Grand South America & Antarctica Voyage, Isla Robinson Crusoe, Chile...

In an effort to mitigate rough seas, Captain Ane Jan Smit decided to arrive early to our next port of call, Isla Robinson Crusoe.  We arrived last evening to anchor overnight in the shelter of Cumberland Bay. We were having dinner in the Canaletto on Deck 8 when we arrived so this afforded me the opportunity to get some sail in photos. Robinson Crusoe Island is the largest of the Juan Fernandez Islands, a tiny archipelago that is now Chilean territory. The island is nearly 400 miles off the coast of Chile, and is frequently shrouded in mist. Around 700 people live here, surviving on lobster fishing and tourism. It is a stunningly beautiful place of dramatic cliffs and soaring mountains. There is only one village, San Juan Bautista. The Juan Fernandez archipelago is a designated national park and a UNESCO biosphere reserve. Such designations were a long way off when sailor Alexander Selkirk was marooned on the islands in the early 1700s—his ordeal partially inspired Daniel Defoe’s novel, Robinson Crusoe. The archipelago is incredibly bio-diverse; primarily due to its steep rise out of the Pacific, the islands support a broad range of habitats and upwards of 70% of the native plant species can only be found there. We were on the first tender this morning. My thoughts of climbing up to the Selkirk Lookout were quickly diminished as the rain greeted us on arrival on the island…The trails would have been extremely muddy and slippery. But I did have a great climb up to the Lookout back in 2020 with my friend Peter Janssen.  I did climb up to Santa Barbara Fort for a better view of the Bay as well as walking around the town capturing the amazing scenery. This is a very unique island, and it is always nice to make a return visit…number 3 for me. All in all, it was a great day. Kiddos to the staff of the Zaandam for making this stop happen with the challenges associated with the tendering process. It was a great day!!!