Two days ago we stepped off a C-17 military transport plane and onto ice. In that instant the travel to get here became a blur. The 20-odd hours from San Fransisco to Christchurch, dragging a weighbridge through New Zealand customs, watching marginal movies instead of sleeping. Then a rainy few days in Christchurch, sidestepping puddles, inspecting earthquake damage, safety training and cold-weather-gear issue, and a couple minor earthquakes in the night to puntuate our dreams. The 5 hour flight from Christchurch to McMurdo, loud and with few windows and strange-shaped cargo onboard, but finally we're over the continent and can peer down at glaciers pierced by meringue-like peaks. I step off the plane and am struck with the immensity of being here. Snowy mountains in the middle-ground hint at the frozen vastness beyond, a true wilderness. Closer is the bustle of McMurdo Station, dirty and busy, bureaucratic, funky. A frontier town stuck in the modern world. And the cold. It wasn't terribly bad when we arrived, around minus 10 C and 14 knots of wind, but any comparison to central California is a stretch.
Somewhere west of the Ross Sea.
Libby gets off the plane. I think that grin must have frozen on her face, because it didn't show any signs of change until we got inside a warm building.
We settled in and changed out of the extreme cold weather clothes we're required to wear on the flight. A post-dinner walk found Annie, Libby and I atop Ob Hill, overlooking McMurdo and Scott Base and all the wilderness beyond, rejoicing in our presence here. Then to sleep, with a dark curtain over the window to keep out the midnight sun. By some mysterious stroke of luck Libby and I somehow ended up with our own room, though there is another bunk in there so we'll likely get a room mate before long. David said penguins must have some influence we don't know about.
McMurdo colors.
Libby is standing on a rock, I promise. Atop Ob Hill, looking west-ish across McMurdo Sound, to mountains on the continent.
Yesterday and today we began preparations to head out to our field camps. We will be splitting in to 2 groups: Jean Pennycook and Katie Dugger to Cape Royds, and David Ainley, Annie Pollard, Libby and I to Capre Crozier. Sleeping bags, tents, fire extinguishers, shovels, hammers, toilet paper, GPS recievers, ice chests, backpacks and more all have to be sorted, packed, weighed and labeled for the helicopter flight.
Last evening's walk was out to Hut Point, where the Scott Expedition built a hut to overwinter on their fated South Pole bid. The hut looked remarkably well-preserved in this dry environment, though we couldn't go inside without a specially-trained guide. The clouds present since our arrival cleared and the wind was calm. Ice melted into mud on the roads. Two Weddell Seals lounged on the ice at the edge of town.
Libby and Annie chat with the Scott Hut (not to be confused with Scott Base) and McMurdo Station behind.
The rest of the week we'll be doing more prep: communications briefing, food-pull, tracking down missing gear. Tomorrow and the next day Libby will be in Happy Camper survival school.
More to come...
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