Day 8 was a day that we had all been looking forward to for several months. It was on our must do list before we even started planning. We woke up early, had breakfast, and headed to the port. We were ready for a boat trip on the Strait of Magellan to visit Isla Magdalena. This little island in the Strait is home to the Magellan penguins for 5-6 months of the year. In September the males arrive to ready the nest for his mate (which is always the same mate, but they only see each other while on this island, they separate in the off season). The females arrive and then the beginning of October brings 1-2 eggs. For 40-45 days the eggs incubate and then the babies are born. When we saw them (Feb. 14) the babies were quite large, but easy to recognize by their grayish brown or light grey soft feathers. Right now the young are learning to fish for themselves because come end of March they are on their own as all the penguins leave and head north to coasts of Brasil.
Run Easton Run!
This penguin is nesting!
I just gotta sing!
How I love these two.
Look at all of them!
After the boat it was on to lunch and a little exploring of Punta Arenas. Then a little down time and a Peruvian dinner. The next day we packed up and headed to the airport for a smooth flight home. It was an extraordinary trip. We saw an amazing part of the world and loved it all. And as a bonus we had perfect weather. Warm and mostly sunny, what a true miracle for us.
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