02x07 - Antarctic Adventure

[bunniefuu]

- [Announcer] Coming up

on "Jonathan Bird's Blue World",

Jonathan heads to Antarctica

at the bottom of the earth

to explore the incredible wilderness

and marine life of this frozen continent.

Don't go away.

[tranquil music]

Meet Jonathan Bird, one of the world's

top underwater nature cinematographers,

traveling the world on assignment

for all the major networks.

He is an Emmy Award-winning authority

on the underwater world.

[tranquil music]

In freshwater or salt,

reefs, wrecks or caves,

Jonathan documents the
world beneath the waves.

[tranquil music]

Welcome to the "Blue World".

- Antarctica, the frozen continent.

Its hostile conditions and
exotic marine life are legendary.

For years, I've yearned to travel

to the bottom of the earth

to see this magnificent
frozen world for myself.

And finally I've done it.

Getting from the United States

all the way to Antarctica
at the bottom of the earth,

takes nearly a week

and it starts with a flight
to Ushuaia, Argentina

at the tip of Tierra del Fuego.

Often called the gateway to Antarctica.

Ushuaia is a beautiful little
coastal city in Patagonia

at the base of a large mountain range.

Many of the ships departing for Antarctica

use Ushuaia as their port.

Ushuaia is surrounded by
a large national park.

Rugged craggy mountains
tower above Ushuaia.

They're beautiful, but of course,

I'm more interested in
the underwater scenery.

So I'm spending a day in Ushuaia

to do a couple dives
in the Beagle Channel.

[upbeat music]

The Beagle Channel is
a long, narrow passage

of water protected by land on both sides.

Well, we're finally gonna
go diving into Ushuaia

and I'm really excited
to try to see something

that they're famous for.

You mostly see it in the
restaurants downtown,

but I wanna see it alive.

The giant king crab.

Captain Carlos from Ushuaia Divers

unties the boat from the dock

and we're on our way under
a beautiful blue sky.

It's summer here in the
Southern hemisphere,

and even though Ushuaia is very far south,

the air temperature regularly makes it

into the 60 degree range.

Sometimes even the seventies.

The water temperature
is more like 45 degrees

about what I'm used to diving
at home in New England,

that means I'll be wearing my dry suit.

Time to get ready.

It keeps the water out

with an airtight zipper
like the one on a spacesuit.

Unfortunately, the dry
suit is quite buoyant

from all the air inside, so I have to wear

a lot of weight to submerge.

My gear is cumbersome and heavy,

but that's the price you
pay to dive in cold water.

[Johnathan grunting]

- Alright, I'm ready.

Let's go check it out.

[water splashing]

That's a gate?

Okay, good.

Underwater the Beagle
channel is beautiful,

filled with huge kelp forests

stretching towards the surface.

This kelp is a kind of fast growing algae

that can grow several
feet in length every day.

Swimming through the kelp is really fun.

I feel like Indiana Jones
exploring a wild jungle.

The kelp can grow tall

without a strong tree trunk

because it floats,

thanks to these little air
pockets at the base of each leaf.

[tranquil music]

The kelp is so thick,
it blocks out the sun.

As I look around the bottom,

I see there are lots of
other things growing here,

like a variety of sponges
encrusting this rock outcropping.

But clearly the Beagle Channel's

most impressive animals are the crabs.

Everywhere I look, crabs jump
out of my way as I approach.

Most of them are these little red crabs

with a body about the size of a quarter.

But there are also decorator
crabs covered in camouflage,

apparently willing to
hunt the smaller crabs.

And another crab, climbing
the kelp to safety.

But at last, I find what I came for.

The crab that rules this
patch of ocean, the king crab.

Although they get much bigger than this,

even this small one's quite a handful.

[curious music]

After I put it down, the crab takes off

through the seaweed on the bottom,

finally settling back to
pose for my camera again.

At the end of my dive,

I surface from the land of the crabs,

and we enjoy a surface interval

on a small island in the channel.

The views of the surrounding
area are beautiful.

Patagonia is just gorgeous.

As much as I've enjoyed Ushuaia,

the following morning
finds me rolling my gear

down the dock for my
departure to Antarctica.

My home away from home,
the Alexi Merichev,

a 210 foot long Russian research vessel

with an ice strengthened hull.

I meet the staff of the ship,

who luckily for me speak
English quite well.

And then it's time to board.

I'll have plenty of time

to put my gear together

on the long run to Antarctica.

A little later, they
untie us from the dock

and it's time to embark
on the trip of a lifetime.

[calm music]

On our way down the Beagle
Channel to open water,

we pass a small rock island covered

in South American sea lions.

[sea lions grunting]

And then we passed the famous
Beagle Channel lighthouse.

[calm music]

After leaving the Beagle Channel,

we round Cape Horn into the Drake Passage

and make our way more than 600 miles south

until we reached a protection afforded

by the end of the Antarctic peninsula.

Until then, we're at the mercy

of some of the most violent

and unpredictable seas in the world.

From the bridge, the first
officer drives the ship

with a confidence that comes

from many years of making this journey.

Our progress is charted on a map by a GPS.

So far, the weather has
been mild and the seas calm.

The Drake Passage is considered

the roughest section
of water in the world,

and boy did we get lucky today.

Later the fog closes in,
but the sea remains calm.

I have almost three days
of this until we get there.

Even my tiny cabin isn't
too uncomfortable for a nap.

The next day, the sun is out,
but we still aren't there.

You know, two and a
half days is a long time

to be sitting on a ship
with nothing to do.

But when we get to Antarctica,
it's gonna be worth it.

With yet another day to go,

I'm running out of things to do.

[upbeat music]

- Hello?

[camera clicking]

Can you hear me now?

[high pitched screaming]

Wrong room.

Hookah?

Hookah?

Hello?

Forget about it.

[Johnathan snoring]

At last land appears in the distance.

We made it to Antarctica.

The ship is covered in
a fresh layer of snow,

but the sun is trying to
burn through the clouds.

Icebergs float by.

I can hardly believe my eyes.

I'm actually here

and we don't waste any time.

Our dive team starts suiting
up for our first dive

to explore the underwater
world of Antarctica.

Of course, I'm using my dry suit again,

but this time, instead of 45 degree water,

I'm expecting 30 degree water.

Our Zodiac goes over the side

and we're off with our dive
master Jonas driving the boat.

- [Jonas] Perfect, yeah, perfect.

- I'm really excited.

I can't wait to get below the
surface and start exploring,

but first, I need my warmest dive gloves.

It's very interesting to do anything

when you have gigantic,
fat, cold water mitts on.

Just putting on your dive
computer takes about 10 minutes.

Alright, I'm bundled up with
my heaviest undergarments.

I have so much insulation
I can barely move.

Well, I'm a long way from the Caribbean.

I came all the way to
Antarctic to gonna go diving,

and I guess I should have expected

that there was gonna be ice in the water.

I'm assuming that means
it's gonna be pretty cold.

I'll let you know.

[water splashing]

Woo-hoo!

Oh yeah, oh yeah, that's a little chilly.

[Johnathan laughing]

Oh baby.

I'm floating in an ocean

filled with icebergs drifting by.

This water is below freezing.

That's possible because it's salt water.

This is fresh water so the
ice is frozen floating in it.

This water is so cold

that if you fell into this
water without a dry suit on,

you could be dead in five minutes.

And that begs the question,

what could possibly
live in such cold water?

Well, let's go check it out.

My first glimpse of the underwater terrain

reveals mostly just some
seaweed on the bottom

flowing gently in the current.

[tranquil music]

But a closer look reveals a community

of bottom dwelling invertebrates,

including vast armies of limpets,

snail like animals with
cone-shaped shells.

They eat the algae on the rocks.

A bright red sea star hunts
down limpets for lunch.

Nearby anemones wait for prey,

they're stinging tentacles armed and ready

for an unwary fish.

[tranquil music]

A sea cucumber uses
feathery branching arms

to grab plankton out of the water to eat.

But then I look up from the bottom

and something catches my eye.

[upbeat music]

It's a Gentoo penguin swimming around

with the grace of a dolphin
and the speed of a torpedo.

These birds might not be able to fly,

but underwater they sure can swim.

Their wings are adapted for
providing underwater propulsion,

and few animals in the ocean

can swim with such grace
and speed as a penguin.

In the limited visibility,
they're hard to film

because I never know from
which direction they'll swim.

[upbeat music]

Just above the water on the beach,

thousands of Gentoos are
warming up in the sun.

[penguin chirping]

A Gentoo penguin is easy to identify

because of its bright red beak.

[penguins chirping]

Many of these Gentoos are
barely more than chicks,

waiting patiently for their
downy baby feathers to fall off.

These poofy feathers keep
them warm when they're little,

but they're not good for swimming.

I watch a group of young penguins

practicing their swimming
technique in a small tide pool.

[penguins chirping]

The tide pool offers
protection from the open ocean,

and it's a nice shallow spot
to try swimming and hunting.

Unfortunately, there's
nothing here to eat.

So foraging for food
doesn't produce a meal.

As the birds get older

and their adult feathers grow in,

they start gathering down by the ocean.

Soon they take short hops
into the freezing water

to hunt in the shallows

for krill and small invertebrates.

[water splashing]

It doesn't take long

before they learn to swim like experts

and take off to hunt together in groups.

[upbeat music]

Penguins on the move, porpoise
in and out of the water

like dolphins, but then they
can hop right back up on land

like no dolphin I've ever seen.

Who needs to fly when
you can swim like this?

Soon we head back to the ship

and pull anchor to move a few hours south.

We're making our way
towards the polar circle

and passing some incredible
scenery on the way.

The next day back in the zodiacs,

we head towards a shipwreck.

The Governor was a whaling
ship that caught fire in 1916,

so the captain ran into
ground to save the crew.

I drop into the water

to explore the southern
most shipwreck of my life.

Although the bow is out of the water,

the stern lies over 70 feet below.

It's a long swim down the side of the hull

to get to the stern.

The hull is covered in patches

of beautiful yellow finger sponges.

I didn't realize that sponges like this

could be found in such cold water.

Looking closer at the sponges,

I discover an Antarctic
blend resting there.

Fish survive in this water

because they have
antifreeze in their blood

that keeps it from freezing,

even when the water is below 32 degrees.

Suddenly a huge shape catches my eye.

[underwater screaming]

It's the biggest jelly
I've ever seen in my life

swimming through the water

with tentacles hanging
down more than 50 feet.

[tranquil music]

I swim over to investigate
this massive animal

and the bell of the jelly is
more than two feet across.

As I rise towards the surface
at the end of my dive,

I encounter a huge wall of ice.

It's an iceberg that drifted into the bay.

The wall of the iceberg
is covered in dimples

like the ones on a golf ball.

This pattern forms as the iceberg melts.

Thousands of tiny bubbles are released

from the melting ice as well,

making the water near the iceberg

look like a fizzy drink.

The iceberg only rises a
few feet above the surface,

but it's more than 30 feet deep.

When you see an iceberg floating by,

There's not that much
above water sometimes,

but that's because more
than 90% of an iceberg

is actually underwater.

If I flip it over, you can see
just how much ice there is.

That's why icebergs are
really dangerous to ships,

because you can't see the part
that's hidden under water.

Fun with ice.

Let me get my arm under it.

Getting the gear out of the water

and into the zodiac can
be quite a challenge

because of all the weight I have to carry.

Heading back to the ship,

we have a little time
to unwind while we again

change locations heading
even further south.

We pass through the La Mer Channel

filled with floating chunks of ice.

I can hear them bouncing off the bow,

and I'm glad that this ship
has an ice strengthened hull.

The next morning we're at it again,

launching the zodiacs over the side

and preparing for another adventure.

I carry my camera down to
the boat and we are off.

Today we're hunting quietly
for a very special animal.

- Jordy, Jordy.
- And sure enough,

we found them.

Leopard seals sleeping on an iceberg.

These animals which reach 12 feet long

are the apex predators of the Antarctic.

There are no sharks in
the waters of Antarctica,

but these seals fill that
niche in the food chain.

- Yeah, cool.
- Soon the leopard seals

wake from their nap

and come over to investigate us.

They've been known to bite

and deflate zodiacs when
they're being territorial.

We watch carefully for a few minutes

before we drop into the
water with this animal.

Leopard seals are big,
aggressive and have sharp teeth,

but this one doesn't
look aggressive at all.

I must admit I'm a little apprehensive

as I prepare to roll into the water,

but I'm also excited.

I've wanted to film a
leopard seal for a long time.

[upbeat music]

The seal makes a few
passes to check me out,

but he seems a lot more
curious than aggressive.

I don't follow the seal at all,

but hold my ground and
keep the camera rolling.

I let him come to me.

Divers are not very common down here.

This leopard seal has
probably never seen a diver

or a video camera before.

[calm music]

Either he sees his reflection in the lens

or he is looking for a
career in show business.

Either way, this animal sure doesn't seem

to mind my presence.

[calm music]

The leopard seal is so curious

that he stays around
for more than an hour.

I even have enough time
to go get my still camera

and take a few pictures.

Look how big he is compared to me.

It's a good thing he's in a mood.

Although leopard seals
can hold their breath

for an hour while diving,

this one lounging with me near the surface

regularly pops his nose
above water for a breath.

That was such a great dive
with that leopard seal.

Man, it was so friendly,

it stayed with me for over an hour.

But I've been in this water for so long

my face is frozen.

[water splashing]

With the circulation returning to my face,

we head back to the ship

while I think of all the great
things I saw in Antarctica,

from the towering walls
of a tremendous iceberg

to a gigantic jelly.

I saw incredible underwater acrobatics

and astonishingly beautiful scenery.

Penguins, nesting among the
ancient bones of whales.

And humpbacks feeding

in some of the most beautiful
bays I've ever seen.

From the surprising color
of the invertebrates,

living in the freezing water

to the stark beauty of
the frozen landscape,

Antarctica is spectacular to behold.

Soon we must turn north

for our long journey back to Ushuaia.

As the sun sets on the passing ice,

I have plenty of time to
reminisce about my adventures.

As we leave the protection
of the Antarctic peninsula,

we discover the Drake
passage is not as kind

as it was on the way down.

But for that incredible hour I spent

with a curious leopard
seal, it's worth it.

Antarctica might be cold

and the diving is hard work.

But I'll never forget this magical place,

way down at the bottom of the blue world.

[upbeat music]

[chiming music]