Visiting the Amalia Glacier on the Viking Jupiter

This is one of a number of articles which together form an extended review of the South America and Chilean Fjords cruise with Viking that we took in January 2023. The introductory article can be found here.

After leaving Puerto Montt, we were heading out into the Pacific Ocean for a full day at sea followed by this scenic sailing through the Chilean Fjords and the visit to the Amalia Glacier. That first evening was pretty spectacular as far as the weather was concerned with a great sunset that kept giving!

Fantastic sunset at sea after leaving Puerto Montt on the Chile coast. Prints available in my online store

But unfortunately, the weather took a turn for the worse after that spectacle. The next day started with rain and heavy clouds over the mountains on what should have been one of the highlights of the cruise – the Chilean Fjords. You can’t always win with the weather in South America!

Heavy rain over the mountains on our cruise through the Chilean Fjords

The rain clouds following the ship through the Chilean Fjords

It did clear up a bit later in the day, but with the clearer weather came some pretty nasty winds and waves as the ship continued to make its way south.

Viking Jupiter sailing south through heavy seas off the coast of Chile

Water level in the stern swimming pool showing some of the movement of the Viking Jupiter as we sailed through the storm

Heavy seas don’t bother me very much, so as far as I could, I wandered around the ship looking for photo opportunities – not too many that day! The next morning was our planned visit to the Amalia glacier and the weather did not look much better although it was much calmer as we sailed up a fjord towards the glacier. The strange milky color in the water as we got closer is the presence of the ice melt and the suspended solids from the glacier grinding its way down the mountain to the ocean.

Milky water in the ocean from the suspended solids in the sea from the melting ice in the glacier. Prints available in my online store

Finally, we rounded a bend in the fjord and the glacier came into view! It is a tradition on this cruise for the crew to take to the water in a small boat to capture some ice floating in the sea, and here they are set against the massive glacier that towers above them:

Crew of the Viking Jupiter in the water capturing some glacier ice to be served in drinks the following evening

The crew getting closer to a small iceberg. Prints available in my online store

Success - the iceberg is manhandled onto the boat — Success – the iceberg is manhandled onto the boat

The ship rotates slowly while close to the glacier so that everyone in their cabin or on the decks can get a good view of the entire glacier, and it is certainly massive. This close up of one section shows trees growing on the rocks with the pressure of the ice piled behind them:

Trees growing on the rocks with the massive glacier ice piled up behind as it slowly makes its way into the ocean. Prints available in my online store

Ice forming the Amalia Glacier piled high behind the rocks at the edge of the fjord. Prints available in my online store

Once of the streams of ice coming down the mountain

After spending maybe 90 minutes at the glacier we reluctantly said goodbye and sailed out towards the open ocean, with one last look back over the stern to capture the full scale of the Amalia Glacier: