Punta Arenas, Chile - Magdalena & Marta islands

Sunday February 25

I booked a tour directly with Solo Expediciones for Magdalena & Marta Islands.
https://www.soloexpediciones.com/penguins-magdalena-marta-island/

We walked the short distance to their office and there were a few others from the ship there as well as other people staying in hotels etc. We got checked in and paid up and waited the hour until the tour began. We missed the first tender and waited about 15 minutes for the next one. The tour didn't start until 10:30, so we weren't in a hurry.

 at the port

 tired puppy

 we here for the tour - their office and hostel

The weather was supposed to be cold and windy (48* to 58*) with a pretty good chance of rain. The email I got from Solo said to wear waterproof clothing and have layers and hats with earflaps since the boat was not covered. It was much warmer and no rain in sight. The boat was also enclosed so we were ready to burst into flames the way we were dressed. It was windy and cool for the hour we were on land with the penguins, but we still didn't need all the layers we had with us.

From the office we all got in a van and drove to where we got our boat. It took about 35 minutes to get to Magdalena Island via the Strait of Magellan. We had 1 hour on the island to see the Magellan Penguins and the sea birds and the lighthouse.

 arrival on the island

 South American Terns

 molting penguin

 Upland Goose

 Greg

 me holding on to my hat so it wouldn't fly away

were they having a poo squirting contest? Maybe it's spin art....

 

We got on the boat and were offered hot chocolate & cookies before we traveled a short distance to Marta Island where they let us go out on deck and they turned the boat so everyone could see the sea lions, Cormorants, Skuas, Austral Seagulls, Antarctic Pigeon and Sea Elephants. They were quite a distance away, but binoculars helped.

 many slept on the way back

Again, if this is the only way you'll ever get to see penguins etc. it was a great experience, but having been to Antarctica where you walk freely amongst thousands of them, this was anticlimactic. We did enjoy it very much however.

We had quite a bit of time after we got back to Punta Arenas and we walked around the town square and shopped at the craft stalls to get my token magnets. Then, we took a walk along the ocean before returning to the ship. Since it was Sunday, we couldn't find anything open to get a cold drink. (and we hadn't had lunch and it was like 4:00.)

 these cute paintings were on the bottom of a building as we walked to the town square

 feeding chick - getting way in there.....

 

We went back to the ship and I stopped to pose with a person in a penguin costume and to tip him you put the bill in it's mouth where a hand grabbed it. Too cute!

We opted for the Asian Buffet upstairs instead of the dining room. YUM!

The entertainment tonight was David Copperfield. No, not THAT one. We have seen him before and he is laugh out loud silly and funny. He can actually really sing, but he is more comical as it's an interesting mix of talents. He was classically trained in opera and he was so good, most thought he was lip synching.

Tomorrow is a sea day and Amalia Glacier. Should be great scenery most of the day as we skim along the coast.

Punta Arenas, Chile https://photos.app.goo.gl/pTqsDR9WKWx3pThJ3