ONBOARD THE QUARK ULTRAMARINE -- During my days as Travel Weekly's cruise editor, I sailed on a few expedition ships.
My first was the Viking Octantis as it wound its way through the Great Lakes. There was a cruise on the Seabourn Venture in the Caribbean as it sailed south to reposition itself for a season in Antarctica. I'd also spent two nights with HX Expeditions to check out the ship for a trade event in Canada.
So I knew there'd be no lavish stage show or musicians performing in a lounge, no splashy specialty restaurants. I wasn't expecting a deck party or room service in my oceanview room.
And I was good with that. My experience on Quark Expeditions' 12-day Antarctic Explorer: Discovering the 7th Continent sailing felt more like a trip that happened to be at sea than what I'd consider a cruise.
Quark's version of a show consisted of a daily briefing over drinks where expedition guides would go into detail about the wildlife we recently met, the history of where we were going or how predicted weather conditions dictated where we would venture the next day. Guides sprinkled in some humor along the way.
The fluke of a humpback whale is seen in Orne Harbor. Photo Credit: Yining Chen
The entertainment was the adventure of crossing the Drake Passage, where we spotted birds while sipping coffee alongside expedition guides and marveled over approaching icebergs. The amusement came from walking among tens of thousands of squawking penguins caring for their chicks and hearing humpback whales shoot air out of their blowholes as they scoped us out in our Zodiacs.
And the food? I fed my soul as well as my body, digging into a buffet that included a stir-fry lunch or a dinner of grilled beef sirloin steak with cafe de Paris butter while finding community with other curious adventure-seeking guests or peppering expedition guides with questions.
Those expedition guides were focused on adventure and education, but always with a dose of humor. And they were everywhere. Guides approached us on the deck to tell us about whatever we had trained our binoculars on, including the orca seemingly harassing a petrel and the humpback whale that was feeding near the side of the ship. On land, the ship's ornithology presenter examined the skeletal remains of a penguin with my guest, an inquisitive veterinarian.
As seen from a Quark Zodiac, Adelie penguins stand atop an iceberg near Paulet Island. Photo Credit: Kat Kennedy
A view from above
My cruise included a helicopter tour for all of the guests. The chopper departed from the top of the ship with five of us at a time, flying over icebergs that reminded me of enormous, rectangular sugar cubes surrounded by water that looked like glass. I couldn't help but smile; not only was I at this place most people have never seen, but I was seeing it as birds do.
Then there was the thrill of a polar plunge, which felt like a rite of passage. A ship photographer captured the moments I leapt and splashed into the water, images I cherish to this day. The crew treated guests to a shot of vodka once we were safely back onboard; it warmed my chest while the rest of my body shivered.
Guests explore Tay Head by stand-up paddleboards. Photo Credit: Andrea Zelinski
Other experiences on the Ultramarine were available for an extra charge, including paddleboarding, which was my favorite.
We coasted in calm waters and saw small, bobbing chunks of ice up close. We also paddled right past icebergs where penguins perched; we were warned to keep a safe distance should the icebergs suddenly tip and flip.
Other activities included paddling, kayaking and a longer helicopter flight, although the latter was canceled on this voyage due to a lack of visibility.
One of my favorite lessons came after wandering among chinstrap penguins at Baily Head at Deception Island.
At one point, the ornithology presenter crouched over the remains of a dead penguin and talked to me and my guest about ... penguin poop. He did it in an educational way, but not without some humor, describing the bizarre projectile style penguins excreted it, what we could tell by the colors of it and how pictures of the splatter on the ground could pass for an abstract expressionist painting that might hang in a living room.
Guests on the Ultramarine paddle to observe the penguins settled on a stony edge of the harbor. Photo Credit: Andrea Zelinski
Room with a view
My cabin on the Ultramarine was an oceanview suite and was well-appointed.
I really appreciated the room's window ledge, which was long enough for both me and my guest to sit and sip our post-excursion apple cider while we talked about our day. Other rooms had balconies.
This was by no means a luxury experience; Quark does not pretend to be a luxury cruise line. The guests I chatted with on this cruise were not looking for luxury but were generally impressed with their experiences on and off the ship, although they did have some critiques, like wishing the small gym was bigger or had different equipment.