It has been 2016 for almost 17 hours now. It’s just fine so far. Today was a working day for the station, but most people will get another two-day weekend, so everyone’s stoked. This will be the last two-day weekend for the rest of the season.
Some people stayed up to celebrate the New Year, but Richard and I went to bed. Typical. The store stocked up on Champagne, then limited the sale to one bottle per person, then ran out anyway. Because I had to work at 4 a.m. today, I didn’t imbibe. But maybe I’ll indulge in an Isaac’s Cider tomorrow night. They are a New Zealand brand that is part cider, part wine and all good.
For lunch today the chefs served black-eyed peas and collard greens. Good luck for the New Year, they said.
The whole station has been buzzing about whether the Long-Duration Balloon will launch? Has it? When? I was jokingly tasked by the kitchen staff to run up Observation Hill “real quick now” and take barometric pressure and wind speed readings to predict whether the balloon would launch that day. (It didn’t, nor did I actually get to go up Ob Hill on company time.)
People are excited for a myriad of reasons: (1) The balloon project is super cool; (2) The ballon is super huge; (3) and nothing happens here so anything out of the ordinary is pretty awesome.
For the launch, conditions must be fairly perfect and the weather has been iffy lately. They have announced plans to launch every few days and then nothing happens. If it does launch, the top of Ob Hill is going to be busy as many, many people will climb up there to view the balloon.
To give you an idea of the stratospheric balloon: it is 400-feet in diameter and expands to 40 million cubic feet. For comparison, most commercial hot air balloon companies use 600,000 cubic feet balloons. So, this thing is huge.
Also, it’s fast. It rises at a rate of 900 feet per minute and rides around 125,000 feet of altitude.
The balloons are used by NASA, the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Antarctic Program and other astrophysics and geospace scientists to gather data for various projects.
And a third ballon carries instruments to measure the cosmic microwave background radiation. This is looking for evidence of the expansion that is thought to have occurred within a fraction of a second after the Big Bang.
All three balloons would circumnavigate Antarctica. When they land, groups will fly out to retrieve the instruments and balloons.
I’m not sure which balloon is up for the launch, but I think it’s the telescope one. And things are getting stressful because they usually try to launch all three balloons within the summer season and none have yet been launched this year.
Christmas at McMurdo is a BIG DEAL! At a time when people are usually with their families, instead, they are stuck on a block of ice, thousands of miles from their loved ones. To accommodate for the potential loneliness, the meals are made elaborately and everyone is encouraged to spend time away from work.
Most of the station got two days off IN A ROW! This only happens three times per summer season: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years’ Day.
I didn’t get any time off. Stewards and kitchen staff ALL work Christmas, mostly because it wouldn’t be fair if some got the actual day off. I went into work at 6 a.m. Very few people were awake on station, so things were fairly chill. We did a lot of deep cleans, which involves emptying and cleaning things that get used often or often get ignored.
Around midday, we all gathered for our family meal. The galley was closed to the rest of the station and the kitchen folk got to eat first. Everyone was allowed to bring a plus-one, so Richard was able to eat with me.
There were two soups, lots of vegetables, two meat-carving stations, fresh salad and SO MANY desserts. The bakers made handmade fudges, candies, caramels, cream puffs, baklava, passionfruit tarts, chocolate cake, cookies and three kinds of bread. It was amazing!
In preparation for the Christmas meals, I helped make mushroom and cheese stuffed pastries. My job was to use a cookie cutter to make snowflakes to bake on top. It was great. I just imagined myself at my parent’s house making sugar cookies.
After the meal, we got the galley ready for the station meals. There were four station meals that afternoon and evening. Because I had come in so early, I only worked the first hour of the first meal. Apparently, at Thanksgiving, things in the galley did not go well and the flow while people were getting their food was destroyed. This time, things flowed very well and the majority of eaters were through the galley and eating within a half-hour. (At Thanksgiving, I was told, people waited more than an hour in line to eat.)
I left at 4 p.m. and went to meet Richard at the Med Clinic where he was calling family. I got to talk to my sister, Renee.
My family met at Renee’s this year, and while I wish I had been there, this was the only Christmas since Richard started residency that we’ve spent the actual holiday together. So, that was pretty nice.
But not being with my sister was sad for me. She was a huge part of my Christmas’s growing up. Christmas Eve was the one day of the year I was actually invited into Renee’s room. We would spend the evening watching movies and talking. It meant a lot to me to get to spend that time with her. Now that we’re friends and make a point to seeing each other multiple times a year (and actually really like each other), it’s not AS important. But being so far from family makes you think of things like that. (Love you, Ne-Ne.)
Now, don’t get the idea that my childhood was all sad and miserable. Fortunately, my parents were nice to me everyday, so their being nice to me at Christmas was kind of assumed. (Love you, Mom and Dad!)
The weather was clear and not super windy, so Richard and I ran up and around Observation Hill, which is just east of town. Earlier in the day, the town held a race to the top (Richard got 8th), but since I was working and had to miss it, I made him run it again. The loop around the base is the nicest trail I’ve been on around here. It doesn’t literally crumple down the mountain when you step on it, which is unusual and very nice. We saw many, many seals sunbathing and two skuas riding air thermals over our heads.
After the run, we snuck into the end of the last dinner for seconds. I got more cream puffs.
And then came bedtime! Merry Christmas!
Climbing Ob Hill with McMurdo in the background. See that blue building at 11 0’clock above my head? That’s building #155, where we live.Sorry it’s blurry. That’s the top of Ob Hill. Mt. Erebus is ice-covered behind us. The cross is in memory of Scott, who died on his way back from finally making it to the South Pole. The cross will be 101 years old in January.Running around Ob Hill. It’s hard to see, but the New Zealand base is behind me.
My life on the ice has been cleaning, cleaning, dishes, sweeping, mopping, exercising, reading, cleaning. While the work is not awesome, the people are! Not just the people I work with, but the new friends I’ve made in other departments.
The reality of McMurdo is that they keep you working long, hard hours so that you’re good and tired by the time your off-hours roll around. Tired employees are less likely to do stupid things and hurt themselves. I get that. But, I — and most others — still find the energy to do whatever makes us happy. For me, it’s exercise and exploring. For others, it’s socializing at the MANY parties on station or gathering in smaller groups for movies or discussions.
I have been invited to a couple of events that people of similar interests have put together, like Space Club where you talk about space, or coloring book sessions; both of which sound great to me!
Last night, Richard and I went to one of the science lectures. It was on atmospheric waves at the south pole. The researcher, Xian Lu, looks at atmospheric waves that form 30 to 130 km above the earth. Apparently, there are special types of waves at those altitudes that don’t form anywhere but the poles. The power and instability of the polar vortex allows for the wave generation.
I am looking forward to the penguin lecture on Sunday!
I had my first janitorial shift on Monday, which was great despite the vomit we had to clean up. The day is structured very differently from galley — or dining hall — shifts. You get your cleaning assignments at the beginning of the day, complete as you can while taking your breaks and listen to your podcast or music of choice as you go! Every galley worker gets at least one “jano” shift a week. I will continually look forward to mine.
It’s nice to feel like I’m really settling in. Although I’ve only been here just over a week, it feels like longer (but not in a bad way).
Despite the constant daylight, sleep has come easily to me most nights. Part of that is the windowless room — most of the dorm buildings have windows — and part of it is the complete exhaustion of 10-hours-a-day work. Although, I am slowly adjusting to the load.
Tomorrow is Christmas! The chefs have been working like mad to make everything delicious and special. I am excited to see how things will run differently on station for the holiday.
The plan was to take off last night, ski or hike — depending on snow conditions — to Castle Rock (a prominent rock column just south of Mt. Erebus and about 4 miles north of McMurdo, and sleep in one of the survival huts along the route.
That was the plan. However, I needed to sleep. Like, good sleep, without an alarm set, flat out, totally zonked sleep.
So, we canned that plan and I went to bed early. Richard went to CrossFit.
I slept until 10 a.m. Our room is nice in that it is in the interior of the building. That means, once the lights are out, it’s dark. When we woke up, we read for an hour or so. Then slowly made our way downstairs to brunch.
Around 1 p.m., we walked over to the Firehouse and checked out for our aforementioned Castle Rock hike. Anyone who leave the station must sign out with the Firehouse and take a radio. You also have to let station know when you think you’ll return by and check back in once you’re back. If you go over the allotted time you gave for the off-station activity, they send out searchers. We were told, the response time is quick, almost immediate. Within 5 minutes past your check-in time, about 50 people have been notified of your absence. By 30 minutes past, they are mobilized and looking for you. It is very important to check back in or call with the radio if you are okay but going to be late. Continue reading →
Well, it’s not so much “ice” right now. It’s the height of summer at McMurdo, which means other than the actual sea ice just off shore, the roads and land around town are exposed dirt. That doesn’t mean it won’t snow again until winter, it’s just not constant snow.
The weather has changed from warm (40F) and sunny to cloudy and windy with wind chills under 20. My ears got really cold walking around town today trying to find the Byrd Field Center. They issue gear for anyone going out of town. Richard and I have plans to sleep out on the sea ice soon in one of the survival huts scattered around the Castle Rock Loop Trail. Because of the Antarctic Treaty, bodily fluids like urine cannot be left out on the ice — they have to be collected and treated with the wastewater. So, Richard and I will need to collect our pee and bring it back to the station. Therefore, I needed to grab a designated “pee nalgene” from the gear center.
I have worked four shifts so far and I am finding the work physically tiring and mentally boring. Fortunately, the people are very nice and interesting. The position I have is called “Steward.” We are here to clean. That’s basically it. But, the work is secondary to the experiences of meeting cool people and living in Antarctica. But I fully understand why the turnover for Stewards is so high.
Part of my exhaustion, however, is my own fault. My friend Nicole will be excited to know that I went to a CrossFit class on Thursday. I had never before been to CrossFit and I am currently paying for my choice. ALL the muscles in my upper legs are on fire. Can’t wait for that healing to begin.
I also have to constantly remind myself to drink water. The climate down is so dry that the majority of health issues stem from dehydration. And on top of all that, I am adjusting to my new schedule. I take some time to recover from time changes, but I haven’t had time for a good, long, alarm-less sleep yet. And my shifts will either be 4 a.m. to 2 p.m. or 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. I am glad to have the morning shifts, but they will take adjustment nonetheless.
I think Richard and I are enjoying each other’s company. It is nice to have my best friend back in my life. And it’s fun to meet all the friends he has made. He seems to be getting along well here within the community.
Me in my work uniform. So. Cool.Cold and beautiful.
Richard had to spend a couple of hours in the middle of the night treating a patient that was staying in the medical building overnight before they could be evacuated. Then, he got up super early to go back in and relieve the Navy doctor who had stayed with the patient overnight.
So, I showed myself around.
I woke up to Richard’s alarm at 6:40 a.m., read a little, checked the weather and then took myself on a wandering tour.
When I got to McMurdo the day before, I was in the high 30s and SUNNY.
Today was around 17 degrees with the wind chill and partly cloudy. The station has its own weather channel and I saw that a weather system will be moving in later in the week.
I walked around until I got cold and then went back inside to eat and get ready for work.
Everyone here works the equivalent to 10-hour shifts, six days a week. Some shifts are different depending on the job.
I reported to the dishroom at 10 a.m. We had an hour until lunch started, so everyone was prepping for that.
I spent the morning shadowing a few different ladies. Everyone is very nice and helpful.
By the end of the day, you’ve had so much time to learn about everyone that friendships form quickly. Although, most of the people here have already been working together for months, so it’s also a bit like being the new kid at school.
McMurdo definitely feels like college to me. You live in dorms, share bathrooms, eat in a cafeteria and walk everywhere.
The work in the galley is a lot like restaurant work. Cleaning, straightening, serving.
It’s loud, but not too smelly. There is a certain pressure to provide everyone on base with what may be their only comfort for the day. And most people are duly respectful of the work it takes to feed them.
It was a long day of trying to memorize lots of details.
And, of course, as soon as I finished work, Richard whisked me off to Scott Base for a walk through the pressure ridges.
These ridges form where the sea ice collides with the shore and gets smashed into itself. Access to the ridges may not be around for much longer as the sea ice is melting away from shore this late in the season. The danger of sea ice is getting to it. Once you’re out on it, it’s relatively stable and strong. But along the shoreline, things break up and get thin.
The pressure ridges were beautiful and it was nice to feel the remoteness of Antarctica for a moment. It’s hard to do that being inside all day.
We saw four or five seals. According to the Antarctica Treaty, harassing any wildlife is a federal offense. The rule is, do not get close enough to an animal to cause it to alter its behavior.
Well, some of these seals don’t care about humans. They are just there to enjoy the sun and take a nap. Of course, we didn’t get too close, but we were certainly able to see the coloring changes of their pelts and hear them “bark.” Although, I thought it sounded more like a dog when it whines.
The only bird here is called a skua. It is a large seagull-type bird that is very attracted to human food. All food waste must be stored in skua-safe bins. They also warn against walking outside with food in your hands. The skuas will see it, try to startle you into dropping it and steal it. Or, they’ll just take it out of your hands.
After the pressure ridges, we came back to base and had some of the 24-hour pizza.
Then came a hard-won sleep.
Richard pointing at something — a seal, I think — while we walked around the pressure ridges.Richard, a seal and Mt. Erebus (far right).In the pressure ridges. Behind us is Castle Rock (the small-looking rock tip) and Mt. Erebus.
The raised van we took to get to the pressure ridges.
I have been at McMurdo Station now for 30 hours and it has been a whirlwind.
I left my hotel in Christchurch lugging my bags, which then weighed closer to 100 pounds thanks to my Extreme Cold Weather gear.
Once at the clothing distribution center, I changed into the cold weather pants and packed everything according to the Antarctica system. You can have checked baggage that cannot exceed 85 pounds, including a boomerang bag.
Because weather at McMurdo is so changeable, it is not unusual for a flight to have to turn back to Christchurch before it lands in Antarctica. In that case, passengers can retrieve their boomerang bags, but not they’re checked luggage. So, it is recommended that passengers put a change of clothes and medications, etc in a boomerang bag, just in case.
After your checked luggage is packed, you are allowed a carry-on that has not weight restriction, but MUST fit into the prescribed space allotment. (I ended up putting most of my books in my carry-on, the skinny, heavy things.)
Next comes security. The U.S. Navy runs the flights and flight security out of Christchurch for ice- bound planes. After I had everything organized, I walked my stuff over to the passenger terminal and had my identity verified. Pretty typical plane stuff.
Next they weighed my checked luggage and my carry-on and me.
Instead of a ticket, I was issued a playing-card-sized ID tag that identified me as Passenger #26.
After that, I could leave the terminal (and my carry-on) to take advantage of the last breaths of 50- degree weather I would experience for a while.
At the prescribed time, all the passengers met back at the terminal for a(nother) safety and information video. This one served as general Antarctica information and the other was the safety information for the C-130 we were about to get on.
Next, we went through security ourselves and then boarded a bus that would take us across the street to the airport to the U.S. Antarctica Program planes.
The C-130 was dark, and looked like, I imagine, most planes without interior walls. Many pipes ran along the ceiling and walls for ventilation, electricity and various fluid movement.
Our carry-ons were “stowed” on hangings racks. Our emergency ventilation systems were bubbles you pull over your head with individual oxygen cylinders that sit at the nape of your neck. Our life vests were like the ones I’ve seen on every plane.
Our seats were canvas benches than ran the length of the cabin along the walls. The seat backs were sewn webbing. It wasn’t as uncomfortable as it sounds.
At the back of the plane, all the cargo was stacked on pallets. The bathrooms were just toilets in the wall. Once the plane is above 10,000 feet and people are allowed to walk around, the load masters (or military flight attendants) pull curtains around the toilets for privacy.
Andy and I sat by two small windows, but they were directly behind us, so we had to twist to see anything.
The plane was super loud! They gave us earplugs before boarding. I wore mine for the entire length of the flight from engine on to engine off.
While flying, we were free to eat the bagged lunches given us, get up and walk around, a try to talk. It was so loud, communication became Charades.
I spent most of my time reading and trying to find a comfortable way to sit. The plane ride lasted almost 8 hours, which is longer than most flights to McMurdo. The US Antarctic Program also uses C-17s and Airbus A380s. They only take about 5 hours. But we were on the slow bus.
The views, once we got south of the open water, were really pretty. It reminded me of flying over Alaska. We landed at Willy Field around 5:30 p.m. New Zealand time (McMurdo recognizes New Zealand time in summer and Denver time in winter). The landing was smooth.
Once off the plane, we were immediately put into a school bus that is jacked up on tractor-sized wheels. It’s called Ivan the Terra Bus. Not sure why.
Our driver was a 30-something lady with a pretty smile. The drive to the base took about 45 minutes. The planes land out on multi-year sea ice. As we drive back to shore, we got a nice view of Mt. Erebus (which we’re not allowed to climb).
Once on Ross Island proper, the road went past Scott Base, which is the New Zealand station on Ross Island. It’s much smaller than McMurdo, with only 100 people in summer and about 20 in winter.
I kept my eyes open for Richard once we were at McMurdo, but we were immediately shuffled into ANOTHER briefing. We met the station manager and some of his staff. We also got our room keys and met our direct supervisors. A nice, hipster lady named Kate is my boss. I like her glasses frames.
Richard showed up in the middle of my briefing. It was so nice to see him.
And in perfect Richard-fashion, as soon as my obligations were finished at the briefing, he immediately hurried me away to ANOTHERRRRR meeting. This one was mandatory to participate in any outdoor recreational activities at the base, so it was SUPER VITAL for me to get it done IMMEDIATELY. OR ELSE. Blerg.
I sat through the meeting, tired and hungry and wanting to be in a quiet room where we could actually talk instead of being talked to. Typical Richard.
Fortunately, the meeting didn’t last long and I made Richard take me to our room.
He only deviated slightly and I only had to yell at him once for taking me the “long” way.
My checked luggage wasn’t going to be available for another half-hour or so, so he gave me the orientation of our room.
We have two twin beds shoved together at the back of the room. A big, metal dresser, bed side table, mini fridge, desk, Richard’s bike and trainer, larger chair and shoe shelf that Richard made out of cardboard boxes.
Next, Richard gave me a tour of the base on the way to grabbing my bags.
Our room is in the same building as the galley (where I work) and just across the dirt from the medical building, where Richard works.
I unpacked and we ate food that Richard had snagged earlier.
Then I fell asleep until my body’s reaction to the dry air woke me. I am constantly itchy and thirsty. Hopefully I will adjust soon.
Looking toward the back of the C-130 from Christchurch to McMurdo.The toilet on the C-130. I’m not sure who Doriski is, but maybe his aim wasn’t so true.The C-130.
My alarm went off hours after sunrise but I wasn’t ready for it.
Orientation started at 9 a.m. in a building next door to my hotel. Despite a head of fog, I managed to find the right building.
We watched videos that romanticized the ice continent and I tried very hard to keep my eyes open.
Next came the clothing distribution. Everyone gets extreme cold weather gear. This includes: a huge parka, waterproof insulated bib pants, insulated rubber boots, insulated leather gloves, fleece pants and jacket, hat, balaclava, neck gaitor, etc. Everything is bulky but warm.
Most of the clothes fit me as well as could be expected, so my time in the clothing room was over pretty quickly.
I took some time to use the free wifi at the Clothing Distribution Center and then headed into town.
One of the people going down to McMurdo tomorrow is a firefighter named Andy. He and I got Korean food and walked around Christchurch.
The botanical gardens were my favorite part. They are part of a really large span of green space in the middle of the city. I found a monkey puzzle tree from chile. It’s a very tall conifer that has rough bark and thick, scale-like needles. They are considered endangered and, like many large conifers, live for hundreds of years.
The last time I saw one was in a botanical garden in the U.K. when I was 13.
The weather was sunny and warm all day. But by 6 p.m., I was beat.
I went back to my room and slept.
I (might — weather premitting) actually get to see Richard today!! Ahhhhhhhh! SO EXCITED!!!
My gear bags for Anatarctica. Behind these freight cars is the facade of a old church. without the stacked cars, the wall risks falling onto the street in front of it. this damage is from the 2010 and 2011 earthquake s.
By the time my plane touched down in Sydney, I was 30. Not too shabby to spend my birthday in a new country and a new city.
It was an overcast and slow Sunday morning in Sydney. I kept wondering where all the people were? Eventually it stuck that even metropolitan cities can be quiet at 6 a.m. Sunday morning.
I took the train into the city and got off right by the Sydney Opera House. I walked along the water, got buzzed by a pigeon, stopped to read, walked across the Harbor Bridge and found an outdoor market under the bridge.
One chai latte and a pound of fresh cherries later, I found a spot of grass to lounge on and read.
After the clouds burned away and the sun came out the water in the harbor turned from a dull blue to a deep green.
I walked back across the bridge hoping I wouldn’t burn.
Sydney feels like a very active city. People were walking, cycling and running everywhere. Granted my sample size was low (and it was a Sunday) but, of the streets I took, cars weren’t all over, honking and making smells. (I think the boats honk more than the cars.)
I liked that.
After I got back across the bridge, I came upon another street market where I bought a bar of chocolate and a lemonade. It’s summer down here.
Once adequately overwhelmed by all the people, I got back on the train to the airport. My flight out of Sydney was delayed, but only by an hour or so.
I got into Christchurch around 1 a.m. local time. Immigration and customs were fine. And my hotel was only a half-mile from the airport.
I decided to walk. My checked baggage was 65 pounds and my carry-on was another 20 pounds. My hip flexors and shoulders were mad but there was no harm done.
Sorry I dropped off the Internet for the last few months. Since the PCT, Richard flew off to Antarctica, I worked at Sweetland Farm, freelanced for the Valley News and enjoyed New Hampshire.
Now, it’s my turn to fly to Antarctica. I leave the states tomorrow and should get to the ice around December 15 or so — weather permitting.
I will try my very best to blog as often as possible. I hear the Internet at the bottom of the world can be spotty.
I can’t wait to see Richard, experience one of the only places on earth without human habitation and see more of this huge world!
The ring of gear. Can you guess where I was sitting?The one I can’t wait to see!
