5 Weird Rules You Must Know While Traveling To Antarctica

Antarctica is one of the most unique travel destination. It is one of the coldest place on Earth, yet its wildlife make it an amazing place for nature lovers. However, Antarctica is considered one of the most pristine landscapes in the world and is used mainly as a center for scientific research. As such, when visiting the South Pole, there are some very strict rules.

* No walking on lichen

When people imagine Antarctica, it’s mostly endless snow with the occasional flash of the black underlying rock. But plants do grow in Antarctica – several types of grass, moss and lichen. As you can imagine, they take a long time to grow, what with the six months of perpetual darkness and temperatures that even in summer can plunge below -20 degrees Celsius. Do not step on them, and stick to the snow instead. That lichen might not look like much, but it is vital to Antarctica’s ecosystem.

* Penguins can find their own way home

Most of the animal-watching rules are pretty straightforward: keep your very specified distance (no seriously, there are specific distances for specific animals), be quiet, and don’t feed them. You’re also not meant to ‘chum’ birds – to attract them over with fish guts. The lichen rules applies here as well, as some bird species like to hide their eggs and young in the grass – so beware or you might get dive-bombed by an angry Skua.

* Leave the dolphins alone

There are also guides about whale and dolphin watching. Most involve the obvious rules, plus a few more on not accidentally trapping the animals in a boat ‘tunnel’. There’s one rule though that’s specific enough to make you think that someone probably did this at some point. Don’t sail a boat into a group of dolphins, just so you can get them to bow ride with you. Dolphins bow-riding may be an awesome sight, but living in Antarctica is hard enough without something harassing you just for their own ‘cool’ experience. And anyway, if you’re lucky enough, both dolphins and whales have been known to bow-ride on their own initiative.

* Please, no guns

Antarctica is a demilitarized zone. This means that no military activity can take place on the territory, including carrying out maneuvers and establishing military bases. In addition, no firearms (or explosive devices) are allowed without a special dispensation.

* Collect your ash

To keep Antarctica pristine as possible, a lot of the rules are dedicated to make sure that nothing pollutes the environment. The obvious ones are things like no littering and no graffiti. Water pollution is also a big deal and even walking through water or skipping stones is against the rules. However, if you’re smoker, there’s an extra rule: you have to collect every bit of ash you make. Even in Antarctica, you can only smoke in designated areas and then you have to carry all that ash until you leave Antarctica and can safely deposit it (this also counts for any litter you make). Depositing any rubbish or ash in the sea, at any point, is also a big no-no, so wait until you reach land.