A N T A R C T I C A

Somehow I ended up in Antarctica. Life is funny like that at times. One moment you are living cozily in love in an RV named Lucy with a nice wood fire burning surrounded by falling orange leaves and the next thing you know you are swooped up and flown to the continent of ice, working 60 hour weeks and living with 1,000’s of people! Surrounded by ice, mountains, scientists, artists, musicians, nomads, travelers and folks who just couldn't find work in America; McMurdo station is proving to be an interesting place to live. I am enjoying it. It’s like summer camp for adults, only it’s an Antarctic summer which means that the average temperature is freezing or below and although everyone is an “adult” it feels a little bit like Jr. High! There are free yoga classes in the chapel, Zumba classes, arts and crafts rooms, hiking, skiing, movies, lectures, the coffee shop, two bars, a library and a gym as well as endless talented and interesting people to talk with. Today I drove an underwater video camera called “skinny” under the sea ice with a remote control, viewing the computer monitors I could see star fish, worms and Volcanic Sponges covering the bottom of the sea. I also saw two Wendell Seals pop out of the ice for a sun bath. Never a dull a moment in Antarctica!

A caged Mary of McMurdo sits along a ridge over looking town.

"Skinny" the under

water camera

"3 foot hole in the ice to launch "skinny"

My first ski on the Ross Sea ice

A Mural painting on a random wall in the Supply Building

My cozy coffee shop hanger!

Scott's Hut at Cape Evans

This week I went on a field trip to Cape Evans. It was a very special trip for a number of reasons. Basically it was one in a million. All of the right people came together at the right time to make it happen. First of all, the night before the trip to the Cape Dr. Julian Dowdeswell , the Director of Scott's Polar Research Institute at Cambridge University, gave a lecture about the great Antarctic explorers; Scott, Shakleton and Amundsen and their subsequent journeys to Antarctica in the early 1900's. It just so happened that Julian was room mates in the dorms with two of my painting crew and was sitting with us at dinner before the trip to Cape Evans. Also sitting at the table was Ruben, my painting boss and his friend, a snow plower on the Ice. I sat down to dinner and learned that Julian was on the field trip and found out that he had been on three previous attempted field trips that all failed from getting stuck on the way out to the Cape. When I learned that he had never been there before, and this was his last chance as he was leaving the next day, I said " So this is a big deal!" and he replied, "Yes, very much so." (In a British accent.) Ruben's friend was at the table with us and knowing it was all of our last chances to see the Scott hut on Cape Evans as the ice was rapidly melting was humbly quiet and didn't reveal his plans to accompany us.

We piled into the Delta, a big tank-like sort of vehicle and left McMurdo for Scott's hut. Scott's hut is located on the north shore of Cape Evans on Ross Island in Antarctica. It was erected in 1911 by the British Antarctic Expedition of 1910–1913 (also known as the Terra Nova Expedition) led by Robert Falcon Scott. Driving along the sea ice away from town was a great feeling. The sea ice is 54 inches thick but summer is approaching and in summer the ice melts and the road obviously closes as well as the airplane runway. In the summer killer whales, seals and penguins swim along in the sea right by town. For now, it is still ice and we were driving along on top of it. On our left was the Transantarctic mountain range and multiple glaciers pouring out around them. Miles of ice and snowdrifts and Mt. Erebus on our left. Mt. Erebus is the southernmost historically active volcano on Earth. With a summit elevation of 12,448 ft, it is located on Ross Island, which is also home to three inactive volcanoes, notably Mount Terror. Mount Erebus is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, which includes over 160 active volcanoes.

The snow drifts got rather large the closer we got to the Point of Inaccessibility, beyond which was Scott's hut. This is where we got stuck. So stuck, that we all piled out of the Delta and grabbed shovels and started shovelling the thing out!

It was fun though, getting out of the Delta on the sea ice with Erebus smoking in the distance. We finally got unstuck and drove little further, getting stuck again. At this point it was too far to the hut to hike and we would have had to abort the trip, if Ruben's friend had not come to our rescue with his plow and snow grater! He had followed us out all the way on his night off. So he started to pull us through the snow drifts. And this is when the penguins came! Out of now where they appeared, 8 emperor penguins sliding along the snow and waddling up to us.

Penguins!!!!!

The penguins were curious about the sounds coming from our huge vehicle and once we saw them approaching in the distance the driver stopped the Delta and we all piled out and went and sat in the snow silently.

The penguins, sliding and walking along, all 6 of them, came right up to us! They stopped and looked at us, calling to each other and twisting their long slender necks around. They were very curious and not in the slightest bit afraid. After they had checked us out sufficiently they all turned around and started sliding away on their bellies! It was so incredible. A sliding train of penguins! Off they went into the bright night sun.

Two of them, after a long sliding walk, came back! They stopped and hung their slender necks together and called out to each other communicating something or other about how to proceed. Then they walked up to us, standing about 10 feet away from me. It broke my heart really, these beautiful fish/bird/manlike creatures coming right up to me, trusting, curious and fun loving spirits. They hung out with us for a few minutes posing and strutting their stuff and then turned around and slipping onto their bellies, slid off into the wild Antarctic ice world with Mt. Erebus in the distance.

Mt. Erebus

The next stop on the trip was Scott's hut, left untouched since 1911. We arrived at the hut and walked up to it. It was on the land next to the sea ice. Sleds and ski's were leaned up against it and stepping inside was like walking into a time machine. Inside the hut was full of belongings. It was left exactly as it was found and it appeared as if the occupants had only stepped out for a hike and would be returning in a few hours.

It was full of crates and boxes of food, scientific instruments, a darkroom full of trays and chemicals where Ponting developed the famous photos of their journey.



There were bunk beds with wool blankets, and clothing draped everywhere, old wool sock full of holes and leather shoes, mittens and sweaters. The shelves were stocked with mysterious viles of medicines, old hats, books and personal belongings. There was so much stuff in that building, it was hard to believe they carried it all from England on a ship! There was even piles of seal blubber, still sitting there, one hundred years later, in prime condition, only slightly stinky.

After an hour of wandering through the hut, admiring the ancient relics of our great European explorers and watching Dr. Julian find each treasure with awe and excitement, we slowly wandered back to the Delta. Again, we were pulled through the drifts, making it possible to get back to McMurdo without having to spend the whole night digging through the drifts.

On the way back we stopped at some ice caves and slid down a little hole into a cave full of beautiful ice crystals, hanging down in feathery patterns and glowing blue.

November, 24 2009.

Flying to Antarctica

I flew from New Zealand to Antarctica three days ago. We got up early on Saturday morning, arriving at the airport at 4:30 a.m. and proceeded to change into our cold weather issued gear which includes a Carhartt parka, white bunny boots, Carhartt insulated bibs, and thermal long underwear, along with goggles, hat, neck gator and gloves. This was the gear we that was mandatory to wear when boarding the Air force C-17 carrier plane that took us down to Antarctica.

After checking our luggage we boarded two old white buses that took about 40 scientists, air force men and women, and us workers down to McMurdo. Boarding the plane was like stepping into the 50's for me. The huge aircraft was gutted inside except for about ten rows of seats down the middle and seats strapped into the sides. In the back of the aircraft was a bunch of cargo all strapped down by webbing. The guts of the plane were exposed and piping, electrical and safety boxes lined the walls and ceiling. I sat in the front row. From my seat I could see out both left and right side windows and also up into the cockpit. The plane took off. I could see the green pastures of New Zealand rushing past. And then ocean, and then clouds and the blinding sun.

This was exciting. This was the moment that it really set in. The reality that I was flying, along with a number of others (in red parkas and snow pants!) to a place that only a year or so earlier I had never even imagined traveling to, let alone work and live for a season. The flight took about five hours. I was reading a book called Antarctica by Kim Stanley Robinson. It was uncanny how everything happening to the characters in the book was happening, at that very moment or a few hours earlier, to me! Flying the New Zealand, gear issue, boarding the plane, and.... getting of the plane. Which I was about to do in a matter of minutes.

About four hours into the flight the great ice continent came into sight. I went up into the cockpit, bright sunlight momentarily blinding me until I put on my polarized sunglasses. Before me was the most breathtaking, heart wrenching, jaw dropping landscape I have ever witnessed. Antarctica loomed before me, jagged mountain peaks, white swooning glaciers, big flat ice shelves as far as the eye could see. Pristine wilderness, untouched by humans, raw and ominous, I would even say sublime. My turn in the cock pit ended far sooner than I would have liked. I had to let others go up, so I went back down into the cargo and peeped out the little circular side windows snapping photographs and melting into a puddle of awe and joy. Excitement filled my blood as the captains voice came over loudspeaker telling us to take our seats as we were approaching McMurdo.

I took my seat, put on my parka and tried to peek out the little side windows without any luck for all I could see was the bright blinding whiteness; and so I closed my eyes. Then we landed; easy, smooth and successfully on the ice. Everyone clapped! The plane came to a halt. The officer opened the stairway door into the outside world and I had my first view of the ice. I unsnapped my buckle and picked up my orange issued carry on bag, ukulele and all. I walked to the door, sunglasses on and felt the cold wind on my face. Stepping out, down the stairs and onto the ice was such a trip. "The first time is the best time" the experienced icers say, and I believe them. It was love at first sight really. You would think such a cold and hostile environment would be undesirable but on the contrast it was instantly enduring.

They put us on big red shuttles immediately, leaving the C-17 behind we were driven to McMurdo just moments away to a welcome and shown how to settle into life at McMurdo station.

So it all began, my time on the ice continent.

Ruben, Peter, AnnArctica, Ken and Kirk.

Antarctica Paint Crew, Summer 2009

Tommorrow morning I fly down to McMudro Station, Antarctica. I have been anticipating this trip now for over a year ever since my trail crew leader last fall in Colorado mentioned it. Until then I had never even thought of Antarctica as a place I would like to go let alone go to work as a Painter outdoors! But as I looked into it further and read more about it I found myself drawn to it. A job that pays pretty good, and takes me all around the the world to a place that is full of rare beauty, untouched by civilazaiton, the last true wilderness??? Sign me up! And so I applied last March with Raytheon Polar Sercvices for the Painter Apprentice position. I heard back from Raytheon for the first time in July when I was down visiting Ben and Ruth in Chicago. I couldn't beleive it when I got the phone call interview and it went really well ending basically with "you got the job/if you can pass all of our medical and dental examinations and oh yeah, we will notify you anytime between October and December if the job is going to happen or not!" So I went and got all my lengthy medical and dental exams done, gave blood, pissed in cups, and was deemed physically qualified in September. Then the waiting game began. Most people get flown down in October. I was anticipating the call any day for about two months. Waiting for it really, before I came up with a back up plan. And then, on the 5th of November, while scraping paint up on a ladder at Romi and Bill's house, I got the phone call I had been waiting for. Of course by then I HAD a back up plan! I was planning to move down to Colorado with my sweetheart and get a job in Breckinridge for the winter. I was exited for this too! But when I got that phone call, I slowly backed down the ladder and layed down on the grassy hillside weighing my options and in my heart I knew I had to take this opportunity. So I said YES. Four days later I was packed up and on a plane to Denver for a week and half of training and orientaion. It still doesn't seem possible. But it's really happening and it is happening fast! I flew into New Zealand yesterday after a week and a half of training in Denver. The flights over took more than 24 hours. Denver-L.A.-Sydney-Christchurch. When we finally got checked into our hotels I got refreshed and took a walk to the Botanical Gardens where I layed down in the green summer grass and touched as many green leaves and smelled all the flowers that I could, knowing full well that after tomorrow I will know is white ICE and wind. Today in Christchurch we were issued our cold weather gear. I received a brown Carhartt parka, jacket and bibs. Long underwear, socks, hats, gloves, chops, big white plastic "bunny boots" and some polar fleece tops and bottoms. I am going to find out why they call them polar fleece. We fly down tommorow morning at 8:00, but we have to be at the airport by 5:00 a.m. Hopefully the weather is good and we can make the 6 hour flight on the C-17 aircraft in one go, if the weather turns bad on the Ice however, we will "boomerang" back to New Zealand and do it all over again the next day. The photo above was taken of our painting crew in Bailey's Irish Pub in Christchurch last night. All feeling a little jet lag, we were happy to get the 15% discount that this pub gives "Icers". My crew, by the way, is great. We all get along wonderfully and I know we are going to have a great time working together. Ruben the supervisor has been down before and is a kindred spirit along with the rest of the guys. The pub was full of framed photos and articles of Antarcitca scientists and workers that have been going down there for years. The whole place in fact was full of Antarctica photos from wall to wall. Apparently I have gotten myself involed with a long standing tradition of adventurers, scientists, and others in pursuit of unkown and most extreme places on this planet. I am excited. I am ready. I am AnnArctica. (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)