Puerto Madryn, Argentina

Sunday, February 17

Weather: 92º F, Sunny

The alarm went off at 6:30 am as the Zaandam was approaching Puerto Madryn, Argentina. Bob hadn't slept well and said his cold was one of the worst he has ever experienced...even his eyeballs hurt. But...he isn't one to let a cold...even a bad one...stop him from doing what he wants.

We had breakfast in the buffet. Kent and Laurel came a few minutes later and it was so packed that we couldn't find four seats together. There was a small note on each table advertising that it was Asian night in the buffet tonight.

The gangway was being set up right outside our window so as soon as we saw people leaving the ship we left our cabins and without even thinking walked down the stairs to Deck A. No gangway there so we thought perhaps it was on Deck 3. Nothing there but we could see the ramp one deck below. Deck 2...Bingo.

We were off the ship before the announcement was made that the ship had been cleared...so much easier than when we have to tender. Large buses were lined up on the dock for HAL tours and just past those was a large group of independent tour operators. Right away I spotted a woman who had a sign with my name. Rita, who would be our guide, was waiting for two other people who would be on our tour and once they arrived we walked the length of a very long dock to where a minibus was waiting.

The gangway was set up right outside our cabin window.

Walking down the dock we heard a strange noise that sounded like it was coming from one of the other boats tied to the pier. Rita motioned us to look over the railing and on a grate below the dock were several sea lions.

Looking over the edge of the dock railing, this is what we saw.

Our driver, Guillermo (or Willie for short,) was waiting in the bus and once we boarded he drove to the north side of the city to pick up the last couple from the hotel where they were staying. The eight of us (plus Willie and Rita) then headed south out of Puerto Madryn.

It was about 80 km on a gravel road to our first stop at the Punta Ninfas Lighthouse. Along the way we stopped several times to get photos of wild guanacos (similar to a llama) and rheas (a bird that looked like a small ostrich.)

Guanacos

Rhea

The lighthouse was on a high cliff where we could look down and see one lone sea lion basking in the sun on the beach below. The temps were in the 90's...such a drastic change from Antarctica where we had just been a few days earlier.

Punta Ninfas Lighthouse

Looking over the edge of the cliff.

A close-up

I kept my distance from the edge of this cliff...it looked a little precarious.

Leaving the lighthouse, Willie drove us to El Pedral...an old farmhouse that had been converted into a small inn with only 8 guest rooms. It was a quick stop, but gave us a chance to use the restroom. We would be returning to El Pedral later for lunch. Back in the minibus it was about a 5 km ride to get to the start of where we would begin our walk to see a large colony of magellenic penguins.

El Pedral Lodge

The land was very dry and covered with small scrub brush type plants but as soon as we started walking down the path we began to see penguins huddled under bushes and in burrows seeking cooler shade. Most of them had their mouths wide open and were panting, trying to keep cool.

The beginning of the trail that leads to the beach.

Rita showing us a penguin egg.

Looking for shade. 

A poor panting penguin.

The long trail led us to the beach with penguins lining both sides of path the entire way. The beach was not sand, but entirely made up of small rocks and probably close to a half mile wide. We watched as penguins walked over the hot rocks making their way down to the water's edge.

Penguin burrows are under most of the bushes lining the path.

This guy was molting. Until the process is complete, he can't go in the water.

 A dead bush = No shade 😢

Those poor penguins had a long, long walk over hot rocks to get to the water.

When we walked over a small hill we were amazed to see hundreds (thousands?) of penguins lined up along the shoreline. Some were going into the water, but most were molting and just standing there, lined up like little soldiers.

The penguins were lined up along the edge of the water in both directions as far as we could see!

There was an old log on the beach and Bob and I sat with Rita and Willie as they shared a cup of mate. We watched as more and more penguins walked across the wide beach to join the others at the shore.

The walk back was long and hot and the AC in the bus was a welcome relief. Willie drove us back to El Pedral where our lunch was being prepared...a lamb being roasted over an open fire! Once it was finished, lunch was served in the pool house and we feasted on warm rolls, empanadas, salad, potatoes and the roasted lamb.

The roasted lamb.

Tomorrow's lunch?

A four-month old guanaco named Lisa kept peeking through the glass door. She had been found caught in a fence and had been living at the inn for a month. Lisa whimpered and begged until Rita went out and gave her a bottle of milk.

If we weren't short of time, we would have been able to swim in the pool.

Lisa

Guanaco kisses.

After eating we went outside and Rita brought us each some fresh fruit salad and small pieces of Welsh cake. (Puerto Madryn was settled by Welsh immigrants in the mid-1800's.) Lisa stayed right with us.

Those eyes!!

All aboard time at the ship was set for 3:30 (for a 4 pm sail away) and I was anxious to start back to Puerto Madryn. Rita kept assuring us that we were fine, but we cut it a little closer than I care. If we were to have had car trouble on the long drive back we would have been in trouble. As it was, my watched showed exactly 3:30 as we were boarding.

The unseasonably hot Sunday afternoon brought many out to enjoy the beach by the cruise ship dock.

A hitchhiker?

Many of the HAL tours had gone to Punta Tombo or the Valdez Peninsula...about double the distance we had traveled. Those buses were also getting back late and didn't arrive until after we were on the ship. When it comes to shore excursions it is a trade-off. The ship tours guarantee you won't be left if the tour is late getting back but...they are usually twice as expensive and many times larger than the private tours you can book independently. We do both but can say the independent tours are almost always more enjoyable.

The map is marked with where we went...El Pedral. It was less than half of the distance to get there from Puerto Madryn compared to tours going to Punta Tombo and Peninsula Valdes. Not sure when this wildlife map was published but it is interesting that it doesn't show penguins at El Pedral. Believe me...they are there!!

After boarding Bob and I sat outside in the loungers on the lower promenade deck taking advantage of our T-Mobile cell service. I was even able to do a FaceTime audio call with my sister. After not having WiFi or cell service for about 10 days, it was good to connect with family at home.

When we opened the door to our cabin, the room smelled of stale cigarette smoke...a problem we had experienced once earlier in the cruise. I mentioned it to our room steward, Deni, and he said others had complained of it in the same sections of cabins before. By the time we left for dinner my eyes were watering, my nose running and I was doing a fair share of sneezing.

Knowing that it was Asian night at the buffet (combined with being tired and not feeling a 100%) Bob decided we would skip the dining room and eat on the Lido deck. Serving didn't start until 6 pm which gave us plenty of time to get cleaned up and relax before dinner.

The Asian dishes were listed on signs at the serving stations but knowing which dish was which was impossible. I just pointed to what looked interesting and ask for a serving. Everything that I tried was pretty good except for the breaded and deep fried hard boiled egg.

Linda, an Australian gal that Bob had met at pickleball, stopped to visit at our table and ended up sitting down with us. To me that is one of the best parts of cruising...getting to know people from all over the world.

The evening entertainment in the theater was Tango Passion...a show combining dancing and vocals along with some of the ship's musicians. The dance couple who were performing were the ones that we had sat with on the shuttle bus the day we boarded the ship. That seemed like such a long time ago!

After the show Bob, Laurel and I went back to our cabins (and ours still smelled of smoke!). Kent had gotten very involved in the jigsaw puzzle in the library and took time to go up and check on the progress.

One last sea day tomorrow. The cruise is winding down.