Abercrombie & Kent Launches Peru Riverboat

Abercrombie & Kent Travel Group today announces the launch of its new Peruvian riverboat. Set to embark on its maiden voyage in April 2025, the boat is the company's first riverboat in South America, offering guests an extraordinary journey onboard an elegantly designed vessel into the region's most secluded wonders. The name of this special vessel will be announced shortly.

Swan Hellenic Cruise Guests Among First to Experience 2024 Total Solar Eclipse

 

Guests aboard Swan Hellenic's boutique expedition cruise ship SH Diana were among the first in the world to witness the 2024 total eclipse of the sun. Grouped in the comfort of spacious decks, they enjoyed an immersive private experience with open views across the Gulf of California.

Yesterday at just past 11 o'clock PDT, as the Swan Hellenic boutique expedition cruise ship SH Diana was sailing down the Gulf of California, it's lucky guests were immersed in one of the longest total solar eclipses in recent years. At approximately 4 minutes and 25 seconds, today's total eclipse was almost double that of The Great American Eclipse of 21 August 2017, and the last visible from the USA until 2044. What's more, SH Diana's guests were quite possibly the first people in the world to see it.

Aurora Expeditions adds third small ship, Douglas Mawson

Aurora Expeditions, the award-winning Australian-owned expedition travel company, is excited to announce that it will soon welcome its third purpose-built small expedition ship, Douglas Mawson to its family of pioneering vessels.

New Small-Ship Cruise Itineraries and Charters in Alaska

#expeditioncruising . 

New Small-Ship Cruise Itineraries and Charters Offer Extraordinary Exploration Opportunities in Alaska

AdventureSmith Explorations is offering new experiences in rarely visited areas for travelers to have diverse wildlife encounters and view dramatic scenery

From On Board Reef Prince: Water, Water Everywhere

#expeditioncruising .

To the sound of a dozen jet engines on full throttle, I look up almost 100 metres vertically to see thousands of tonnes of water crashing down onto the rocks almost at my feet. The water hits the bottom with such force, it generates a wind tunnel of supercharged mist blasting out across the surface of the King George River, creating its own micro-climate within the ancient sandstone amphitheatre.

From On Board Reef Prince: The Way of the Wandjina

The Kimberley is full of surprises, mysteries, tragedies and more than a few controversies.  

One of the persistent debates is that which concerns the abundant rock art that proliferates throughout Australia's North West. Is it the oldest rock art in the world? Is it all of the same origin? What art was produced by which ethnic groups? The arguments continue.

From On Board Reef Prince: Under a watchful gaze

#expeditioncruising .

(c) Silvia Furtwangler

Like a stealthy submarine running at periscope depth, he eyes us suspiciously. All we see from the front of the tender are two yellow baubles and a slender trail of spiny scales receding into the murky water. Then, just as surreptitiously, he slides silently below the surface and is gone. Gone, to our gaze at least.

From On Board Reef Prince: Atlantis Rises

As the enormous tide falls, the structure appears to rise like the lost Atlantis. Water cascades down channels formed in the coral substrate over millennia creating a sight not repeated anywhere else on the planet.

Turtles, sharks, rays and predatory fish congregate in the gutters while wading birds gorge themselves on the sealife momentarily left stranded by the receding ocean.

Montgomery Reef is truly one of the wonders of any Kimberley cruise and regardless of who you choose to cruise with, this amazing disappearing reef will be a feature of that itinerary.

Our expedition leader aboard Reef Prince, Paul Hogger, has chosen a dawn exploration of the reef due to the rare coincidence of a full moon to complement the rising sun, creating a superb pastel hue on the facing escarpment.

Montgomery Reef was named by that hero of Australia's Northwest, Philip Parker King, in honour of his ship's surgeon, Dr Andrew Montgomery, who was speared in the shoulder during an interaction with the Worora people. Despite his grave wounds, Montgomery survived.

"Montgomery Reef is the largest inshore reef in the southern hemisphere," Paul tells us, "Sixty kilometres by forty kilometres with a total area of 550 square kilometres. That's at low tide. But at high tide, it's just 40 square kilometres."

This phenomenon occurs because way back when sea levels were much lower, the reef was actually a flat top mesa. When sea levels rose, the level perfectly aligned with the top of the mesa.

By the way, an enigmatic tribe of about 300 individuals once lived on the small islands within the reef complex itself. Known as the Yawijibaya, they were genetically distinct from mainland Aboriginals and adults of the tribe were known to be more than seven feet tall. Contact was first established in the 1920s, but within the decade they had vanished leaving behind their implements and dwellings. A mystery that persists to this day.

Ruby Falls (RE)

The balance of the morning was spent exploring the idyllic Ruby Falls, a favourite freshwater swimming hole and photo opportunity accessed via a spirited tender ride along Red Cone Creek.

I'm aboard the 36-passenger Reef Prince, the sole vessel of Kimberley Expeditions, for their 12-day Broome to Darwin itinerary.

For more details on cruising in the Kimberley, contact Kimberley Expeditions. 

Main Pic: Paul Hogger / Kimberley Expeditions

From On Board Reef Prince: Fish On!

"I'm on!" comes the cry from Polly, as the tip of the fishing rod bends violently towards the water. It's a big fish and Polly, all 63 kilograms of him, strains at the reel as the prize catch tries to pull him into the turbid waters.

From On Board Reef Prince in the Kimberley

Followers of this blog will know I have travelled with several of the best-known small ship operators in the Kimberley and even worked as an expedition guide for part of the 2022 season.