Ciao Antarctica! Thanks for another awesome season!

Well, it’s that time of year again.  My second season on the ice has come to end.  With that said I give my apologies for not writing nearly enough in this blog.  I just seemed to get lost in life on the ice.  Somehow I always managed to never find enough time or maybe just couldn’t find enough mental energy to sit down and type.  So before I go, I will give you a little recap of the last few months. 

It was amazing how fast Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Eve came and went.  I have so many fond memories of celebrating those holidays down here.  Although, I always miss my family, I am happy to say that I never really felt the sensation of being home sick.  I give credit to all the wonderful people I have met down here.  They truly become “family” in times like that.  Christmas morning was spent with friends in Hut 10 (a house that you can rent for free) while we opened presents, watched Christmas movies all day, and laughed.  It really was a good day.  The same goes for Thanksgiving and New Years Eve.  I celebrated both days in great company and that made all the difference.

Thanksgiving Dinner

Chr

Christmas Dinner!

Hanging out at Hut 10 on Christmas morning!

Celebrating New Years Eve at Ice Stock

Gosh I have some Awesome Ice Friends! NYE was a riot!

The beginning of December was when we had the big switch from the Sea Ice Runway out to Pegasus White Ice Airfield.  If you are not familiar, the Sea Ice Runway is only approximately 2 miles away from McMurdo out on about 8 feet of frozen ice.  Once the ice gets too warm and reaches a certain point of deterioration we make the move out to Pegasus.  Pegasus is 14 miles away from McMurdo and is out on the permanent Ice shelf.   It takes about 40 minutes to drive in a van and about 50 minutes to an hour in a Delta.   But, let me tell ya, for about the first few weeks I have never felt so much anxiety having to drive 14 miles in my life.  The roads from the start of the transition onto the ice to about mile 7 or 8 were fine.  It was after that until you reached Pegasus that was insane.  I’m talking rolling, rough waves of snow.  And with every van that drove through it, they just made even bigger ruts to try and drive around.  Deltas didn’t help much either.  They would pack the snow ruts, but not hard enough, so when you thought it was going to be a smooth ride, you would instantly sink and get stuck.  For those first few weeks you just never knew if you were going to get stuck or not.  And getting stuck was not that big of a deal, it was the pressure from the pax to not get stuck that really drove up the anxiety.  Usually, if you got stuck fleet ops were there to pull you out within 10-20 minutes.  But, if you happened to get stuck during a shift change, you were stuck for a good 45 minutes to an hour.  That would have been fine except for their shift change was right around our shift change, therefore meaning you were going to work more than a 12 hour shift.  And no one wants to do that.   It wasn’t until we started to drive Delta’s for pretty much every run that the roads started to finally pack down.  After the roads got better, and the anxiety disappeared, the warm sun started to melt the transition; bringing that anxiety right back up.  Am I going to get stuck in snowy, slushy, freezing cold melt pools of water or am I going to make it?  Although, you only had to make it through about 50 yards until you are in the clear of that so the anxiety wasn’t quite as bad.  Plus, fleet ops were right there working on the transition so they could pull you out in a moment’s notice.

Doesn't even look like a road!

Unfortunately, there were not near as many penguins this year as there were last.  There were a lot that passed through, but only one here and there that stuck around to molt.  If I had to guess why, it would be because the open water came sooner and McMurdo was just a little too close for their will power to stay out of the water.  Also, there is quite a height difference from the sea ice and the permanent ice from the big ice melt out last summer.  With that, there are only a few places that the penguins could have gotten up onto the permanent ice.  So maybe both played a factor in why we have not seen many.  As much of a bummer it was to not have seen so many emperors in one spot it still was pretty cool to see the few scattered here and there.  You never tire of seeing penguins!  They are just so cute!

On the subject of wildlife, with the open water came whales; lots and lots of whales.  Last year I only saw whales one time and this year I see them every day; orcas and minkes!  I like to think I am the whale whisperer since I happen to see them so much.  I even see them when I’m driving sometimes.  Its moments like those that really make me appreciate where I am and what I am doing.  Seriously, how many people can say that they work at a place where they see whales swimming and penguins just hanging out in their natural habitat on a daily basis?!  Let alone while they are working?!  Those are what I like to call my “Ahh J”  moments.  The moments that let me know I am right where I am supposed to be; exploring and experiencing everything this life and world has to offer J

Minke Whales!

This year also brought more adventure.  For my first boondoggle I went dive tending, which I already told you about.  My second boondoggle was called “Room with a view”.  Room with a view consists of driving skidoos for about an hour out onto the ice and driving up to the base of Mt. Erebus.  I believe we went up about 1,400 ft.  Once you get there you are supposed to get this amazing view of Mt. Erebus, McMurdo, the Royal Society Mountains, Black & White Islands, the Razor Back Islands, the open water, and anything else that this beautiful continent has to offer around the McMurdo Sound.  Unfortunately, my luck is not always the greatest and I had no view, literally.  Down at sea level you could see, but once we started to climb the fog started to get thicker and thicker.  By the time we got to the “Room” we had 1 to 2 flag visibility and could barely see the tent that was set up there.   I am talking, when we looked out all we saw was white/grey.  You couldn’t even tell the difference between land and sky.  Even without a view it still was pretty awesome.  That was my first time ever driving or riding on a snowmobile, so I had a riot with that! 

Had so much fun on this beast

Room with a View!  If there wa no fog you would see a beautiful Mt. Erebus!

My second boondoggle was pretty much all I was wishing for all season long.  A sleigh ride to the South Pole!  And by sleigh ride I mean plane ride, that is just what we call the morale boondoggle trip to the Pole.  When I found out I was going I was like a small child with a perma-smile on my face.  Although, I must say, that with my previous luck with room with a view I was anticipating not so great weather at the Pole.   Luckily, my luck had not run out yet and it was a beautiful sunny day, or rather night, since I was on a night flight. 

So this is how it went …..

30 of us loaded up onto Ivan to transport out to Pegasus, caught a flight on an LC-130 (a military plane on skis), rode 2 ½ to 3 hours on a very loud plane that you had to sit on side netted seats, and land.   Walk off the plane only to get blasted with freezing cold air.  Walk as quickly as you can to the ceremonial pole.  Take a picture.  Walk as quickly as you can to the geographical pole.  Take a picture.   Run around the geographical pole 3 times.  All the while try to take in as much scenery (all flat white ice) that you can.  Walk up 2 flights of stairs in the “beer can” into the station.  Run down the hall to the post office to stamp your passport, only to find about 30 stamps to choose from, all the while trying to take in your surroundings.  Run back out to the plane with about 2 minutes left to take one more photo before jumping back on the plane for another 2 ½ to 3 hour flight back to McMurdo.   Oh, did I mention that we only had about 30 minutes to do all of that at while at the Pole?  But, 30 minutes was all that it took for me to feel complete at the moment.  I had finally set foot on the continent of Antarctica.  McMurdo is on Ross Island; technically Antarctica, but if you want to get real technical about (like we all do down here) it’s not really.  Going to the South Pole, being able to say that I, literally, ran around the world is definitely on the top 5 list of the coolest things I’ve ever done.  Who would have thought that miles of flat, white ice could make a girl so happy?

The South Pole Station

Kissing the ceremonial Pole

Geographical Pole.. Run around that bad boy and you have run around the world!

Jumping for the Pole

the back of the station... with the "beer can"

So, my family and friends, not only have I been having the time of my life exploring Antarctica, I’ve also been experiencing it.  It seems like every weekend has been more fun than the weekend before, with some extremely awesome people. It’s true when they say that the people you meet down here really become like family.   I have made some lifelong friends that, somehow, I can’t imagine not having them in my life.  Every person I have met seems to have taught me something new and inspires me to want to keep exploring, keep learning, and to keep living.  And by living I don’t mean eating, breathing, and sleeping.  I mean really LIVING; to get out, try something new, and do something different without the fear of failure, judgment, or regret. 

So here are my plans before I return home.  I leave the Ice on the February 17th. From there I will travel the South Island of New Zealand for a little over a month sea kayaking, hiking, exploring, and laughing with good friends.  After that I will continue on to Hawaii, visiting the islands of Kauai and Oahu, of which I will also do some hiking, surfing, and relaxing on the beach for 2 weeks.  Then I will end up in Texas with my grandparents and make my way home with them sometime mid to end of April. 

Well, that is that.  See you soon!  Much love from Antarctica!

Dive Tending



riding out to the dive hut in the piston bully

You might have read from a previous post on facebook, that I was finally given the chance to go on my first boondoggle.  For those of you who don't quite know what a boondoggle is I will fill you in.  It is a morale trip.  Its not necessarily a leisurely day, though.  For the most part you are working, but get to do something or go somewhere really cool because extra hands are needed.  My first boondoggle was dive tending.  Me and one other guy were given the opportunity to go along with two divers and help them when needed.

Hanging out on the piston bully parked next to the dive hut

Now, you must remember that I work the night shift.  So, I had woken up at 1645, from a phone call from my boss asking if I was interested, stayed up all night, then met the divers at 0900 with absolutely no idea of what I was doing or where I was going.  Normally, I go to sleep between 0700 and 0800 so already I was exhausted.  But, how could I turn it down?  So, I sucked it up and told myself "I'm here for a good time, not for a long time."  That little quote always motivates to do things I know I will love, but just am having troubles finding the motivation to do it due to exhaustion.  Anyways, I met the divers at the dive shack in town.  The divers, SOPP Gary (the other person selected to dive tend with me), and I jumped into a piston bully, made our way to the galley to pick up sack lunches, then headed out to the dive hut.  The dive hut was pretty close to McMurdo, just on the other side of hut point, but due to cracks and movement in the ice we had to go out and around taking about 20 min-1/2 hour to get there.  Oh, and this ride was no joy ride.  Off roading in a piston bully is worse than riding in the back of a delta.  If you don't remember, I once told you that riding in the back of the delta on bumpy snow roads is equivalent to riding in the back of a school bus from hell.  But you have to remember that the roads that the deltas drive on are groomed on a daily basis, where as the ride to the dive hut was literally "off roading", just following a path of flags.  They do not smooth or groom the paths.  You wouldn't think that because of the size of a piston bully that it would be that bad, but if you are one to get motion sickness you would definitely need a barf bag.  The best way I can describe this one is its very similar to riding on a one car wooden roller coaster built back in the 1920's.  When a piston bully turns it feels like you are on the roller coaster turning the slow, snappy, square turn at the end of the ride before you make it back to the beginning.  Lucky for me, I don't really get motion sick.

Almost all geared up ready to jump in

Immediately after arriving at the dive hut, we unpacked the diving gear from the piston bully and the divers got right to work.  And when I say "got right to work" I mean they started to gear up.  It was pretty cool to see exactly all the layers required to keep them warm while diving.  They stay under for 45 min to an hour so you can only imagine all the thermal wear necessary to keep them warm.  Under their dive suit they wear a full on snow suit.  Or at least it looks like a one piece snow suit.  Multiple layers are worn all over, including the head, hands, and feet.  I must say that as they were gearing up, I totally wished that I could gear up with them and go down.

You might be wondering why we were brought there; wondering what our job as dive tendies was.  Well, we only played a small part.  We helped them when ever they needed help getting of their gear on.  When they came up from the 2 dives that they completed we had to lean over the dive hole and grab their tanks from them and also put down the ladder for them.  The diver on the left also brought down a 30 lb video camera so we also had to lay on our stomachs and hand it to him when he got in and take it from him when he got back.  Lets just say I was close to falling in a few times :)  Other than that we just hung out in the dive hut. 

So what were the divers doing?  What was their roll in supporting science?  Well the diver on the left, the one that was video recording, he dives for the science groups that don't have a diver on their team.  So they tell him what they want recorded and he does it.  This particular footage was taken at the Arrival Heights site.  The diver on the right was going down to assist him and to also collect these giant cockroach/ crayfish looking creatures.  They were pretty disgusting, but we were able to hold them.

Another cool thing that happened when I was there was some "beakers" came in.  You know, scientists.  There are 3 groups, 2 American and 1 Swedish, studying fish.  While we were there 2 fishermen came in.  They were fishing for Antarctic carp or cod fish (I can't remember which one).  They ended up catching one.  This particular group was there studying the effects of temperature change in the water and what that would do to the fish, about 6 or 7 different types of fish.  So they collect fish every day, bring them back to Crary Lab (the research building on station) and log their experiment.  They monitor the fish as they change the temperature of the water over time.  Reporting whether the fish will live or die and any changes in behavior or eating habits.  Well, at least that is what I interpreted from the chat with them.  They, actually, are dissecting some too.  I was told at the end of the season they return the remaining fish back to the water.  If you are interested, the divers got in the water and recorded some footage of the view from the fish's eyes.  What they see and how they respond to fishing lines and hooks as people are "fishing" for them.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PDgCgX0AoY

fishing

not the cutest fish I've ever seen

All in all, the dive tending experience was pretty cool.  I didn't get back to McMurdo until about 1430 that day, pretty much staying up for almost 24 hours, but it was worth it.  I got a few hours of sleep and crawled my way up to work at 1800.  Lucky for me, my boss was nice enough to let me go home and sleep until "midrats" (midnight lunch for the night shifters).  Here is the footage from the dive.  Make sure you watch all the way to the end so you can see my pretty face :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m49mYUxuWdU&feature=related

While I got you reading, I might as well give you a briefing on Scott's Discovery Hut.  Tonight, Cargo Karl lead a tour of Discovery Hut for a few of us night folks who had off.  Discovery Hut is at Hut Point.  So, here is a little information about this hut.  The hut was built in 1902 by Robert Falcon Scott during the Discovery Expedition.  The hut was designed after the Australian huts in the outback.  Seeing as those huts were designed to keep cool in the inside, this hut proved to be insufficient to keep heated, therefore unlivable.  Because the hut was unlivable it was used for storage and as an entertainment venue. 

You might be surprised to find out that Shackelton was actually on that expedition with Scott.  Before the expedition was over the two had some sort of falling out and it turned into a rivalry.  Both ended up coming back seperately and used the hut on future expeditions.  Never for sleeping because there were no bunks or stoves, but they kept it well stocked with essentials for survival as a back up shelter if needed. 

Lamp oil from Scott's expedition in 1910.. Over 100 years old!

View out one of the windows. You can't tell
but the Royal Society Mountains
are in the background

After Shackelton left the hut in 1917, the hut remained vacant until 1956 when US expeditioners dug it out of snow and ice.  They found it to be well preserved with many artifacts.  Some people took things as souvenirs but for the most part things have remained as they were back in 1917.  So far, Shackelton's hut at Cape Royds and Scott's hut at Cape Evens have been gone through to make sure the artifacts are preserved.  Some have even been taken to New Zealand to go into museums and replaced with identical make-shift replicas.  This year they are working on Discovery Hut.  Before entering the hut you are warned about asbestos, fungal decay, and possible anthrax (anthrax? who would've thought?)  The hut smells like a very old barn and is only bearable to be in and stand the smell for a few minutes.  This is due to over 100 year old seal blubber and rotted food. 

Seals hanging on the wall in the picture on the left and seal blubber above

Inside the hut.. Notice clothes hanging.  There is still food int he pans.  Those boxes in the background are filled with biscuits

A little hike up to hut point, where we were able to hear seals breathing and splashing in the ice cracks

this was taken at about 2 a.m  Beautiful pastels.  I just love how you can look
at the same scenery everyday, yet its always looks different



Here's a random photo of me posing on a delta :)

Life in a snow globe

The cozy coffee house I get all to myself working the night shift

Hello!!!

So, a few days before Halloween I transitioned to the night shift.  I know, I know.   If you read my blog last season you would have read that there was no way I was going back to nights.  But, with 18 new shuttlers and only 8 returnees, it was highly encouraged that I do a round of nights.  To make life easier in the dorm room living I opted to go onto nights when my roommate did.  So, here I am at 0430 a.m, sitting in the coffee house, writing in my blog.  Surprisingly, I love nights this season!  Its a lot easier to be living with someone on the same schedule.  And I've really grown to appreciate the peacefulness working in the middle of night.  Not to mention how beautiful Antarctica is when the sun is set low in the mountains. 

view from the mirror while driving.. Stunning

Anyways... being on the night shift I've really had time to reflect on where the heck I actually am spending the next few months of my life.  And one thing that I have come to conclude is that living life down here at McMurdo Station, is equivalent to what I think it would be like to be living in a snow globe.  Its really a strange feeling.  If you really think about it, we as employees, are working our arses off, on strict routine schedules, to support some incredible science, as the rest of the world sits back with their feet up, watching, admiring, and maybe even criticizing what we are doing in such a remote place of the world.  Or, to me, it feels like they are watching.  When I really try to pretend I am one looking down, watching into the snowglobe it makes me laugh.  I see people waking up at the same time, walking to the galley (or maybe to the gerbil gym if they are feeling ambitious) for breakfast only to wait in the same egg line, then climbing one of the few hills (if they are lucky to have a job outside of 155) to work.  With most jobs working the six days a week, from 0730-1730, I hear this imaginary whistle going off once the clock strikes 1730 and see everyone leaving their little work caves, looking like little red toothpicks from above because of "big red", walking back down to the galley for dinner.  And lets not forget midmorning break, lunch, and midafternoon breaks.  Then, when Saturday night comes, everyone, all at once, forgets their stresses of this monotonous routine and lets loose for a crazy night of fun.  When I say fun, that somehow incorporates some type of themed party somewhere on station, that recommends some type of crazy costume be worn.  But, somehow it all works.  Somehow, this life in this little snowglobe, at the bottom of the world turns out to be one of the greatest experiences one could ever have.   And once you are down here its hard to imagine your life otherwise, without having made the insane decision to come down here in the first place.  Oh, and I should add, it really feels like you are living in a snow globe even more when the wind is out of control, making buildings and flags on the snow roads barely visible due to so much flying snow.  I can just imagine someone shaking the snow globe, with an evil laugh, watching as we bundle up to go outside, almost tripping over our feet because the wind is so strong it literally moves our feet in mid stride :)  So, if you have never thought about what it would be like to live in a snow globe maybe this gave you some insight. 

One of those crazy, windy days leaving us with a con
1 &2 that pretty much closed station for
a few days

My roommate and I trying to be dangerous/crazy
by embracing the con 1 & 2 (notice the wind blowing off my hat)

My roommate and I

On a different note, Halloween this year was probably the funnest Halloween I've ever had in my whole life.  If you did not know, Halloween is pretty big down here in Mactown.  The party is actually hosted by the ATO department (Antarctic Transport Operations), the department I work in.  The big gym is completely decorated, equiped with a make-shift bar and a d.j.  I went as a red crayon and my roommate went as the Oregon Trail.  Its safe to say that I danced for a good 4 hours straight.  In my opinion, nothing is more thereputic, then a good night of completely letting go and dancing your stresses away :)  You should also know that that night was probably the coldest I have ever been in my life.  See, I was convinced that wearing a coat to the party would ruin the effect of the red crayon costume.  So, I opted to go bare arms the whole 3 minute walk to the gym.  Well, the walk there was bareable, but after 4 1/2 hours the temperature might have a dropped a little.  I would say it was about -10 to -20 on my walk home.  I could pretty much feel my blood freezing.  I mean, imagine leaving a hot, stuffy gym after dancing for 4 hours and walking into -20 degree weather.  You would have felt your blood freezing too.  In my mind, I remember thinking I hope I don't colllapse walking up this hill.   Thats the last time I leave home, in Antarctica, without a coat :)

Celebrating Halloween at the bottom of the world = Amazing!

Panoramic view of the Halloween party during the costume contest

You might have also seen me mention the "obtube" via facebook.  The obtube has been awesome this year!  The obtube is a tube that is put in the ice that we are able to climb down into and view life under the ice.  So far, I've been down twice and have witnessed schools of fish, jellyfish, and seals swimming around.  Its fascinating to see these creatures in their natural habitat.  And even cooler to hear them (the seals) communicate with eachother.  Unfortunately, when I saw the seals it was too dark to capture any pictures 

Charlie, our little fish friend that stayed with
us for 1 1/2 hours while we sat in the tube

view of the obtube from below the ice

Lisa observing a school a fish.... Literally thousands of tiny fish
surrounded the obtube

Other than that, life in McMurdo has been pretty simple.  Work, relax, socialize, laugh, workout, and hike.  The good life if you ask me.  I will leave you with a few photos from my latest hike on hut ridge loop trail.  It was a perfect night, little to no wind, and about 12 degrees.  That's super warm compared to what it has been.  Take care!  Much love from the bottom of the world :)

McMurdo and you can faintly see the Ice Runway on the right

beautiful frozen shoreline of Ross Island

taking a moment to really take in the beauty of the sea ice and the Royal Society Mountains

Round 2 in Antarctica!

So many Bikes!

Hello family, friends and followers.. If you haven't already heard I have made my way back down to the ice. Lacking fear of the unknown this time, my journey from Grand Rapids down to Antarctica was quite entertaining and, dare I say it, incredibly fun! Lucky for me, I have some good friends living in Denver that I was able to meet up with both nights I was there. One of the nights I even participated in the "Denver Cruisers".   What is that you ask? Well, a group of us rode our bikes (I borrowed one) about 4 miles into downtown Denver, where we met up with hundreds of other cyclists at the Pepsi Center circle. Actually, there was a bar that everyone met at, that happened to be right at the circle. I was amazed at how many bikes were there! Each week in the summer Denver Cruisers has a theme where you have to dress up. The theme the night I went was"Snow bunnies". So there were hundreds of people on bicycles dressed up at crazy skiers from the 90's or actually bunnies. Some people even attached big boom boxes to burleys or wagons on the back of their bikes. From there, someone leads the pack and you do a little bar hopping. There is just something incredible about seeing hundreds of people dressed up, on bikes, rocking out to music, riding through the streets of Denver. Unfortunately, due to having to wake up at 6 a.m. the next morning I was unable to participate in the full event, but we rode about 14 miles or so.

As for orientation, it was the exact same spiel as last year. In fact, even the same power point presentations. While on our six hour layover in L.A, I ended up making a few friends, walking past Sinbad, and helped manage to get the attention of the whole terminal whilst entertaining ourselves. We decided that to occupy some of our time we would try to pick up a piece of standing folded paper with our mouths, all the while, standing on one foot, squatting, and hands behind our backs. Needless to say, all eyes turned to the Raytheon group and people even applauded when someone actually was able to do it.

 From L.A we flew to Auckland, then on down to Christchuch. Christchurch is a broken city from all of the earthquakes that have happened over the year. The city center was completely closed and random buildings were either removed completely or damaged severely. Many churches have walls missing and steeples sitting on blocks next to the church. I found that the Kiwis are quite open to talk about their experiences about the major earthquake that happened last February. My heart just ached with the pain that many of them went through.

On a brighter note, the Botanical Gardens were beautiful! My friend Spring and I even went paddling, or punting as they call it, up and down the river through the gardens.

Its like the Secret Garden!

The following day I was up at 3 a.m. to catch a 3:45 Shuttle to the International Antarctic Center to prepare for our flight to the ice, which, to my luck, was put on weather delay until 9 a.m. Then at 9 we found out it was a 24 hour weather delay, meaning an extra day of fun and exploring in Christchuch. My friends and I went to a local brewery and then made our way to Sumner beach where we enjoyed Indian take out seaside on the rocks :)

New Friends Zach, Spring, and Lisa loving life at The Tannery Brewery

Sumner Beach

Spring and I

Instant friends :)

We decided to put our feet in the sea only to come across this
sign after

That's me walking into the Terminal :)

First class for the 2nd time in my life :)

The next day, for round 2, the weather was beautiful. I'm not sure how I managed it, but I flew first class from Christchurch to McMurdo. Life on the ice is the same as it was when I left. In fact, after a few days in, it felt like I never left. It’s been great being reunited with old friends, and even more great meeting new friends. I have found myself being a social butterfly, which is actually quite exhausting. If you can believe it, I actually went out to one of the local bars on a Wednesday night to watch a live band. That night consisted of a lot of dancing and singing.  It’s amazing how many talented people I walk among.   I have also been attending weekly yoga and boxing classes, with the occasional run here and there. Life is so convenient down here. As far as work goes, it’s been a little rough in the shuttle world with so much training and refreshing. I'm ready to start 12 hour shifts and get a good routine down. As of now, we are stilling waiting for about ½ of the Shuttle crew to still come in. 

I got my bunny boots on ready to get to the ice

Ross Island... McMurdo is behind the Mountain on the right

Reunited and it feels so good :)



My living situation is so much better this year than last.  I started out in building 155, the same as last year, but now just moved to a new building called Mammoth Mountain Inn, but known around Mcmurdo as MMI.  It’s a lot smaller, but I have only one roommate, instead of the 4, whom I am good friends with

My roommate Lisa

So much snow!

Since being here most things have been the same, but some have changed.  Because the sea ice pretty much completely melted out last year there is about an 8-10 feet (I think that’s what I heard, it’s hard to tell from a distance) difference in height between the permanent ice and the sea ice.  Because the sea ice is so “young”, there has been a lot of movement and a lot of cracks.  This has resulted in the Sea Ice Runway to be moved to a different location, closer to the permanent ice.  Also, with so much movement and cracks all trips out to Cape Evans and the Ice Caves will most likely not be an option this year, which is a huge bummer. 

from left to right I'm driving the 2nd vehicle

So much snow the steps going up to my work
building had to be dug out

Well, that’s about all for now.  Once the station is fully up and running for the summer I will have much more interesting updates.  I must say that I am thoroughly pleased with my decision to come back down to the ice.  I have a good feeling it’s going to be an Awesome season!  Much Love!

Beautiful Antarctic sunset over the Royal Society Mountains