Antarctic diary: 'Before I'd finished my tea, I'd seen three pods of whales'

Our environment correspondent Matthew Taylor travelled to an unforgettable region to witness the threat it facesI have arrived in Punta Arenas on the southern tip of Chile after a 24-hour whistlestop tour of South American airports. Pleased to see my bags have made it too. I was asked to avoid packing synthetic and down clothing wherever possible because it could contaminate the environment, so was pleased all those carefully selected natural fibres had made it with me across the Atlantic. Luke,