WILLIAMSBURG — Leslie (Boyette) Davis just returned from her honeymoon with her husband Justin, but it was exciting for more than one reason. The trip took her to the frigid depths of Antarctica, the very last continent she had to visit to cross all seven off her travel bucket list.
Her journey began with living in Europe when her father was stationed in Belgium with the U.S. Army. She visited Asia in the early 2000s. A study abroad trip in college found her in Africa. She visited Australia with girlfriends in 2017. When it came time for their honeymoon, her husband jokingly suggested Antarctica and South America. After thinking about it, Davis went on a search to find the right trip.
“Justin and I were exploring ideas for our honeymoon and I originally wanted to go to Bora Bora or Tahiti — somewhere tropical. I had seen information on cruises to Antarctica a long time ago and I just remember them being super expensive. Randomly one day, he just threw out Antarctica as a joke and I realized ‘oh my gosh, I totally forgot about that.’ I didn’t know if we could afford it or if it would be feasible but after realizing that we could do it, I was sold,” Davis said.
After spending two days in Buenos Aires, the duo set out on their voyage to Antarctica. To board their cruise ship, they had to fly from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia, one of the southernmost points of Argentina. From there, the journey through Drake Passage takes about two days. Three days later they arrived in Antarctica.
While there, the couple encountered penguins, whales, seals, and birds. They went on a kayaking excursion and even jumped into the 30-degree water during a polar plunge.
“Whenever I travel, I always like to see and do as much as possible. Some people who travel just go and are very leisurely about it. I really like to plan everything in advance and create a heavy itinerary. To me, I don’t know when the next time I’ll go back to that place so I try to make every minute count,” Davis said.
While on board for sea days, the couple could indulge in lectures about the areas they were visiting. Rather than a massive cruise liner, the ship had a maximum capacity of just 200 people.
On their way back from Antarctica, the couple were in for quite the surprise in the Drake Passage, a the body of water that connects South America and the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica. It is one of the most treacherous bodies of water in the world. When it’s calm, it is known as Drake Lake, but when it’s rough it is known as Drake Shake.
“The area is so unpredictable. There are three oceans that meet there. The water can be very mild, but we encountered the Drake Shake. We had 20-foot waves and wind gusts of 60 mph. It was pretty intense. We would leave our room for 45 minutes and then we would have to go back to our bed and lay down. You didn’t really feel like you were going to vomit, you just felt really off in general,” Davis recalled.
She urges anyone who has the itch to travel to do it, but go in with a plan.
“Planning is the biggest piece to make things happen. For me, I prioritized traveling over material things. I’d rather save up and spend my money on an experience versus something material. You have to put a plan in place, whether you are booking your trip six months out, eight months out, I feel like as long as you have a plan, you can make any trip happen,” Davis said.
While she’s traveled all over the world, Davis has hopes that now she can begin to explore the United States.
“I like lists and checking things off my lists. Since I’ve checked off all seven continents, we’ll probably explore more of the U.S. next. While I’ve been all over the world, I haven’t seen much of it and I’m so excited to see what’s out there.”
