Another early morning as we are entering Glacier Alley, around 6:30am with our first glacier sighting around 7am.  Everything will be on our port side, which makes our cabin and balcony the absolute perfect place to watch the scenery as we sail by! 

So, up to the gym for an abbreviated work out, then coffee and the balcony for absolutely stunning views of the snow-capped Andes off in the distance. 

As promised, right at 7am, we pass the first glacier, Romanche – Rageths!  The Swiss are everywhere!!!  – with an incredible waterfall that has been ongoing for 35 years, and we can prove it for at least 14 years, because it was melting with the waterfall when we sailed through on our first trip in 2010!  But really, how much ice must there be on that glacier for it to be melting for 35 years and still have such a strong flow?  Fascinatingly beautiful.

A few minutes later we pass by Alemania which is tucked away in a little side channel off the main waterway. 

Then onto Francia which has a lake that the ice melt flows into behind the first level of rocks.  We can’t see it, but CD Ed tells us all about it in his ongoing commentary.

Next up is the Italia Glacier which is similar to the Brujo glacier in that it ends in the water and you can see how the ice shelf is moving down the mountain and into the sea.  The dark brown striations on the side of the glacier shows how as the ice moves, it churns up dirt and sediment that eventually goes back into the water. 

More beautiful scenery abounds, until we get to our last glacier, Holanda, with its blue ice a gorgeous contrast to the evergreen trees surrounding it on the cliffs lining the channel.  And with that, we leave Glacier alley, continuing on our way up the Beagle to Ushuaia. 

We have the rest of the morning to ourselves, a late breakfast, then later in the lounge for snacks that will be our lunch because we are going out to wander around Ushuaia before our 2:15 trekking shore excursion.