Skiing in Antarctica

This evening I checked out skis from the Gear Issue office in McMurdo.  They have all sorts of skiing equipment, winter gear, costumes, board games, etc...  Along with the skis, I got poles and boots.  I looked for a boot that'd fit my feet but I could not find any!  My friend, Colin, finally looked in the last nook and found one that'd fit me.  It was an old, almost-decrepit pair, the kind with the three prongs and the metal clamp that holds onto the boot.  The sole was worn out, the insole was crusted and torn, and they were a bit dirty, but they were cross country ski boots!  Classy!

So, at 8pm local time Colin and I checked out of McMurdo base by personally visiting the Firehouse and picking up a radio in case of emergency.  We told them our estimated time of return was 11pm.  We had a ways to hike before we could ski on snow.  Up the hill we went, up towards where the trailhead for our path lay.  Once we got to the trailhead, we still had to hike through dirt and ice.  The service road was in poor condition, and the recent warm weather had been melting the snow in the day, which resulted in almost the entire road being covered in some kind of ice.  Another ways and we dared try ski.  And ski we did, but not easily.  There was no fresh powder, just intermittent packed snow.

Castle Rock can be seen in the distance.

Our destination was to visit the base of Castle Rock, a big rock formation about 4 miles from McMurdo that just out above the snow-covered surroundings like, well, a castle.  We ended up not quite making it and had to turn around before we got there.  About 10:30pm we turned around and notified the Firehouse that we'd be back by 11:30pm.  Most of the return would be downhill, which actually proved slightly dangerous due to the partially ice-covered nature of the trail.  It's quite easy to get going so fast that you cannot stop, and then we all know what comes next!  ;-)

Anyways, to make a long-story even shorter (or longer, since I am typing more, hence making the story longer) we ended up having to call the Firehouse over the radio a second time to notify them of our newest estimated time of return to be midnight.  We made it back just before midnight and returned the radio.

More so than usual, this next photo does not do justice to the actual beauty and majesty you'd have seen if you'd have been there with me.  Even though this photo was taken shortly before midnight, the sun was lighting up the mountains on the other side of the McMurdo Sound, some 30-40 miles away.  The cloud cover, obscuring the tops of some of the mountains, was letting select rays of light dance upon the snow and ice capped peaks.  This photo is of Mount Discovery, which is straight southwest of McMurdo Station.  And, if I may suggest, take a moment of silence along with this photo, for on this ski trip I was impressed by how silent the world is.  What a rare treat in this busy and machine saturated world.

Lastly, here's a view of McMurdo itself, looking down from just up the hill a ways.  If you look closely, you may be able to see my dorm and the galley I eat breakfast and dinner in and the Coffee House cafe.  If you look even closer, you might be able to make out the newly-hung Christmas decorations adorning lampposts and buildings.  Needless to say, Christmas is less than a week away for McMurdo and the rest of the world.

After our journey, I showered and trekked back over to the galley at 12:30 for "MidRats", or Midnight Rations, the lunch meal for those who work night shifts.  It's open from midnight to 1am, but only 12:30-1am for the general public.  I ate a full meal to satisfy my dietary desires and match my caloric output of the previous few hours.  Then off to bed to enjoy a good nights rest.  What an adventure!

Brett
2009-12-19 0239 McMurdo, Antarctica

Quick Update

Hello family and friends,
    I am having trouble uploading my photos to the blog, but please know I'm trying to upload some more photos.  Life is very exciting here.  I think I could get used to 24/7 daylight!  I didn't think I'd get used to it so fast!  I've now had 10 full days in Antarctica, and I've been quite busy.  I've been working full days every day, that's ballooning for you!  It's not bad at all though!  I've been learning a lot!  In the evenings I've gone on hikes, just hung out around McMurdo, attended a science lecture, seen a 14 million cubic foot balloon launch, and this evening I went on a tour of Scott's Discovery Hut.  The Discovery Hut is just a 10 minute hike from my dorm.  It was built in 1902 and was pretty much abandoned in 1917 by Shackleton.  It largely remains in the state it was in in 1917--dead seals and carcasses and all.  The coldness here does wonders to prevent rotting!  Wow!  The coolest part was I was standing inside a building built by Scott and also inhabited by Shackleton!  An amazing history here!
    It is truly beautiful here.  More photos coming soon.

Brett
2009-12-14  0009 McMurdo, Antarctica

Antarctica Is So Awesome!

Entry published on 12/9/2009 at 11:20pm McMurdo Station Time

Hello all,

So, where do I begin? I'd love to tell all and show all, but that'd be too much for a blog. I'd love to post some of my photos from New Zealand! I had a blast during my day and a half in Christchurch! I might post more from New Zealand later. For now, though, I will be selective and post from my time in Antarctica. I appreciate your e-mails and comments, letting me know you read my blog or that something resonated with you. It's great to know there are people reading this!

Stepping off the C-17 onto Antarctica was an amazing moment. (Photos from my last posting show my first few moments in Antarctica--the first is the classic group "deplaning" photo.) I've been in McMurdo town for four days now, and it hasn't gotten any less breathtaking or awesome than my first moment on the ice. I'm loving it! The events leading up to my arrival, including the entire time I spent in New Zealand, now seem mundane, in a way. A blur. But here's how I got to Antarctica:

One coach bus ride from Hanover to Boston Logan Airport. Lots of flights from Boston, MA to Christchurch, NZ. Delayed flights. 17 Minute Layovers (LAX). People calling my name over the PA system in the Los Angeles Terminal, beckoning me to board the plane that was waiting for me and just a few others! Lost baggage! Scrunched up seats (American Airlines). More roomy, comfortable seats (QANTAS). My first time on a 747-400 (SO COOL!!!) Short layover in Sydney, Australia, but not nearly as short as in LAX. Hmmm...such a short visit in Australia. Whisk. Nice flight to Christchurch, NZ, where it seemed half the flight was bound for Antarctica. Lost baggage! (I wasn't really surprised or worried, and in the end QANTAS was timely in getting our baggage to us.) Adventures in New Zealand... Beautiful and foreign and fun!

Two mornings later:

I reported at 0600 for bag check. At 0810 local time I had stepped onto the plane in New Zealand. Everything went very smoothly. The military runs a tight ship, so at 0855 we took off, 5 minutes ahead of schedule. During the flight I got to go up to the cockpit and chat with the pilots and take photos. Plus, there was one tiny window on each side of the cargo bay towards the fore of the aircraft. At 1330 I looked out the window and saw the ice shelf for the first time! At 1408 we landed. Naturally, I could see nothing except the inside of the military aircraft. Until the doors were opened; and then, only dazzling whiteness through the door ahead... I shuffled towards the door along with everyone else and at 1420 I stepped off the plane and onto the hard ice that makes up the Ross Ice Shelf. I had arrived, I was safely in Antarctica! Wow!

Note: New Zealand and McMurdo time is 19 hours ahead of CST in the USA. ie: subtract 5 from CST time and add one day.

Note also: Some of my photos seem dim. Don't be fooled--I have to set my camera to ISO of 50 and shutter speed of 1/4000 for nearly all of my outdoor photos!

Photo 1: From the terminal, we were bussed up to the aircraft and just walked right on! Easy as can be! I was on the second of four bus loads, making for a total of roughly 105 passengers onboard!

Photo 2: The seats had plenty of leg room and arm room. I was wearing my USAP issued wind-pants and snow-boots, as required for the "ice flight", which were a bit bulky. During the flight it was very noisy. I used my Bose headphones the whole way! There were several others with similar headphones. Others used earplugs. I slept for a good bit. Overall, a quick comfortable flight! (Photo taken by Colin Gillens)

Photo 3: From the midsection, looking forward. The center pallet seats are removable so as to accommodate different passenger loads; on the sides, two rows of jump-seats faced inwards. All seats were filled once everyone had boarded.

Photo 4: Looking backwards, taken during the flight. In the back was our luggage, palletized and shrink-wrapped along with a bit of other cargo.

Photo 5: Taken from the cockpit. Ocean and clouds are below. How cool is this!!!!

Photo 6: First view of Antarctica, the Ross Ice Shelf!

(technical difficulties...I'll try again later)

Some ideas for upcoming blog entries, replete with photos...

"Arrival to McMurdo Town"

"Life in McMurdo"

"My dorm room"

"Life in McMurdo II"

"My First Hike"

"Ground Transportation"

"LDB Site"

"BARREL"

"BARREL Balloon Launch"

"NASA's Super-Pressure Balloon"

"Why Antarctica is like the Caribbean"

"I love Antarctica"

"The Food"

"Wildlife"

...Stay tuned, I'll write more as time allows!

Antarctica!

(12/7/2009 - 4:20pm McMurdo Station time)
Hi All,
I've arrived on the ice, and have been super busy and haven't had internet access until now, pretty much. So, here are two photos to appease your appetite for my Antarctic photos. It's been wonderful here. I'm safe, healthy, well rested, and having a blast. I can't believe I'm here. It doesn't feel like another planet--it still feels like Earth. It is hard to think I'm at the very southern end of the world, though. It doesn't feel that strange (that's the Minnesotan in me, I think)! If I had to use one word to describe Antarctica, it'd be "white". Thus it is super bright here all the time. That's the weirdest thing--daylight 24/7. Even in the middle of the night. I'll write more later when I get a chance. I have tons of photos and won't be able to put anywhere near all of them online, so if I see you in the future, ask me to show you my photos--I'd love to! For now, though: enjoy:

Brett

New Zealand!

Whew, I'm in New Zealand! My first time off of North America. The furthest I've ever been from home. And for only 22 hours and 3 minutes in the air on a plane! I've had a chance to walk around downtown Christchurch. A beautiful place, feels very much like any American city, with one MAJOR exception--people drive on the wrong side of the street here. Weird. I've never seen that in person before!

Sorry, no photos in this post. I have not found internet for my personal computer yet. Hopefully I'll get around to that soon.

No time to write more at the moment. I'm fine, though. Safe, healthy, rested, happy. The journey up to this point has been very exciting, and I have some good stories.

We will attempt to leave for Antarctica Friday morning at 9:00am New Zealand time (3:00pm on Thursday afternoon, East Standard Time). Hopefully, I'll be able to write more and put up some photos this evening.