Love Luxury and Adventure? Try the Silver Discoverer

The Silversea Silver Discoverer expedition ship sails to many exciting and diverse destinations. The wild islands of New Zealand and Australia, some of which are sub-antarctic and World Heritage Sites, are perfect for adventure-seeking travelers who love nature and wildlife. I sailed south from Dunedin, New Zealand to these memorable islands on the Silver Discoverer and kept this detailed photo journal of our voyage.

Campbell Island is the most southerly of the New Zealand sub-antarctic islands. It is famous for its nesting Southern Royal Albatrosses. Seeing these giant birds on their nests was amazing, especially after seeing them following our ship while we were sailing. Campbell Island is also famous because New Zealand's Department of Conservation successfully eradicated its rat and rodent population earlier in this century. It took 120 tons of rat poison, but the native birds have returned and don't have to worry about losing their eggs or babies to these pests.

Macquarie was the southernmost sub-antarctic island we visited on the Silver Discoverer. It's in Australia and has a permanent weather and research station with 20-40 scientists staying there at any point in time. Macquarie Island is very remote, but visitors come to see the huge colonies of king and royal penguins, elephant seals, and other bird and marine life. The Macquarie penguin experience was as memorable as those I experienced in Antarctica.

The Auckland Islands are the largest group of sub-antarctic islands in New Zealand. At least eight sailing ships wrecked on Auckland Island's rough coastline in the 19th century. Because of the numerous wrecks, the New Zealand government set up a series of supply depots for castaways in the late-1860's. The government also regularly sent ships to the Aucklands to check for shipwreck victims. Today, it's interesting to see what life was like as a shipwrecked sailor in the Auckland Islands.