A traditional boxing day walk - Antarctic style
Celebrating christmas with the girls
Happy on Christmas day with all essential items
Wednesday, 30 December 2009
Christmas photos
A traditional boxing day walk - Antarctic style
Celebrating christmas with the girls
Happy on Christmas day with all essential items
Monday, 28 December 2009
Christmas in Antarctica
What a fabulous place to spend Christmas. It’s been a mixture of fun parties and outdoor sports with a great group of people
On Christmas eve we put on a ‘nativity’ play, cleverly adapted by doctor Matt to tell the story of the birth of the savior Shaun the chippy by Mary the beaker. It was hysterical, here’s a clip:
‘Hark’ they cried out, “make all possible haste.”
“For something miraculous has happened on base.”
“What can it be?” they cried, wiping away their drool
“Has John Withers withdrawn the two can rule?”
“Better than that,” the angels replied,
“Oh has that horrible pet skua finally died?”
“Shut up and listen, you miserable gits.
This day a man is born the king of FIDS.
We drank mulled wine and ate mince pies as the sun shone on the icebergs floating in the bay outside, quite surreal.
A morning walk around the coast to look at the penguins and seals, in a dress, was an unusual but extremely pleasant way to start Christmas day; the remainder of the day was very traditional - playing scrabble with the girls, opening presents from friends at home and on base, eating chocolate and drinking wine, followed by Christmas dinner in the festively decked canteen.
I also stuck to tradition on boxing day and went for a stroll, this year however it involved slapping on some suntan cream, getting into a harness to be roped up, and wearing crampons to hike across reptile ridge, a snow covered mountain ridge close to base. Yesterday we completed another ridge walk – stork ridge, which has spectacular views over the ice cliffs, the air was so clear you could see an island range 100 km away. We also saw Arctic turns nesting on the cliff tops, icebergs calving off into the ocean, and coming down off the ridge into ‘stork bowl’ over fresh powdery snow gave me the feeling you get when you wake up in the morning after a big snowfall and you’re the first person to walk on outside, only on a huge scale. The colors and light were fabulous, the hills and ridges of the windblown snow look like white sand dunes rolling off into the distance, mountain peaks surrounding you are awe inspiring, the sun beating down making you sweat at the same time – it’s all such a sensory overload you struggle to take it in. After returning to base for dinner we went back out into the hills to snowboard for the evening – it’s been a while so I took lots of tumbles, but when we returned to base there was a party on the veranda outside the accommodation block so I was able to rest by aching bones in the low sunlight with a few beers.
Thanks to everyone at home for my presents, and everyone on base for an amazing Christmas
On Christmas eve we put on a ‘nativity’ play, cleverly adapted by doctor Matt to tell the story of the birth of the savior Shaun the chippy by Mary the beaker. It was hysterical, here’s a clip:
‘Hark’ they cried out, “make all possible haste.”
“For something miraculous has happened on base.”
“What can it be?” they cried, wiping away their drool
“Has John Withers withdrawn the two can rule?”
“Better than that,” the angels replied,
“Oh has that horrible pet skua finally died?”
“Shut up and listen, you miserable gits.
This day a man is born the king of FIDS.
We drank mulled wine and ate mince pies as the sun shone on the icebergs floating in the bay outside, quite surreal.
A morning walk around the coast to look at the penguins and seals, in a dress, was an unusual but extremely pleasant way to start Christmas day; the remainder of the day was very traditional - playing scrabble with the girls, opening presents from friends at home and on base, eating chocolate and drinking wine, followed by Christmas dinner in the festively decked canteen.
I also stuck to tradition on boxing day and went for a stroll, this year however it involved slapping on some suntan cream, getting into a harness to be roped up, and wearing crampons to hike across reptile ridge, a snow covered mountain ridge close to base. Yesterday we completed another ridge walk – stork ridge, which has spectacular views over the ice cliffs, the air was so clear you could see an island range 100 km away. We also saw Arctic turns nesting on the cliff tops, icebergs calving off into the ocean, and coming down off the ridge into ‘stork bowl’ over fresh powdery snow gave me the feeling you get when you wake up in the morning after a big snowfall and you’re the first person to walk on outside, only on a huge scale. The colors and light were fabulous, the hills and ridges of the windblown snow look like white sand dunes rolling off into the distance, mountain peaks surrounding you are awe inspiring, the sun beating down making you sweat at the same time – it’s all such a sensory overload you struggle to take it in. After returning to base for dinner we went back out into the hills to snowboard for the evening – it’s been a while so I took lots of tumbles, but when we returned to base there was a party on the veranda outside the accommodation block so I was able to rest by aching bones in the low sunlight with a few beers.
Thanks to everyone at home for my presents, and everyone on base for an amazing Christmas
Monday, 14 December 2009
Fun at Rothera
I’ve been having so much fun. Shortly after our arrival on base we were sent on our field training course. This includes field survival skills, hiking over snow covered mountains wearing crampons, abseiling into a crevasse and camping overnight in a pyramid tent.
After being shown the contents of a field medical box to prepare us for the worst, and some basic rope skills to prepare us for the best, we were driven away from the base in a snow-cat (a big tractor). We were taught how to walk safely (roped together), how to rescue each other in the event one of us took an unplanned crevasse exploration, and how to set up a pyramid tent. Digging out a hole in the snow to prevent air circulating under the tent is the first step, ensuring the door is pointing away from the wind and getting the tent setup is next. These big orange canvass tents are pretty heavy but once inside you see why – they’re so cosy and warm! Inside the tent then goes a ground sheet, a small mountain of rugs, roll mats, blankets and sleeping bags, a pots box, field kit and food box. We were then ready to prepare our evening meal – we melted and boiled snow to make up the dehydrated meals, my culinary delight was vegetable casserole. Following the addition of a bucketload of marmite, and some biscuits and a cup of tea afterwards, the meal was actually tasty, especially after a day of exercise out in the cold.
We left some snow in a pan to melt overnight; when we awoke in the morning it was still snow! However I was toasty and warm in my down sleeping bag and I’d had a reasonable nights sleep, despite the light keeping me awake a little (it’s constant daylight down here at the moment). We melted more snow, had tea and porridge for breakfast, and then set off for more fun. First of all we climbed down in to a crevasse, which was stunning. The diffraction of blue light by snow gives a beautiful blue glow, and you’re surrounded by long icicles formed from melting snow in the summer. I felt like I was in a magical ice kingdom in Narnia! Some bits were difficult to navigate – the ice is slippery and hard when you slide into it. We the set off to walk along reptile ridge - a small mountain ridge close to Rothera. Walking uphill in the snow was hard work but well worth it for the views on the top!
Life on base is fun too, we had an open mike night on Friday, I was astounded by the quality of some of the music, especially Mel’s singing! Saturday night is treated as such - everyone gets dressed up for a three course meal with wine, and the ‘2 drinks per night’ rule is relaxed. Last night we had a poker night and other evening entertainment can include snowsports on the nearby hills, science talks, film showings or playing musical instruments in the ‘green room’.
I’m also finding time to do some work, most of my equipment is set up, the lab here is very well equipped and there’s lots of support from the mechanical workshop, field assistants, electricians and science coordinators. Bad weather has prevented us going out in the boat to get samples- the weather is 1.4 degrees, it’s snowing and the wind speed is 26 mph, so setting up some equipment on the roof of a container this morning was refreshing!
After being shown the contents of a field medical box to prepare us for the worst, and some basic rope skills to prepare us for the best, we were driven away from the base in a snow-cat (a big tractor). We were taught how to walk safely (roped together), how to rescue each other in the event one of us took an unplanned crevasse exploration, and how to set up a pyramid tent. Digging out a hole in the snow to prevent air circulating under the tent is the first step, ensuring the door is pointing away from the wind and getting the tent setup is next. These big orange canvass tents are pretty heavy but once inside you see why – they’re so cosy and warm! Inside the tent then goes a ground sheet, a small mountain of rugs, roll mats, blankets and sleeping bags, a pots box, field kit and food box. We were then ready to prepare our evening meal – we melted and boiled snow to make up the dehydrated meals, my culinary delight was vegetable casserole. Following the addition of a bucketload of marmite, and some biscuits and a cup of tea afterwards, the meal was actually tasty, especially after a day of exercise out in the cold.
We left some snow in a pan to melt overnight; when we awoke in the morning it was still snow! However I was toasty and warm in my down sleeping bag and I’d had a reasonable nights sleep, despite the light keeping me awake a little (it’s constant daylight down here at the moment). We melted more snow, had tea and porridge for breakfast, and then set off for more fun. First of all we climbed down in to a crevasse, which was stunning. The diffraction of blue light by snow gives a beautiful blue glow, and you’re surrounded by long icicles formed from melting snow in the summer. I felt like I was in a magical ice kingdom in Narnia! Some bits were difficult to navigate – the ice is slippery and hard when you slide into it. We the set off to walk along reptile ridge - a small mountain ridge close to Rothera. Walking uphill in the snow was hard work but well worth it for the views on the top!
Life on base is fun too, we had an open mike night on Friday, I was astounded by the quality of some of the music, especially Mel’s singing! Saturday night is treated as such - everyone gets dressed up for a three course meal with wine, and the ‘2 drinks per night’ rule is relaxed. Last night we had a poker night and other evening entertainment can include snowsports on the nearby hills, science talks, film showings or playing musical instruments in the ‘green room’.
I’m also finding time to do some work, most of my equipment is set up, the lab here is very well equipped and there’s lots of support from the mechanical workshop, field assistants, electricians and science coordinators. Bad weather has prevented us going out in the boat to get samples- the weather is 1.4 degrees, it’s snowing and the wind speed is 26 mph, so setting up some equipment on the roof of a container this morning was refreshing!
Monday, 7 December 2009
Antarctica Part II - Rothera
Hello from Rothera! We made it after four days of travel, having been delayed in Chile for one day, no hardship at all after two days on the move. Gerry, an army electrician on his way to Signy, and I went for a long run to stretch our legs and I made full use of the hotel facilities – pool, gym, bar and restaurant. The weather cleared quickly though and we were able to make the final leg of the journey – the 6 hour flight from Punta Arenas to Rothera base, Antarctica. We were taken through security to get on the Dash 7 airplane at Punta Arenas airport – bizarrely both ourselves and our hand luggage went through the usual security checks but anything too big to fit on the conveyor belt was just wheeled round the outside!
The Dash 7 is a basic propeller plane with 16 seats and a cargo area. No meals are served on board but there are kettles at the back so you can make your own cup of tea and some packets of biscuits to pass round. What’s more, you can go into the cockpit, and I was fortunate enough to bagsie the seat behind the pilots in the cockpit for landing. We descended through the clouds to see icebergs, snow covered mountains and Rothera up ahead. The pilots dipped their wings from side to side to straighten up for the approach so the view swung around the spectacular blue and white scenery, what an amazing experience.
We were shown around the extremely cozy base, and then taken for a walk around ‘the point’, which is the rocky coastal area. The scenic walk takes you past adelie penguins, weather masts, icebergs, satellite domes, seals, tractors, memorials to previous polar explorers and of course the beautiful snow covered mountains in the background. It really is a stunning place to be.
The Dash 7 is a basic propeller plane with 16 seats and a cargo area. No meals are served on board but there are kettles at the back so you can make your own cup of tea and some packets of biscuits to pass round. What’s more, you can go into the cockpit, and I was fortunate enough to bagsie the seat behind the pilots in the cockpit for landing. We descended through the clouds to see icebergs, snow covered mountains and Rothera up ahead. The pilots dipped their wings from side to side to straighten up for the approach so the view swung around the spectacular blue and white scenery, what an amazing experience.
We were shown around the extremely cozy base, and then taken for a walk around ‘the point’, which is the rocky coastal area. The scenic walk takes you past adelie penguins, weather masts, icebergs, satellite domes, seals, tractors, memorials to previous polar explorers and of course the beautiful snow covered mountains in the background. It really is a stunning place to be.
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