Late on the third day, we placed our bags with those of the other passengers and boarded the bus for the short trip to the wharf where our icebreaker, the Kapitan Khlebnikov, awaited (at left below). There was a huge "wussliner" cruise ship (the Sapphire Princess at right below) that undocked before us so we needed to wait for the tug to be finished with it before we could undock.
Before pulling away from the pier, we put our things away in our cabin and went to the lecture hall to clear Australian customs. By early evening, we were heading out through Storm Bay enroute to the Tasman Sea.
The next day found us at sea enroute to the Australian subantarctic island of Macquarie. As our Russian crew steered us toward our next landfall, we had some time to explore the ship.
Remarkably, the seas were smooth and the skies were clear. We were able to enjoy some time on deck taking some photos with nothing but open sea, empty horizons, and the albatross following in our wake.
