Please note that I will be offline for the next eight days (from tomorrow) while guiding my annual expedition to the far north of Iceland to photograph Arctic Fox in Winter. The expedition to the Hornstraidir Nature Reserve to photograph Arctic Fox is near and dear to my heart, and this year, it looks like we will have some fantastic snow conditions. I am really excited to get back up to this remote part of Iceland to find and photograph this tenacious predator. The area we are located for this expedition is quite far from the nearest town, without cell or internet coverage. If you are trying to contact me during this time, please be patient and I will get back to you on my return.
If you are interested in photographing the Arctic Fox, I now have dates available for the 2025 expedition, which will run from the 8th of February until the 14th of February 2025. The trip is eight days / seven nights and is fully inclusive of accommodation, food and transfers to and from Isfjordur to our remote cabin. On this trip, you can expect to have a great many fantastic photographic encounters with the Arctic Foxes that inhabit this remote peninsula. Full details are available on my website HERE. You can also check out the Adobe Spark Presentation. See you in Iceland.
In January of 2024, I ran an expedition to Mongolia’s far eastern Steppe region to find and photograph the stunningly beautiful, rare and enigmatic Pallas Cat. This was my third expedition to this remote region of Mongolia, and it proved no less productive than the previous two (Read the 2023 Trip Report).
The camp where we based ourselves to find and photograph Pallas Cats resides in Mongolia’s far eastern Steppe region, nearly 700 kilometres from the capital, Ulaanbaatar. We used three large 4-wheel drive vehicles to reach the camp and to search for cats in the field. In good conditions, the drive is around 8-10 hours. The drive took us nearly twelve hours this year due to heavy snowfall. This year, I am including more behind-the-scenes photographs in the trip report to help paint a better picture of the overall experience of visiting and living in this remote region.
Widely unknown by many, the Pallas cat is a small wildcat roughly the size of a domestic house cat that is found in Mongolia, parts of China, Russia and Tibet. Typically, it is an ambush hunter living off small rodents such as vols. Unlike most cats that have an elliptical pupil, what makes the Pallas cat unique and special is its round pupils. Affectionately known as the ‘Grumpy cat’ by many, Pallas cats always tend to have an annoyed look that is undoubtedly part of their charm and appeal.
For 2024, Mongolia’s far east Steppe region has been buried under heavy snow, making for absolutely ideal conditions for finding and photographing Pallas Cat. Most years, the snow coverage is sparse in this region, and it is not uncommon for there to be little or even no snow. The lack of snow makes for easy driving conditions but can be problematic for photography. This year, the reverse proved true, with outstanding conditions for winter photography and adverse driving conditions that slowed us down on more than one occasion.
Over the week-long expedition, we photographed approximately six different Pallas Cats and sighted another half dozen or so as we traversed the landscape in our 4-wheel drives. Pallas cats can be challenging to distinguish, so it is impossible to be sure of the exact number of individual cats we sighted. Our local guides again showed their eagle-vision superpower of spotting the small cats at huge distances across the landscape. Finding Pallas cats in the vast, seemingly endless Steppe region would be impossible without their skilled eyes.
During this expedition, we also had a fantastic photographic encounter with a Corsak fox. This encounter was the first time in my visits that I could get close enough to Corsak Fox to photograph them. Completely relaxed, the fox allowed us to get close enough to fill the frame with a 600mm lens and a 1.4 teleconverter. Typically, the foxes in this region of Mongolia run away before you can get out of the car. This particular fox was found quite close to a nearby small village, and I suspect it was somewhat habituated to human activity. Nevertheless, it proved an incredible encounter.
During the trip, we also saw many raptors, including the Upland Buzzard (a fantastic black morph was also sighted), Golden Eagle, Saker Falcon, and the Cinereous Vulture.
Our final encounter for the expedition provided terrific images of a Pallas cat in backlight just as the winter sun was setting. This encounter was to be our last shoot for the trip, with the following day being lost to a snowstorm with poor visibility and high winds. In these sorts of conditions, Pallas cats prefer to hunker down in the rocks or fox and marmot burrows to seek shelter from the winds.
The following day, Our return to Ulaanbaatar took far longer than usual due to the heavy snow, which slowed us down considerably. The first part of the return journey (a distance of approximately 70 kilometres) is all off-road driving through the steppe region, and thanks to heavy snow, high winds and a snowstorm, this drive took us five and a half hours instead of the usual hour and a half. We left camp at 6am, anticipating the drive would be slow in the prevailing conditions. Indeed, the deep snow drifts saw us bogged down or stuck eleven times in our 4-wheel drives. Even once we made the main road, we were frequently slowed down by road closures and snow and ice conditions. Thanks to the tireless work of our local guides and drivers, we got moving each time and finally made it safely back to the capital an epic sixteen hours after our departure. Although this proved a very long travel day, the resulting photographs from the expedition were superb and totally worth the long hours in the car to and from the capital.
I will return to Mongolia this July for an expedition to photograph Pallas Cat and Pallas Cat kittens in the warm summer sun. This workshop is now sold out, but I am taking bookings for January and winter 2025. If you are interested in photographing this beautiful wildcat in winter snow conditions, drop me an email for more information or to register your interest.
My final expedition for 2023 was to the Antarctic Peninsula – a location that continues to inspire and fuel my creativity and one I never tire of returning to. This expedition was a full, dedicated charter to the Peninsula for landscape and wildlife – it was not a shared expedition with general Antarctic tourists. This trip was my twelfth season guiding expeditions to Antarctica, and it is always wonderful to return to this miraculous continent. Over the many years of leading trips to Antarctica, I have learned that the best possible experiences and photographs always come from dedicated expeditions that are not shared with general tourists.
This expedition began in early December in Ushuaia at the bottom of South America. Our trip was blessed with a smooth crossing of the Drake by the usual standards, which was probably a 3 out of 10, with gentle to moderate swells for most of the crossing. Our smooth crossing enabled us to make excellent speed (averaging between 11 and 12 knots) that saw us arrive in the South Shetland Islands much earlier than anticipated.
The smooth, fast crossing meant we had some additional time up our sleeve, which we took advantage of with a bonus sunset landing at Fort Point (our first sub-Antarctic landing). I had never visited this location before, but it offered some excellent opportunities with both Chinstrap and Gentoo Penguins as the sun was setting. For many aboard, this was their first-ever Antarctic landing.
On our first full-planned day in Antarctica, we landed at Half Moon Island in overcast conditions that provided a lovely softbox. Although we were early in the season, the snow was already quite patchy at this location due to a recent warm spell. Nevertheless, there were excellent opportunities to explore this large Chinstrap colony and the surrounding landscape. Half Moon Island is my favourite location in the South Shetlands for its abundant wildlife and diverse backdrops.
With suitably calm seas, we could squeeze in a much-anticipated landing at Deception Island in the late afternoon. I have been fortunate to land at Deception Island (Whalers Bay) in everything from blazing sunshine to heavy snowfall. However, this landing was the first time I had experienced rain this far south, this early in the season. The unwanted rain beautifully saturates and emphasises the patina in the many rusty relics from the bygone whaling era. Whalers Bay is a location that never ceases to amaze, with a never-ending array of photographic options to pursue, from the grand landscape to the intimate details of the many abandoned relics.
With Half Moon and Deception Island already in the bag, we heaved anchor and steamed south for Cuverville Island and its abundance of Gentoo penguins. Cuverville Island is one of the Antarctic Peninsula’s most picturesque and anticipated landing sites. The bay in front of the landing site is frequently home to many icebergs, and the island itself is surrounded by steep peaks and plunging glaciers that make for stunning backdrops. This island has been a highly profitable location in past visits, with many keeper photographs resulting from my many landings here. This year’s landing did not disappoint, with soft snowfall and many opportunities with the penguins.
We arrived at Cuverville Island in heavy snowfall and low clouds, perfect conditions for photographing the many Gentoo penguins that live on this fantastic island. Shortly after breakfast, we went ashore for over three hours in conditions that could only be described as perfect for photography. As the hours passed, the snowfall cleared, and the clouds lifted a little, providing spectacular views of the surrounding peaks and glaciers. Several of the group also took the opportunity to zodiac cruise amongst the nearby icebergs. Another of the benefits of a fully dedicated charter is the ability to split the group into those who wish to photograph icebergs and those who want to photograph the penguins.
The afternoon saw us land at Neko harbour under beautiful soft light with mirror reflections of the peaks and glaciers in the dark Antarctic waters. There were several carvings from the nearby glacier face during our landing, and this was also the first opportunity to photograph some Weddell seals hauled out on the snow and Sub-Antartic Skuas as they flew back and forth against the glacial backdrop. We steamed south in perpetration for the Lemaire channel on return from Neko the following morning.
The morning of the Lemaire greeted us with heavy overcast conditions as we sailed through this spectacular narrow channel. There was little ice in the channel this year, but the overhanging glaciers and precipitous mountains were as stunning as ever. The Lemaire channel remains one of the stand-out highlights of any expedition to the Peninsula. Successful navigation of the Lemaire is never guaranteed this early in the season, but the lack of ice made Captain June’s job easy as we traversed this narrow channel. As always, the Lemaire channel is best enjoyed and photographed from the bow of the ship, where our group spent most of their time as we navigated the channel.
The following day, we had an early morning Landing at Petermann Island after breakfast in soft, overcast conditions, followed by a fantastic zodiac cruise with around half a dozen humpback whales feeding amongst the icebergs. Opportunities to photograph the whales against the many glacial backdrops were in abundance, and we spent several hours in the zodiacs photographing the many humpbacks. Whale photography can be problematic from the high decks of expedition vessels, but from the water level of a small zodiac, it is possible to capture powerful photographs of these ocean-dwelling giants.
In the afternoon, we visited Port Charcot for a landing in heavy snowfall with the penguins. Port Charcot offered an opportunity for minimalist photography of the penguins in the snow. This site was a new landing for me and was one I found offered a lot of opportunities for minimalist photography.
The following day, after an early wake-up call, we visited Paradise Bay for an incredible zodiac cruise amongst the icebergs. In the mid-morning, some of us went ashore in stunning conditions for a pre-planned wedding of my good friends Sam and Michelle before we made our way north to Gourdin Island. Being the best man at the ceremony with my long-time friend Martyn Lucas was an absolute honour. We wish Sam and Michelle a wonderful and happy life together.
After a morning landing and zodiac cruise at Gordan Island with Adelie penguins, we had a ship cruise with Orcas in Antarctic Sound.
We then headed deeper into the Weddell Sea down the East coast of Snow Hill, cruising with incredible tabular icebergs in soft light and snowfall and Emperor Penguins! Due to the low sea ice conditions this year, we were able to get further south than ever before, arriving at the southern end of Snow Hill!
Our time in the Weddell Sea saw us in full expedition mode, cruising for tabular icebergs and Emperor penguins. Late in the day, I put Zodiacs in the water to photograph the Emperor Penguin and Adelies at eye level as they rested on a small ice flow in stunning soft light and gentle snowfall.
Enjoy the time-lapse video below of Photographers and our first Emperor Penguin encounter.
Our last landing was at Paulet Island with over 200 hundred thousand Adelie Penguins. Conditions remained blessedly overcast, with soft light and unique opportunities to photograph the penguins on the many icebergs around the island. For a final activity, we undertook a fantastic zodiac cruise with Adelie penguins on icebergs in overcast conditions.
Our expedition wrapped up with our safe return to Ushuaia after a reasonably average Drake crossing that, in fact, turned out to be much smoother than anticipated. The weather forecast was for formidable winds and seas that mercifully did not eventuate. Most of the return crossing saw us veiled in sea fog with average swells, making for a reasonably calm and pleasant crossing. We disembarked and completed our expedition on the morning of the 21st of December. My sincere thanks to all who participated and helped in making this a truly remarkable expedition.
My next expedition to Antarctica will be a sold-out expedition for Emperor Penguins to the world’s most southerly colony at Gould Bay in November 2024. If you missed out on a place, bookings are now open for 2025. Please drop me an email to register your interest.
www.WILDNATUREPHOTOTRAVEL.com 