ZECO TRAVEL TALK

From August 10 - 27, travelers set out to explore high above the Arctic Circle, visiting the shores of Greenland, Baffin Island, and Ellesmere Island aboard the powerful icebreaker, Kapitan Khlebnikov. We thought you’d enjoy knowing a few of the highlights from this unique voyage.

• At Lady Franklin Island, off the eastern coast of Baffin, the weather was as perfect as is possible anywhere in the world. The clarity of the air, the blue sky, and the flat sea bode well for our morning’s adventure, a Zodiac cruise around the main island and among the many islets that surround it. Almost immediately two polar bears were sighted on a small island, a mother and a young cub, and both seemed to be in excellent condition.

• Off the mountainous east coast of Baffin, we headed north towards the famous “Minarets” a series of pinnacles rising from a lofty cliff face. These are bird cliffs par excellence and were able to enjoy a Zodiac cruise to get up close. Several species were observed, notably kittiwakes and Brunnich’s guillemot (thick billed murre) and fulmars.

• In Greenland we landed at the little town of Uummannaq situated on a small island adjacent to an impressive, almost conical, mountain. In town, we visited a splendid Danish Lutheran Church, several shops, and a small, but impressive, museum. Read more

A little more than a year ago, in our July 2007 Newsletter, Scott Fitzsimmons introduced Zegrahm travelers to a remarkable 14-year-old classical pianist from Odessa, Dasha Bukhartseva. Some of our Black Sea voyagers had the delight of being entertained by Dasha, and other performers, at a concert at the Gagarin Palace.

Those who met and heard her were astonished at her talent and dedication at such a young age. And a few of our passengers were so moved they felt compelled to take this young lady under their wings and carry her from a very humble existence to a doorway that would open into a world she never could have dreamed of. Her journey to the U. S. in 2007, to the prestigious Aspen Music Festival and School, and next—with highest hopes—to Juilliard, is nothing short of amazing. And all due to a few people, our wonderful passengers, who saw a diamond in the rough and realized they could help make it sparkle.

To quote from Scott’s letter last year:

“The remarkable discovery [of Dasha] and eventual U.S. journey seems fit for a motion picture, with a cast that would include Zegrahm travelers Dan and Lynne Levinson of Colorado and Mieke and Hendrik Smit of Hilton Head, along with expedition leader Lia Oprea and our terrific tour partner in Ukraine, Janna Belousova…

With Dasha on the brink of entering Juilliard, and with support for this endeavor coming from sources all over the country, including many Zegrahm travelers, we felt it was time to give you an update on her progress: Read more

I love bugs, and I love trying to photograph them. A lot of Zegrahm and Eco Expedition’s destinations are swarming, crawling [insert bug locomotion verb that best suits you here] with beautiful insects. If you are in the United States this summer, and find yourself in New Orleans, Louisiana for any length of time, the largest insectarium in the United States opened its doors recently and is getting rave reviews. It is attached to the Audubon Nature Institute and there is an online video.

If you happen to visit Victoria, British Columbia you can stop by my favorite small-scale insectarium - The Victoria Bug Zoo, and if you are in Philadelphia for any length of time, a visit to The Insectarium is in order.

Enjoy!

Andrew

Having graduated from the University of Hawaii, I lived for several years on both Oahu and Maui. I have always been interested in the chain of islands to the north which leads to Midway Island; I eventually did visit Midway. Equally fascinating to me was the southern group of islands leading from Kona. These are the Line Islands, a group of low-lying and extremely remote coral islands, atolls, and reefs straddling the equator in the Central Pacific. There are eleven islands in all, with most of the 425 square km being comprised of the large atoll of Kiritimati. Eight of the islands – Flint, Kiritimati, Malden, Millennium Atoll, Tabuaran, Teraina, Starbuck, and Vostok – are part of the Republic of Kiribati. The group forms one of the remotest island chains on Earth.

Why the interest? At age 16, I become a certified diver at Pearl Harbor. I learned about the Line Islands and how it was one of the most pristine reef systems in the world. I was never able to reach the Line Islands because logistics are near-impossible. So when Zegrahm Expeditions decided to travel to this part of the South Pacific enroute to such other South Pacific voyages as the Tuamotus, Marquesas, Tahiti, Pitcairn, etc, I just had to go. However, for the first time ever, I decided to travel as a passenger on a Zegrahm Expeditions trip. On many of our trips I will work as snorkel-master while our excellent staff of dive masters look after the divers. And so I am on holiday…as a diver. One of my life’s ambitions will be finally realized – over 40 years later.

Imagine my surprise when my July 2008 National Geographic magazine arrived with a photo of a Mountain Gorilla gracing its cover. Inside is an article about the Line Islands – be sure to look up the article; you may have overlooked it as it’s the last article in the magazine entitled: Kingman Reef.

Stand by on the blog for first-hand reports of the voyage and the Line Islands which I’ll be sending from the Clipper Odyssey later this month.

Aloha,
Shirley

Andrew works in the Seattle office of Zegrahm Expeditions and is passionate about our natural world. He regularly shares interesting tidbits and news articles with his office mates and we thought it would be a great idea to share this fascinating information with our like-minded travelers. We hope you enjoy his findings as much as we do!

This is pretty spectacular news: over 100,000 Western lowland gorillas were “discovered” in equatorial Africa, and reports indicate that this could literally double previous world gorilla population numbers. CNN and National Geographic ran the story online. A bit of good news for gorilla lovers worldwide! Read the full story at these links: CNN Article & National Geographic Article.

As if that weren’t enough amazing news, researchers identified not only the world’s smallest snake, but theoretically the smallest possible snake, meaning that snakes cannot possibly be smaller than this and still be considered a snake. I would love to see an x-ray of one! It comfortably fits on top of a quarter. Here’s the National Geographic News online article: World’s Smallest Snake.

More sad news for the Albatross was reported this week in the Telegraph newspaper in a piece titled: Thousands of sea birds killed by fishing trawlers. Fishing vessels remain the most significant threat to the world’s albatross - 18 of which are facing extinction. Birdlife International, a global partnership of conservation organizations that strive to conserve birds and their habitats, is tirelessly working towards implementing international agreements to improve waste management on fishing vessels and require the use of devices that prevent bird strikes on warp cables. Once implemented, these agreements will ultimately benefit both the birds and the legal fishing industry.

Since 1992, Zegrahm Expeditions cofounder, Peter Harrison has been sharing his profound love for Albatross on voyages around the globe and masterfully using the opportunity to educate travelers on the plight of the albatross and the work being done to save them from extinction.

Peter shares his knowledge and passion for seabirds in a highly educational and often thoroughly entertaining way. Over the years, his efforts have led to loyal support for BirdLife’s Save the Albatross Campaign with contributions totaling almost $250, 000 to date.

In late 2008, travelers can once again join Peter on one of two voyages that will draw attention to Albatross in their natural environments on the Southern Oceans, Antarctica, South Georgia & the Falkland Islands and New Zealand & its Sub-Antarctic Islands expeditions. I can’t begin to tell you how thrilled and honored I feel to be among them!