Kool said:
Awesome trip. Thanks for posting. Antarctica is most definitely on my bucket list. Time and money are always an issue. However, for me, I am really concerned about getting sea sick going through the Drake Passage. I have always been very motion intolerant, and that doesn't seem to be getting any better with age. Were a lot of people on the ship getting sea sick? Did you do a lot of research into which ships were the best for the trip in that sense? I know in one of your posts you mentioned the waves were not all that bad, but did the crew say your trip was better or worse than most in terms of rough seas? Thanks for the posts and the pics.
I was on this ship because it was going to the path of the Total Solar Eclipse and I signed up with Ring of Fire Expeditions. Le Boreal is not an ice breaker, but it does make trips to the North and South on a seasonal basis.
The motion did have an impact. Many people used the Scopolamine Transdermal Patch prescribed by their PCP. However, the ship doctor was prescribing them on the fly and it seemed to work great for 3 days.
Side effects include dry mouth, metallic taste, and some complained about far-sightedness (difficultly focusing on nearer objects and text). I chose to take the non-drowsy Dramamine (ginger) and it worked great. When I ran out of Dramamine, I used an electronic "sea band" from a friend. It's also used for morning sickness. That thing worked great for me! Don't fear it. It's worth the trip!
We had up to 30ft swells. They had to shut down the upper deck service areas (6&7) as glassware and dishes were crashing; almost impossible to serve up there. The crew said they've seen worse, but the ride was certainly not the Drake Lake ever on this trip.
Gig 'em Aggies!
