "rain coat" (I'm not sure it's the right word! ;)), which I usually put on for the zodiac ride. It wouldn't help if the bag were to fall into the water, but it proved OK for the waves you might receive during the ride.

Regarding the waterproof pant, I brought along the one I use for sailing. It's windproof as well as waterproof (and breathable) and usually I had two layers under it (tights and long johns).

You can usually see how rough the transfer to shore will be.

On those that were clearly going to be dry I kept the camera under my outer jacket and popped it out to use while on the water.

On the others I put my camera and lenses into a (fairly) waterproof backpack and put the backpack under my outer jacket.

A tip. Do not sit at the bow of the Polar Cirkle/Zodiac. Sit further back and let your fellow passengers shelter you from the splashes!

 

I watched a webinar by Nat Geo's Director of Expedition Photography, and he really recommended the waterproof bag. He said at least one person on every trip has a camera ruined by water. :(

He's right, there is always at least one person who loses a camera, usually due to an 'immersion event' rather than a splash from a wave on a zodiac. My last expedition the camera went in with passenger holding it when they slipped getting out of the zodiac. Getting in and out of the zodiac at the landing site can be the biggest problem. Antarctica is not so bad, but zodiac landings at the Falklands, South Georgia and beyond can be tricky in windy/wavy conditions. I have a lovely video shot on Inaccessible Island where an entire zodiac of passengers is swapped by a wave whilst trying to get off the 'beach', followed up with the expedition leader dumping the seawater out of his Muck boots.

A small P&S tucked into a plastic bag will usually survive an immersion event. Personally I always have two DSLRS with me in a zodiac - in holsters which are then in a roll-top dry bag. We've all survived 6 trips involving zodiacs so far :-)