Crazy Penguin

more updates

2007-03-15T13:53:00.000+13:00

Greetings from Queenstown, New Zealand!

I would love to update my blog as I go along with all my NZ adventures (run-ins with possoms, eating worms and friend cow tits at the Wild Foods Fest, and bungee jumping) but it's difficult while traveling. I have to pay for internet services at cafes and time is money. Also, most don't allow me to import my photos to my blog.

I'm writing everything down and will update my blog with all my adventures from NZ with pictures after I return home on April 15. So please check back after that time.

Cheers!

Steph

One adventure ends, another begins.

2007-03-01T21:54:00.000+13:00

NZ weather: 60-70 F

Days 1-4
Thursday, Feb 22 - Sunday, Feb 25
NZ road trip

Time is a funny thing. I’m not even 2 weeks off the Ice and being at the South Pole seems as if it happened 4 years ago, a distant memory in which you’re no longer sure if it was dreamt or real. The sunburn I easily got on my pale skin the day after we returned from Pole is still a reminder that it was real.

It took a few days to get my feet under me at Cheech and figure out some semblance of a plan. First, I bought a car. What? BOUGHT a car when you’re only there for 6 weeks? Actually, by my accounts this is the most economical way to see New Zealand. Cheech has a backpackers car lot set up for just this type of transaction. The sellers pay the car lot $20 kiwi (XX USD) per day just to park their car their while they wait for a buyer. The car lot offers help with setting up an independent mechanics inspection, insurance, and title changes for the buyer, hence enticing buyers to stop in. There’s a big chance you’re taking in that the car won’t leave you stranded, but on the other hand, the opportunity to resell the car and get all, or at least some, of your money back (some even make a small profit) was too good to pass up.

I bought a 1990 Nissan Sentra from19 and 21 year old girls from Germany who bought it in Auckland at another backpacker’s lot and had been driving it around for the past 4 months. I paid $900 Kiwi ($632 USD) and the $75 kiwi ($52.60 USD) mechanics inspection said all it needed was an air filter. It has an obscene amount of kilometers on it, which I’m purposefully leaving out as to not worry my family that I’m stuck in the middle of NZ somewhere. The girls from Germany, Victoria and Margaret, named the car Pinky as it has a light pink hue and they had become very attached to her. We simply changed titles at the local post office for $9 kiwi ($6.32 USD) and I was the official proud owner of Pinky.

I was incredibly nervous about driving and didn’t want anyone to watch (or to put any passenger in danger) while I learned how to shift with my left hand (Pinky’s a manual), drive in the left hand lane, make right hand turns, navigate round-a-bouts, and turn on the blinkers with my right hand. I had to go against every driving instinct that I had been learning since I was 14. Fortunately, I ran into Webster earlier in the day at the tourist information center. She was finding out bus information to travel to Takaka to meet other Polies and go climbing. Webster worked as a load master in cargo at the Pole and lived in my Jamesway. I really didn’t know her all that well, but needed the moral support for the beginning of my NZ adventure and offered to drive her at least part way. I also offered for her to take advantage of my camping equipment I just purchased from the second hand sporting goods store and Salvation Army.

Webster and I spent the next day finishing errands in Cheech before we set off going north along the coast. She was very handy to have around by helpfully pointing out when I would walk right past Pinky on the street or when I would get in on the wrong side. Since is always felt as if I were driving directly into a head-on collision, I would overcorrect to the left and Webster let me know when I was close to parked cars or cliff walls. I am told you can always tell an American driver as they have no left side mirror any longer and they always turn on the windshield wipers when they are about to turn. Thankfully, after a few days I began to avoid both of these issues.

Since we got a late start, we only drove about 2-3 hours through beautiful vineyards in rolling hills and gorgeous valleys to Kaikoura. Since this NZ adventure is on a very tight budget (despite the myths, you really don’t get paid very well for working in Antarctica), I had a map of all the free, or nearly free, department of conservation (DOC) campsites. We found a campsite a few kilometers outside of Kaikoura, right along the rocky surf and unfortunately right along the highway, but it was dark and we had new gear to tangle with.

I spent the sleepless night regretting another cost cutting measure of not buying one of the used sleeping bags from the second hand store. I thought I would be warm enough in the tent and with a quilt mom sent me for Christmas. Besides the cold, the semi-trucks sped by what seemed like inches from my head so I probably slept only an hour or so while I stared at Webster jealous of her undisturbed sleep.

The next morning was grey and raining and still beautiful while we both had a lazy morning getting organized and watching the surf. Kaikoura is a small, very touristy, coastal town that only recently gained its touristy status from the whale and seal watching off its shores. We drove to a lookout point and watched the fur seal colonies in the light rain and took a little hike up a hill. Since neither of us care for touristy and prefer solitude we continued on through Blenheim to Picton on the edge of the Marlborough Sounds. This was another beautiful drive along the coastal rocky mountains and through more vineyards and cattle and sheep fields. Picton was beautiful with its harbor full of boats but it was still raining so we only stopped a minute for more camping information. We took the very up and down, wiggly and squiggly, almost-falling-off-the-edge, and picturesque Queen Charlotte Drive to another DOC campsite which was perched in a small area, once again off the road, but more secluded next to a bay of the Sounds. Since it was still overcast, the darkness revealed strange “stars” in the stream bed near our tent. They were the size of a pin point but bright blue and white exactly as if we were looking up at a night sky. They were all over up and down the stream bed and were brilliant. I commented that since everything else on this side of the world is backwards, it goes to figure they decided to put the stars in the ground instead of the sky. When we turned on the flashlight we could only see moss and found out later that what we were seeing were glow worms.

I was determined for some solid sleep and even though I sprung for the cheapest sleeping bag on a quick stop in Blenheim and a pillow from the Salvation Army, I could not get any sleep. The cicadas in the tree overhead were deafening and my cheapest sleeping bag was also the thinnest making me shiver all night. The morning brought beautiful sunshine so how could I be crabby? I had a morning swim while Webster found sea stars, had coffee and then packed and left. I wanted to explore the Sounds more thouroughly and Webster was eager to get climbing. We took the scenic drive to Picton, stayed long enough to get advice from a kiwi, take pictures, and use the bathrooms only to return along the same and only road. The views were breathtaking looking into the azure blue waters among the large green hills. We stopped in Havelock since they are the “green lipped mussel” capital of the world I had to try some. They were delicious! The funny thing about many of these small towns is that they are identical to many of the small towns in North Dakota. We passed through many that go by in a blink of an eye and I imagine them sharing school systems and having long bus rides like those of us in ND.

Nelson was one of the larger towns we had come to, yet. The kiwi in Picton had directed us to a camp site right along the beach in Nelson. At $14 kiwi ($9.83 USD) per person per night, this was the Hilton of campsites and a little out of my budget. It was too urban and modern for both Webster and I, but it did have its advantages, wonderful showers, laundry, internet, and a 5 minute walk to a wonderful beach with the city backdrop on your right and wonderful mountains across the bay to your left. We set up camp and didn’t have any dinner since we were still full from all the green-lipped mussels and turned in. I was again determined to get sleep since it had now been 2 nights without it. I drank wine before bed and then lined my thin, but very portable, sleeping bag with my quilt and wore a sweatshirt and 2 sets of sweat pants. (I really don’t think that the nights get very cold here, it’s just that I seem to be more prone to getting cold easier – at least temporarily after living on the Ice.) After all that work of getting comfortable, the drunk, retired neighbors in the campervan across the road decided to have a very loud conversation. Webster handed me ear plugs (she sure is handy) and I finally got at least 6-7 hours of continuous sleep.

I had the most beautiful morning on Sunday! After getting some sleep, I went for a jog on Tahunanui Beach in my bare feet, did yoga in the sunrise, and then discovered how to use my cell phone in NZ and made phone calls while walking in the surf. So far it has been the best morning, yet!!

Webster bought a bus ticket to head up to Takaka departing on Sunday. She was eager to meet our mutual friends and I had just received word from a B & B in the Marlborough Sounds about woofing for them for the next week beginning on Monday. Since it was just around the corner and I have some time to kill before I’m set to meet friends in Hokitika, I agreed. We drove to Nelson city center and ran a few more errands and said our goodbyes at the bus station. I returned for one more night at the Hilton and enjoyed Sunday afternoon putting color into my pale skin on the beautiful beach.

Off the Ice!

2007-02-19T15:24:00.000+13:00

22.7 C (72 F)
Bright and sunny
wind chill: 0

WOW! It seems that I fell into the real world faster than I fell out. It's hard to digest that just a little over 24 hours ago I was still at the South Pole and the weather had dipped to -53 C (-63.4 F) (wind chill: -80 F). I was on the last flight of the season to leave the Pole and it was hard to leave friends behind knowing the 9 months of winter they have in store for themselves. All the winter-overs walked us to the plane to say goodbye and the pilots did a fly-by as we departed. I had an hour lay-over standing on the ice ski-way outside of McMurdo before 140 of us from both the Pole and McMurdo boarded the C-17. We arrived in Cheech at 11 pm but it was 1 am before we were through being processed by customs and returned all our ECW to the CDC.

I've slept in and have spent most of the day in utter confusion from the sensory overload of the real world. I'm convinced the C-17 is a time machine. You hope on and in a few hours you're in a completely different time and different world. I keep walking into people as I can't figure out how to look at everything at once. I was shy at ordering coffee and food at a cafe as everything seems so foreign. It's warm and beautiful! I can't imagine giving this up for an additional 9 months of ice and wind. I feel the confusion of everything beginning to lift as it all is starting to become familar again. I currently don't have any plans figured out, yet, but generally speaking I'm going to try and secure a car and drive around the south island of New Zealand. I depart Christchurch for America on April 4.

I ran out to the Pole and took several pictures in the minutes before I departed (I'm still suffering from frost bite on my ears). I'll try to post those when I can.

Transitions

2007-02-12T23:32:00.000+13:00

-44.6 C (-48.3 F)
wind chill: -58.4 C (-72.8 F)
Wind: 6.9 knots

I’ve said goodbye to my Jamesway and have now transitioned into the main station. Since I’m 1 of 17 people who are “soft closers,” we move into the station now that there is room until the weather determines we need to fly out. The tentative date is February 24, but the weather had rapidly turned cold so there are rumors we may be leaving earlier. We are all transitioned into the main station so they can prepare the Jamesways to go cold for the winter and so we are all in the same location in case they need to rapidly notify us if we are flying out. In the meantime, I’m really enjoying my very tiny accommodations of the station. It is such a luxury to be able to take an undisturbed quick nap at the end of the day while waiting for the internet. Also, for the first time in a long time I finally felt the privacy and the comfort of being alone. I became so relaxed that I slept harder during my 45 minutes nap than I had all season. For the first time forgot where I was and what day and time of day it was. Since I had dirt and grim older than I am in my J-way and a canvas curtain for a door, I never felt I was able to completely relax or comfortable enough to just hang out and read. I slept really well there as I’m always sleep deprived, but the commute to my room was a killer and woke me up faster than an IV of coffee. Many people told me to keep track of my dreams while on this journey as they would get pretty bizarre. I’ve been too exhausted to dream as I’ve only had one dream and it was of spiders. I know fully expect to relax enough to dream. I’m excited for my day off this week to stay in bed all day and sleep. This is easier to do in the station as the commute to get food and check email is significantly shorter and I can stay in my PJ’s all day.

With the weather rapidly turning colder at the Pole and most of my friends already off the Ice enjoying the warmth of New Zealand, I’m hearing warnings about what to be aware of while transitioning back to the real world. First, there will be over 100 degree difference to me within a relatively short period of time so be prepared to have on summer clothes under your ECW. It’s extremely strange to put on shorts and tank tops when it’s -45 F. Friends have also told me to be prepared to stare and become emotional at the first sunset and night sky I’ve seen in over 4 months. I never really got used to the 24 hours of daylight and have missed the night sky and darkness. I’ve also been told to be aware of cars. We haven’t seen any roads or anything drive faster than 10 mph in a long time. Apparently a few Polies get hit by cars every now and again after leaving the Ice. In New Zealand, they drive on the opposite side of the road than the US and everyone tends to look the wrong direction when crossing the street.

Once I leave the Pole, I plan on taking a few days in Cheech to just sleep and take long showers. Eventually I’ll make my way across NZ by woofing. This organization called WWOOF (willing workers on organic farms) supplies you with information to work with a family for 3-4 hours a day for free room and board. You can volunteer to do anything from picking grapes, mowing lawns, babysitting, and gardening. Since it is wine harvest season, I’ve seen many families needing help in the vineyards. To me this is the perfect way to see the country and get to know the locals and their cultures. Some families are Maori Indians who have a similar story to our Native Americans and I’m very interested in experiencing more of their culture. (More information on woofing is providing through the link to their website.)

I plan on meeting friends at the Wild Foods Festival in XX, NZ on March 10. They’ve already left the Ice and have reserved camping spots near the Tasman Sea. At this festival they specialize in strange foods such as grubs, venison tongue, fried grasshopper, fried cicada, fish eyes, and venison penis (someone told me it tastes like a spicy sausage --- uhm too many jokes). Then again, they also serve perogies which are common to the Midwest and of which I’m very familiar and absolutely love. (They are a warm, buttery dough filled with potatoes, onion, and cheese.) I suppose to them it’s not native and therefore wild. I’ve included the like to the festival if you would like to see what other delicacies I’ll be enjoying.

We are no longer able to receive mail at Pole and any mail already sent to us will be diverted back to our home addresses. We only have a few days left to send out any flat mail as they will be closing the post office for the winter season. Any mail we send after the 14th will remain in the post office until next Spring.

James Brown has left the building. He conducted his last cult classic “James Brown Bingo” of the season and departed last Friday. He was eager to get back to his new bride. I’ve included a picture of the last JB Bingo so I can be proud and say “yep, that’s my boss.” He's a big lover of 80's music and Michael Jordan. Every Sunday when we worked together we would spend long hours discussing da Bulls dynasty and listening to as much cheesy 80's music as possible over the galley speaker system. I could always count on JB to say "Hey Steph, I have this . . . on cassette."

Those who have spent time at Pole have warned me of its addictive qualities. There are many life luxuries that are lacking, but there is something about the peace and quiet. One aspect is the lack of advertising in our lives at Pole. You don't realize how much advertising influences your day-to-day and long term thought processes. It can't be helped. In the normal world, images and words are consistently piped into our brains unconsciously influencing our thoughts and actions on how and who we think we should be. We try to fight the conscious influences but the influx can't be helped. At Pole, a mind can relax and focus more freely in the absence of all the constant advertising. There's no urges for spontaneous shopping, gift buying, or the things "you just gotta have." I've been warned that many people become ultra sensitive, intolerant, and even more annoyed at advertising than normal once you leave the seclusion of the ice. The Super Bowl was incredibly relaxing becauce we didn't have the 2 week of continuous obvious analysis before the game, even though we watched a taped version of the game a few days after it actually happened. It has also been incredibly freeing to be able to avoid all the political jabbering of last year’s elections and now the announcing of the Presentational candidates. Any political information we receive is intentionally sought. We are able to freely choose what we want to know from the real world and what we want to avoid. We can avoid any extraneous political scandals or celebrity gossip that is droned on in ad nauseam. Again, I've noticed a freeing and focusing of the mind amidst the lack of these distractions. This isn't to say we don't pay attention to the important world events. On the contrary, we are able to focus more on what is truly important to be aware of in the US and the world and filter out the garbage. Besides the beauty of Antarctica, it will be one of the things I miss most from the Ice.

My Winterover friends that I am leaving behind will have a great season. There will be a wonderful station crew here of 57 people made up of 10 females and 47 males. Everyone has been to the Ice before either just this summer, at McMurdo, or have wintered before. The weather is extremely crisp, clear, and beautiful now which is when it begins to get really cold. I am notsalgic and a little jealous of my winter friends being able to see the most spectacular sunset, sunrise, and auroras. I wish all my winter friends a wonderful and safe season.

Weather FAQs

2007-02-12T22:51:00.000+13:00

-34.2 C (-29.6 F)
wind chill: -49.7 C (-57.7 F)
wind: 13.5 knots

The following are frequently asked questions regarding the South Pole weather as answered by the stations meterologists.

Why is Antarctica so cold?

Antarctica is synonymous with cold, thanks to its polar location, its high elevation, its lack of a protective water vapor-filled atmosphere, and its permanent ice cover which reflects 80% of the sun's radiation back into space (re-radiation). Angle of incidence also has a lot to do with the temperature in the Antarctic. The highest sun angle here is only 23.5 degrees, so the South Pole gets a much less concentrated amount of the sun’s rays, versus locations near the equator, which get the highest concentration of the sun’s rays. The South Pole is located within a permanent polar high created by the normal Hadley Circulation. This creates an extremely cold air mass, which descends at the poles of the earth. Unlike the Arctic region, Antarctica is a continent surrounded by an ocean which means that interior areas do not benefit from the moderating influence of water. During the winter, the size of Antarctica doubles as the surrounding seawater freezes, blocking heat from the warmer surrounding ocean water.

Why does High Pressure bring us bad weather when everywhere else in the world gets good weather from High Pressure?

Explanation A: At the South Pole we are at a much higher altitude than normal (9301ft) but the biggest difference is the temperatures. If you go up 1000 feet from the surface here you will experience warmer temperatures than at the surface while everywhere else in the world has colder temperatures above the surface. Under high pressure, the downward vertical motion is actually bringing warmer, moister air down to us causing increasing clouds and worsening weather. Low pressure means upward vertical motion and here at the Pole, so when we have low pressure, it is bringing in surface air from all around us to replace the air that is being forced up. This air is colder and dryer than the air it is moving into which causes a decrease in cloud cover and improving weather. Everywhere else in the world experiences worsening weather in low pressure due to the air cooling as it goes up. When air rises it cools causing condensation and clouds and decreasing weather conditions, but here at the South Pole the air above us is warmer than at the surface so we don’t experience the condensation and the increasing clouds in low pressure.

Explanation B: Explanation A describes what happens when the pressure changes first, leading to other changes in the weather. But there are other times when the pressure change is a response to a change in temperature. When the winds come from grid east here at the South Pole, the skies clear and the temperature falls. This is because the wind is bringing drier, colder air down from the higher parts of the Polar Plateau. As the air gets colder it also becomes more dense and continues to flow downhill off the Plateau. This reduces the total airmass that is above the South Pole. Since the station pressure is just an indication of the total amount of mass above you in the atmosphere, this reduction of airmass causes the pressure to fall. The reverse happens when warmer air comes in from grid west or grid north. The warm air moves upslope toward the Pole, expanding the total air column above us, adding mass, and thus increasing the pressure. This warmer air from grid west through north is usually associated with a disturbance originating in the Weddell Sea, and is accompanied by increased moisture and winds. There is often a strong correlation between pressure and temperature, especially in the winter when the coldest temperatures often coincide with the lowest pressures.

What is the Aurora Australis?

The Aurora Australis or Southern Lights are mesmerizing, dynamic displays of light that appear in the Antarctic night skies. They appear in many forms, pillars, streaks, wisps, haloes, and curtains of vibrating color. Auroras are caused by collisions between electrically charged particles from the sun and gases in Earth's upper atmosphere (the thermosphere). There collisions produce electrical discharges which energize atoms of oxygen and nitrogen, causing the release of various colors of light. In the northern hemisphere this same phenomenon is called Aurora Borealis.

What is a katabatic wind?

Katabatic winds occur where cold, dense air flows down the slopes of the inland mountains and the Polar Plateau. This is a frequent phenomenon in Antarctica, as the continent is dome shaped and the interior is very cold. As a surface flow, these winds may be smooth and low in velocity, but there are many times when they become exceedingly turbulent, sweeping up any loose snow in their path. This fierce, turbulent air may suddenly just appear and produce localized Antarctic blizzards, where the skies are still clear and no snow actually falls to the ground. Here at the South Pole we usually see the steady, low velocity katabatic winds, but these winds pick up momentum as they move off the Polar Plateau and are often very strong by the time they reach the coast.

What is a "mock sun"?"

Mock sun" (also "sun dogs") is a colloquial term for a phenomenon called "parhelion" which occurs fairly commonly in polar atmospheres. It is a false image of the sun, created by the bending of rays of sunlight within crystals of ice in the atmosphere. Parhelia are usually observed in pairs, one on each side of the sun and at the same elevation. They tend to be red-colored on the side nearest the sun. Parhelia are quite close to the sun when the sun is close to the horizon, but move further away as the angle above the horizon increases.

Why is the air so dry in Antarctica? And what is the typical relative humidity at the South Pole?

The important thing to know here is that cold air can hold less moisture than warm air. Therefore, the low temperatures of the South Pole account for the fact that not very much moisture is present in the air. This is enhanced by the great distance from the ocean, which is the atmosphere’s source for water vapor. However, many people are surprised to learn that the outdoor relative humidity at the South Pole is typically around 60 to 80%. But the key word here is RELATIVE. What it’s relative to is temperature. Relative humidity is just an indication of how close to saturation the air is for the current temperature. So a relative humidity of 80% with a temperature of -40C/F means that the air is getting close to saturation, but there’s still not much moisture there because the air can’t hold much moisture at -40. So you can think of it as 80% of not much moisture whereas an 80% humidity reading in Georgia during the summer is 80% of a whole lot of moisture.

There are some measurements that indicate the actual amount of moisture in the air, not just a relative degree of saturation. These include absolute humidity, mixing ratio, and dew point temperature. Of these, the dew point temperature is most familiar and relates pretty well to how the air actually feels to a person. During the northern summer, an 80F day with a dew point of 45F tends to be quite pleasant, whereas and 80 degree day with a dew point of 70F is pretty uncomfortable. The dew point temperature is always lower than or equal to the air temperature. So here at the South Pole, if it’s -40 then the dew point is -40 or lower. Obviously a dew point temperature of around -40 represents a lot less moisture than a dew point of +70, even though both can occur with the same relative humidity reading.

So what about the indoor relative humidity?

The numbers here are very different from the outdoor relative humidity, and are typically somewhere around 5% or lower. That’s because you have about the same amount of moisture as outside (unless there’s a humidifier or some other manmade source of moisture) but the temperature is much higher. So you have a tiny amount of water vapor in a temperature that could support a lot of water vapor. That situation gives you a very low REALTIVE humidity.

Does it snow at the pole?

Actual snowflakes (branched crystals) are pretty rare at the South Pole, and generally are only seen during the warmest periods of the summer. But according to data from snow stake measurements, the annual snow accumulation averages about 9 inches/23cm. (3.4 inches/86mm of water equivalent). Most of this precipitation falls as ice crystals. Ice crystals are very common at the South Pole, often falling out of a clear sky when the air becomes saturated. The precipitation intensity is normally very light, but over the course of a year it adds up.

What is a temperature inversion?

A common feature of the Polar Plateau is a temperature inversion. A temperature inversion occurs when the coldest temperatures occur at the Earth's surface, and warmer temperatures are some distance above the surface (normally, temperature decreases with height). The temperature inversion may less than 1,000 feet (300 meters) thick, but the temperature difference can be 54 degrees F (30C) in that short distance! The intensity of inversions is related to altitude and latitude, and is greater in the winter. Strong winds, cloud cover, or precipitation can destroy inversions.

What is the Antarctic Convergence?

This is the region of the Southern Ocean encircling Antarctica, roughly around latitude 55 degrees South but deviating from this in places, where the cold waters of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current meet and mingle with warmer waters to the north. This mingling creates local variations in weather, such as fogs, and also a concentration of marine plants and animals because of its higher than average amount of nutrients.

Is it windy at the South Pole?

Many people think of Antarctica as a windy place. That is true, but only toward the edges of the continent. High on the plateau at the South Pole, the annual wind speed average is 12 mph and the highest recorded peak wind is 55 mph. Cold, dense air tends to settle at the Pole making for relatively calm and clear, yet frigid conditions. (See also Question 4 concerning katabatic winds.)

What's the difference between whiteouts & blizzards?

Blizzards:Winds greater than 35 miles per hour, with sustained or frequent gusts, and visibility less than or equal to 1/4 statute mile due to snow or blowing snow for at least 5 hours. Whiteouts:Whiteouts are another peculiar Antarctica condition, in which there are no shadows or contrasts between objects. A uniformly gray or white sky over a snow covered surface can yield these whiteouts, which cause a loss of depth perception and surface definition.

Visitors

2007-02-12T00:19:00.000+13:00

-39.1 C (-38.5 F)
Wind Chill: -57.0 C (-70.7 F)
Wind: 15.3 knots

We’ve had many visitors of all different sorts to the Pole through the course of this season. Some have walked, skied, or flew by helicopter or plane. All of them have been extremely excited by their achievement of just visiting the Pole. Those of us who work here laugh at the tourists who pay over $35,000 per person to visit and are incredibly humbled by those who’ve trained for over a year to walk or ski.

Most notably of the visitors was Hannah McKeand. Hannah set out to conquer the record for an unsupported, solo skiing expedition from Patriot Hills base camp to the South Pole (XX miles). The current record stood at 42 days by Fiona Thornewell in 2001. Hannah achieved her goal and made the trip in 40 days surpassing the record by 2 days. I watched her ski up to the Pole during her final approach and it was an amazing site. I’m awed by the internal fortitude in making this incredibly challenging journey alone. Shortly after her arrival, she entered the galley and we were able to congratulate her and have pictures taken with her. She looked amazing after her journey and had no signs of frostbite or fatigue. She was in much better condition than many of the others who had either walked or skied to the Pole. She was very funny and I was awestruck by her presence as she described how once she got a song stuck in her head for over 7 hours and it was the only time she wished for someone to talk to in order to make it stop. Hannah is now the fastest unsupported South Pole Skier in the world and only the 9th women to ski to the Pole without resupplies.

Other notables were the Russians who flew in two Mi-8 helicopters and had the entire station pressed up to the galley windows during their arrival. The Mi-8 helicopters were amazing. I’m not entirely sure who these Russian dignitaries were but there were rumors that some of them were associated with Vladmir Putin and his cabinet. Only 2 or 3 of them spoke English. They had a tour of the station along with coffee, tea, and cookies. Out of respect before their arrival, the Russian flag was put on an extension pole and raised higher than all the others. They posed around the Pole with various flags representing the contributors to their expedition. They also took pictures with some sort of regional flag or crest. Will, James, and I finished Sunday dinner and then ran out to watch them take pictures and see the Mi-8’s up close and take our own pictures. I found it extremely funny that they walked around with a tape player loudly playing their national anthem. They also posed with the tape player in their pictures as if you’d be able to hear the anthem through the pictures. At one point, a few of the Russians noticed me standing by myself and started grabbing me and took turns taking pictures with me. I imagine it was because I was only one of a few females around at the time, but with ECW gear on it’s very hard to distinguish gender. Then again, I can’t say many Russian females are all that feminine. I laugh thinking about the pictures I’m in with these Russian diplomats and what they say when they show their friends these pictures. We ended up wondering over to one of the helicopters to discover one of our friends sitting in the cockpit. We managed to get on board for a look around and to take pictures. Several of the crew were sitting inside exhausted by the altitude and on oxygen. Only one of them spoke a little English. I can’t imagine I’ll again sit in the drivers seat of an Mi-8.

The most fun visitors were the 4 gentlemen from the British Royal Navy/Royal Marines who skied in 46 days from Patriot Hills. They camped near the Pole for several days until the weather was in their favor to kite back on the return trip. They became wonderful members of our South Pole family as they volunteered washing dishes in the galley in turn for a hot meal. At one point, we helped one member make his ski boots fit better by placing them in the oven so they would conform to his feet as they cooled. They managed to extend their stay to help us ring in the New Year. The station was able to grant them official visitor status and allow them each a 2-minute shower and a 2 am station curfew. One member is a lead singer in a British band and rocked the house by taking over and singing the blues after only a few hours of practice. They were a joy to have on station and became great friends with all of us. They gave the Sunday night science lecture and shared pictures and of the journey to date.

The Indian Navy completed a skiing expedition of the last 2-degrees (approximately 120 miles) on December 28. They began their journey with 11 members of which a few needed to be evacuated along the route due to extreme frostbite. I believe they were the first from India to complete such an adventure. They were extremely funny in participating in the Sunday science lecture lending to jokes about their difficult training in India without any snow.

Most expeditionists travel one-way and are then flown out. All non-governmental visitors camp with their own gear out near the Pole. Information on these along with several other unmentioned expeditions can be found on their individual websites or on http://www.thepoles.com/, of which I’ve provided the links. Many of those that adventure to the Pole succumb to extreme frostbite. One individual had frostbite so severe on his thighs that you could smell the rotting flesh. One woman was found crying in the bathroom because the horrible condition of her feet left her unable to walk and tour the station.

Distinguished visitors of note to the Pole this season were Helen Clark, Prime Minister of New Zealand, Glyn Davies, US Ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa (State Department), Dr. Arden Bement, Director of the National Science Foundation along with various staff of Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and Science. I found it amusing to prepare bag lunches for the Prime Minister of New Zealand and her traveling party for their return trip to McTown. They had brought us several cases of fresh cherries to distribute at meal time to everyone on station.

Emotions

2007-02-02T06:23:00.000+13:00

Feb 2, 1007
-29.3 C (-20.7 F)
Wind chill: -42.7 C (-44.9 F)
Wind: 12.7 knots

Cooking lobster on girl day in the galley.

I have been very bad at updating my blog lately. The truth is, not much has been really going on here. We all fell into our routines after the holidays and time started traveling really fast! The winter-overs began taking their R & R leave of a week at McMurdo before the isolation of the winter sets in. People have been switched around in the various shifts at the galley so now I’m working with those who previously worked nights. It’s nice since these are friends I haven’t really gotten to know before because of our different work schedules.

Now that we are beginning the transition from summer to winter, things are becoming very strange at the South Pole. Those of us who are leaving are busy making plans and arrangements for life after the Ice. Those who are staying are getting eager to have us gone so they can dive into the quietness of a community of 50-60 people and their winter routines.

I volunteered to be on the last flight out for the season and therefore have been given a leave date of February 17. There is the potential that 20 or so people may stay behind a few extra days to accomplish more work. If that happens, those people may get as little as a 3 hour notice to depart the Pole. The Air Guard will monitor the weather and if they anticipate it dropping below their -50 C minimum to land, they will whisk the remaining summer personnel out. I also volunteered to stay behind if they need additional support in the galley and would therefore be one of those remaining 20 summer people.

I have very mixed emotions now that my time at Pole is close to ending. I have friends leaving as early as tomorrow and I am sad to say goodbye. The majority of them will leave Pole a week or earlier than me. By the time I get to Cheech, most of them will have moved on with their travel plans. I’m also sad to say goodbye to my winter-over friends that I will leave behind. Leah, our summer DA, just received a contract for a winter materials person and will now stay behind. I remember talking to her when we first met in Denver and discussing that she only packed 23 lbs of personal gear for 4 months. (I utilized all 75 lbs of my allotted gear weight.) Now she’s staying an additional 7. Neal, who is a cook in MacTown and I met in Denver during orientation, has been offered the winter-over sous chef position at Pole. He was here for a week in January becoming acclimated and will return this week. Francie has known she’d be wintering from the beginning. She and I are extremely similar in our personalities, places in our lives, and working styles in the kitchen and has become a great friend. I’m certain I’ll be receiving tons of stories from her winter.

The winter-overs from last season have returned. Many of them were on my medi-evac flight and doted over me when I was sick in MacTown. It’s very strange to see them again on the other side of things when I’m leaving and they’re staying. I find it interesting that most of them are bothered by how many people are here. They find it crowded with a population of 263. My friends who went on R & R said MacTown with a population of 1200 felt as huge as New York City.

In amongst the sadness of goodbyes I’m very excited to experience green grass, real potatoes, and good coffee. I’m excited to travel New Zealand before returning home. I’m extremely excited to see my friends and family again and be able to tell them all my stories in person. The biggest sadness comes from saying goodbye to Antarctica. Since I’ve gotten here I’ve wondered why some people return year after year. It’s definitely not for the money as most positions don’t pay that much. I watched a movie last week put together about our summer on the Ice and I actually realized that part of me has fallen in love with the South Pole. The beauty and quietness is unparalleled anywhere else on Earth. It’s hard to say goodbye to a place that you realize you may never see again.

There are very few experiences that you enter into knowing you’ll be a different person on the other side. Most of the time life changing events aren’t planned or expected – they hit you out of the blue. I went into this knowing I’d be changed and I was really curious how. I think that I’ll change more after the Ice than while I was on it. I can already sense a greater appreciation for colors and smells of the outdoors, a strong sense of the vulnerability of life, and an immense aptitude for the human strength that lies in each of us. Antarctica has furthered proven to me that ALL of us are capable and stronger of much more than we think or realize that we are.

Eli and I very proud of our lobster feast we made on girl day this past week.

Francie made an interesting observation early on in the summer. She noted that all the women at Pole seemed to be extremely strong women. We are strong in spirit, in voice, and in confidence. Another friend noted that the system unintentionally screens for such people. After all, how many people would accept a position at the South Pole, Antarctica unless they had a strong sense of self and were like minded. It has taken time to find our like-mindedness as we are very diverse and sometimes it’s hard to see a common ground. Nonetheless, we have all thoroughly enjoyed being surrounded by such confident and purposeful friends and have benefited from each other’s strengths. There are very few environments in the world in which you’re entirely surrounded by so much inner strength. I’ve met women who are ex-Marines and ex-Army and women who’ve climbed real and corporate mountains all over the world.

Antarctica is not a place for those who are in an emotional transition in their lives. I’ve met many people who come here to get away from their recent divorce, death in the family, or bad break-up. You may be able to summer in such a transition because of the short season, but I’ve seen summer people’s winter-over contracts be rescinded because they weren’t in a strong place in their lives. One of the universal truths seems to be even more evident in Antarctica: Wherever you go there you are. No matter how far you run, you can never run from yourself. Many people think Antarctica is the perfect place to run from a situation when, in fact, here you are running directly into it. Life is broken down into the absolute basics of work, sleep, and eat. You have no distractions to keep you from dealing and focusing on your inner anguish and despair. I’ve met people who aren’t prepared for this and become very self destructive.

Many people have asked me why I came here. I really don't have an answer. The best I can come up with was that I was too comfortable in my life in Chicago. I had everything, really great friends, a good job, a great apartment overlooking Lake Michigan, and I had just purchased myself a 43" HD plasma for my last birthday. I felt a strong urge that I needed more of a challenge. I wanted less stuff and more substance. I was in a rut, but not a negative rut -- one in which everything was going my way. I wanted to push myself and free myself. After living 10 years in Chicago, I needed a push out of my comfort zone in order to fill my desire to discover more about myself and the world. When this opportunity presented itself despite all the scariness of it, I seized the opportunity. I sold almost everything I had. Granted, this feat is entirely easier to do with no obligations of a mortgage, husband, or children.

Freedom is a very scary thing. It's scary when you don't really have a plan and don't know where you're going and all you're riding on is a strong sense of self and a wonderful support system. I can work myself up into nauseas anxiety if I think about it too much. After all, I'm the planner-type. Not knowing is scary. I need to continuously turn my thoughts around into not having a plan equals opportunity. With no preconceived notion of where I'll go or what I'll do next I'm open to the scariness but also open to go anywhere, do anything, and grow exponentially.

I love quotes and collect those that inspire me.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.”

-- Marianne Williamson

Food!!

2007-01-26T06:14:00.000+13:00

-29.8 C (-21.6 F)
wind chill: -40.1 C (-40.1 F)
wind: 6.7 knots

Last week I had my first glass of real milk since October. Being the huge milk drinker that I am, this was a huge treat! One of the flight crews brought us a case and we had a little milk party complete with brownies. Normally there is only powdered milk which the DAs make and is actually ok when it is really cold. Most of the mild was saved for the winter-overs to enjoy.

Milk party with Michelle and Charlie and a plate full of brownies.

It’s interesting to learn that an architecture firm from Hawaii designed this new, modern station at the South Pole. I don’t know much about designing a building and I think those guys in Hawaii only know slightly more that me about designing an extreme cold weather building. I did think that one of the main rules for any structure was for the kitchen to be placed close to the garage for the simple reason of delivering groceries. For some strange reason, the guys in Hawaii put the galley on the second floor, farthest away from any convenient delivery method. The main gathering area of the station is the one area that requires the most deliveries of goods and generates the most waste.

When freshies (fresh produce) are delivered, approximately 50 people are required to form a human chain to cart the freshies from the palates up a large outside set of stairs, into the main station and then up an internal set of stairs. The freshies are then all stacked in the hallway until they can be put away. This process needs to be done very fast after the palate is dropped off the plane or everything will freeze. About a month ago we received a box of fresh mushrooms and a little bug survived the trip. Francie became really excited and watched the bug for some time before putting it down the drain. She’s wintering and so it’s hard to imagine that it will be the only bug she will see for 13 months.

All of the freshies we receive are very precious since they go very fast when feeding 250 people. Therefore, anytime we have fresh produce we try to serve it as much in its raw state as possible. For example, it would be a crime to use fresh carrots in a soup when they can be used on the salad bar along with the fresh lettuce. That way everyone gets the real raw flavor of fresh fruit and vegetables. A few days ago the Prime Minister of New Zealand was here and she and her crew brought us several cases of fresh cherries. They might as well have been edible gold for their value to us. Working in the galley has huge benefits as we are able to eat more than our fair share of freshies as well as hold on to the really valuable ones for our friends. I love the looks on peoples’ faces as you give someone who is having a bad day a mango or fresh avocado. It really is the main reason most people get into culinary arts – to make people happy. At the South Pole it’s easier to do as everyone is so appreciative for the most simple of things.

Our little greenhouse at the station has been doing an amazing job providing us with fresh lettuce. We have had fresh lettuce almost every day, for every meal for the past 2 months. The greenhouse has a large variety of hydroponic lettuce that is better than anything I’ve ever bought in the stores. The greenhouse also provides us with many pounds of cucumbers per week as well as fresh basil. On the rare occasion we don’t have any freshies for the salad bar we make cold pasta and canned fruit salads. I made that canned fruit salad with cookies and whipped cream although I had a hard time convincing everyone that it was a salad and not a dessert. I explained that in North Dakota some relative always brings this salad to every family function and it is served as a side salad along with jello with various fruit suspended in it. We then proceed to have dessert usually consistent with bars, pie, and cookies all make with the latest recipes being passed around in which the main ingredient is chocolate. I then further explained that we North Dakotans are a very healthy group of people. Someone wrote Nord’Dakota Salad on the menu when it was served and a few more ND people came out of the wood work. I met someone who was born and raised in Wishek as well as a grumpy old cuss from East Grand Forks who now finds daily amusement in making fun of my NDSU education.

Most of the food we prepare and consume is frozen. Since there is limited space in the galley freezer, our most common items are stored on the second floor deck just off the galley. The less common items and/or overstock items are kept in the Dome and are pulled once or twice a week to be delivered to the galley depending upon our menu. We have cases and cases and a wide variety of frozen vegetables, potatoes, and potato flakes on the deck which we commonly go shopping for. It’s still such a novel experience walking through these giant freezer doors to retrieve product and be on a deck in the bright sun looking across the entire South Pole campus and giant white snow banks. We use only powdered milk which is actually pretty tasty. Our dry storage room in the galley is very small and so most of the “do not freeze” merchandise is kept in 2 storage rooms on the first floor of the station in which we make frequent trips to haul up food.

I think the galley does an excellent job of minimizing our food waste. Everything that is left over we reuse in a soup or for another dish. We have a 4 day rule in which leftovers need to be reused or consumed. The challenge comes in having to be flexible in your meal plan for the day. If you were planning on making a vegetable soup you may have to make a beef stew instead because there are several pounds of roast that need to be used up. We had several requests for chicken noodle soup, but were unable to make it as we never had any leftover chicken. We never pull protein to be thawed specifically for soup, but only for the main entrée. Since all countries have strict food importation laws and regulations, all of our food waste is frozen, air lifted to McMurdo, and then placed on a huge boat and shipped to California to be burned. As you can imagine, this is a huge expense and therefore everyone is expected to eat everything they take.

Some of our best and most popular meals are steak and crab legs, seafood scampi, lobster tails, and pizza night. Every Friday is steak night and Saturday’s alternate between pasta bar and pizza. I am most tired of pork loin used in a thousand different ways and instant potatoes (mashed, scalloped, or any other). I’m probably tired of these the most since I’m the one who usually makes the instant potatoes and dice, chop, or roast the pork. It feels that I’m always preparing pork.

I’m very proud of that quality of food we do produce with the limitations we have. There is some frozen food in the dome which is over 10 years old and we’ve done an excellent job making 10 year old pizza crusts taste great. I found a can of dried onion soup mix with a date of 1990 on it. Since it’s dried and frozen, it’s still good to eat. The MSNBC reporter who was here a month ago had really great things to say about our food. Francie and I were especially proud since the day he ate here was girl’s day in which it was just us preparing the meal. We have a few people who are extremely high maintenance about their food and nothing ever satisfies them. In my opinion we are all extremely lucky to even have lobster, fresh lettuce, and steak – we are at the South Pole, Antarctica after all. For those few people who have unreasonable complaints, we have a whiner bell which rings very loudly and we aren’t afraid to use to call someone out and embarrass them in front of everyone in the galley.

Our dry food goods consist of mint Oreos, Chips Ahoy, Fritos, Triscuts and Nilla Wafers among others. These are stocked in the galley for everyone to take whenever they want. Most of them don’t last very long after they are stocked as the various work groups resupply their offices around the Pole campus. If we hear any complaints regarding what’s available someone is always around to say “It’s a harsh continent” essentially meaning that in reality we are really spoiled with what we do have, after all, we are at the South Pole.

Galley Christmas Party. The entire crew except for Francie who was on R & R in McMurdo.

All season long we had been anticipating a food drop by the Air National Guard. Since the ice breakers and food delivery by the shipping vessels over the past few years had been getting later and later in the season due to the ice conditions off of McMurdo, they wanted to practice a food drop in anticipation that may be how some food in the future delivered. (The ships bring in a 2-year supply of food for air delivery to the Pole after the ice channel is cleared to McMurdo. The Pole “closes” for flights in or out around mid-February as soon as temperatures drop again since no flights arrive after -50C is reached.) If the ship isn’t able to deliver the food stores until late February to McMurdo it may be too late to fly in supplies to Pole.

The main goal of the food drop was proof on concept since all previous drops had been conducted by older aircraft (C-141 and LC130) and computed by the navigator. (all air drop photos here were taken by my friend, Forest Banks) Current drops are done by newer aircraft (C-17) and computer calculated. The food drop also ensures relief for winter-overs that such a maneuver can be safely conducted before it is needed in an emergency. On Dec 20, 2006, approximately 17,000 pounds of food were delivered on four, 16-foot platforms to a large group watching Polies with expert precision. The Air National Guard volunteered to do the air drop at no cost to the NSF as part of a training mission. The last air drop was a delivery of medical supplies in 1999 and prior to that, modular building pieces in 1991.

My friend, Charlie, is the materials person for the galley and is responsible for the delivery of all the food to the galley from the food stores and air deliveries for menu production. He shares his extremely interesting perspective (and much more up to date) of life at Pole on his blog in which I posted his link. He became engaged to his girlfriend, Alexis, while here on the Ice.

At the beginning of the season I was asked by someone how I liked my job. I said then and still strongly believe that I have the best job on the station and wouldn’t want to work anywhere else.

A New Year

2007-01-01T08:44:00.001+13:00

Happy New Year!!!

For the New Year's Eve celebration, Polies with musical talent gathered together and formed 3 bands which headlined the festivities. Everyone dressed up crazy and danced the night away under an old parachute which was hung from the gym ceiling as decoration.

On January 1 of every year they move the geographical South Pole marker. We are sitting on a giant ice shelf that is continuously moving and therefore it appears that the South Pole marker moves approximately 24 feet every year. They take a new reading on Jan 1 and replace the old marker with a new one. The winter-overs from the previous year submit entries to be the new Pole marker's design. There are 2 South Poles -- one is the actual South Pole, the other is the symbolic red & white striped pole surrounded by flags of the countries of the Antarctic Treaty located only a few feet away from the actual Pole.

One Long Day

2006-12-31T06:29:00.000+13:00

-21.7 C (-16.8 F)
wind chill: -39.9 C (-39.6 F)

Christmas tree made from scrap metal at the South Pole.

On the morning of December 26 (Christmas Day in America), I had just sent out several emails and was just about to make a few phone calls home when the fire alarms sounded. It was 9:00 am. We had been waiting for the mass casualty incident (MCI) drill to happen any day so the alarms weren’t entirely unexpected. Just as I was mustering on my ECW to respond to the call and announcement was made that emergency response was needed in the power plant. Shortly thereafter another announcement was made to shut down all non-critical power and all non-emergency personnel was to gather in the galley. It became quickly apparent that it wasn’t a drill.

I grabbed equipment from one of my fellow responders and ran down the beer can to the tunnel entrance of the power plant. Once there, we were greeted by several firefighters and air that was thick with a strange smoke and rancid smell. As soon as we put down our gear, another call came on the radios for trauma team members to gather at Destination Zulu (DZ: our main entrance) to transport 2 patients to medical. I ran up one flight of stairs in the beer can, out the first outside entrance, and around the station to DZ. There were only 3 others there when I arrived. We needed a minimum of 6 to transport each patient up the very steep and long outside stairs of DZ and then up a second set of inside stairs to get to medical. We started to flag down every passer-by we saw to help.

A snowmobile zooming out the main entrance of the power plant Quonset pulling a sled with the first patient on a gurney soon arrived. I helped transport the first patient and then stayed in medical with the other medical team members as we prepped the room and awaited the other patient. As we unwrapped the first patient from the ECW sleeping bag and gurney I will never forget as Doc Jay stood on one side and I on the other. Jay calmly said “Ok, since this is a drill we’ll just slowly have you move over here.” The patients eyes got huge and then stared back at me, then to Jay, then back to me. I said a little sheepishly (as I wasn’t certain myself), “this isn’t a drill.” Charlie, who is the communications coordinator between medical and the rest of the outside teams, quickly received confirmation that it wasn’t a drill. The atmosphere in the room changed in a split second. Normally during a drill we simulate opening sterile equipment and using oxygen in order to preserve the supplies on station. All of a sudden, everything was being ripped opened, clothes were being torn off, and a second ER bed was being set up. There were 5 of us working in medical, including the 2 doctors.

As the second patient arrived, the story of what had happened slowly filtered into the room. Apparently there was some minor maintenance being conducted on the operating generator (#3) when the exhaust gas heat exchanger has a pressure build up and the valves that normally default to open defaulted to close. The generators all recapture the exhaust for fuel efficiency and cleaner emissions. As the pressure built up, a weak soldered joint blew causing hot steam and glycol to leak from everything. The glycol vaporized as it came in contact with the hot generator resulting in smoke and fumes to quickly fill the power plant. Four people were present when the exchanger failed. They all hit the ground from the large boom of the joint blowing and ran out. The outside “oh shit” button failed and the plant operator ran back in to hit the manual, inside “oh shit” button. As glycol continued to rain down on both generators #3 and #2, the system was switched to the emergency power plant. Generator #1 was already in desperate need for an overhaul and not able to be put on-line. The emergency power plant is not equipped to handle the full load of the stations needs and with no back-up generator in place, all non-critical power was shut down.

The first two patients had been sprayed with glycol and had inhaled glycol fumes of which carbon monoxide can by a by product. As the day wore on, a total of 6 patients came to medical for treatment. At one point, glycol was raining down the walls and from the ceiling as clean-up workers stood in 2-3 inches of glycol already on the floor. The massive clean-up effort resulted in more than 23 55-gallon drums of glycol being cleaned up.
It was a completely exhausting day emotionally and physically. Since we were on emergency power for most of the day, all the Jamesways were evacuated (no heat) and most people were confined to the dinning room. All non-critical equipment that was shut down included all kitchen equipment and the walk-in coolers. The majority of the clean-up effort and management of those with glycol inhalation took until 4:00 pm. People were laying and sleeping all over in the hallways. Since Francie and I were busy with our trauma teams and didn’t report to work, the rest of the galley workers pitched in and made sandwiches for everyone. When everything was under control in medical I started to work in the galley as we now had to keep fed some very exhausted rescue and trauma workers. Francie eventually showed up and we had sandwiches and jello again for supper. Although exhausted and stressed, both of us then completed our galley shifts.

They flew in additional power plant mechanics from McMurdo and were able to get one of the generators back up and running by early evening. They were then able to open up Summer Camp so everyone was able to go back to their Jamesways and sleep. We were still on extreme power conservation since we didn't have a back-up generator working until the next morning.
To say we were extremely lucky is an understatement! Everyone who needed medical treatment recovered fairly quickly and no one needed to be medi-evac’d. Between what could have been severe steam burns, CO inhalation, and electrocution through all the glycol raining through the system and standing on the floor – one person estimated we should have had a minimum of six casualties.

Needless to say, very few people were able to call home and wish their families a Merry Christmas. I was too exhausted and in shock at the enormity of the situation to feel anything on December 26. The next day the feelings came rushing in as I began to feel the scariness and vulnerability of life on this beautiful continent once again. There is no doubt that all of us were the recipient of a Christmas miracle. None of our friends or colleagues was seriously hurt when in all reasonability they should have been.

I have never been so proud to work with any group of people than all of those on the trauma and medical teams! Everyone worked extremely hard to manage the situation and was amazing! For some of the trauma team members, this was the first time they had participated in a real trauma and were first responders to a real patient. Everyone had an amazing ability to stay calm and focused. Personally, I was very proud to receive a letter of accomplishment from Dr. Bruce for my efforts on that day. It certainly wasn’t necessary as I didn’t do anything above and beyond anyone else. Everyone’s performance on that day gave me complete confidence and excessive pride in the South Pole’s ability to respond to an MCI. Ironically, the surprise MCI drill was to have happened that afternoon at 2:00 pm. Needless to say, it was determined that we no longer needed an MCI drill.

The day after the incident in the power plant was my day off. I was exhausted from working both Christmas Eve and Day and the trauma incident. Several days earlier, I had set aside a bagel fully labeled with my name (one of the last bagels on station) for my breakfast on my day off. Blue from the holidays and stressed from the trauma the day before, I didn’t care to talk to anyone and was REALLY looking forward to my bagel. As I walked to the galley I was devastated to discover that it had just been eaten by the morning sous chef! It’s all about the little things at Pole. The little things can either make or break your day and someone stealing my bagel on this day was really bad timing! In my exhausted and frustrated state all I could do was call my sister and cry about my missing bagel. My reality side knew that it was JUST a bagel and in light of the previous day’s events, I should have been able to put it into perspective – but I used my stolen bagel to unleash all of my loneliness of the holidays, homesickness, and the anguish, stress, vulnerability, and exhaustion that had accumulated over the previous days. My AM sous chef never saw what hit her. Eventually we were able to patch things up. (After all, it had only been the 3rd time she stole my food.) My sister promised to have bagels for me when I get home.

Me in the galley preparing Christmas dinner, Christmas Eve, 2006.

Merry Christmas!!

2006-12-25T08:03:00.000+13:00

-31.3C (-24.3F)
wind chill: -40.8C (-41.4F)

Merry Christmas!!

For the past few weeks now I’ve been trying and trying to figure out why it didn’t feel like Christmas at the South Pole. We have all the makings for Christmas. It’s definitely white, the decorations are up, and dinner is planned. We’ve had the “family” squabbles that always come up around the holidays. (In the galley, ours are mainly about how many hours of Christmas music can be tolerated without someone having to go to medical.)

Being Christmas can be a lonely and depressing time for many people far from home, management wouldn’t put up the holiday decorations until one week before. Their theory is it shortens the Christmas season triggering less depression. Nonetheless, someone put together a Charlie Brown Christmas tree out of scraps and placed it next to the Pole. It looks very cute in that sad, pathetic kind of way especially being it has such a prominent place at the apex of the Earth. Several large chunks of snow now surround the Pole. They’ve been moved there from other areas around the station for a snow sculpting contest. A few of them have been sculpted and look amazing!

Christmas is celebrated at the Pole similar to Thanksgiving. We have our big Christmas dinner yesterday, on Christmas Eve. The reasoning being that the majority of people have Christmas Eve and Day off from work and it’s better to overindulge before a day off than before a work day. On Christmas Eve the Santa Bowl took place which is a Rugby Match between cargo and fuels outside on the ice and snow. The snow and ice aren’t that forgiving and Sven from Sweeden dislocated his collar bone on the first play of the game. The dinning room was once again transformed for the big feast by blocking out the windows, fancy linens, candles, lights, and Christmas trees. Those of us in the galley worked all week and prepared beef Wellington, real mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, chocolate ganache cake, pumpkin pie, cheesecake, and Christmas sugar cookies to serve the 244 people on station.

Today, Christmas Day, I work again along with JB and Will giving the rest of the galley staff the day off. The Annual South Pole Race Around the World will take place in which anyone can walk, sled, run, ski, or use any method of non-motorized transport to go around the station and the Pole three times for a total of 2 miles. It’s my understanding that most people dress up really crazy and invent crazy modes of transportation for this race. Immediately afterwards, we put on a spectacular Christmas brunch for everyone. The day is then filled with groups getting together to open gifts sent from their families, a Christmas movie marathon, last week’s football tapes, and Quiz Club Christmas trivia contest.

As I was still struggling to figure out why it didn’t feel like Christmas, I began to wonder if the commercialization actually contributed to the holiday feelings. All of us dream about a Christmas in absence of the commercials, malls, sales, marketing, craziness, and hectic life that happens this time of year, but now that I’ve experienced it, there seems to be a real void where that stuff goes. Perhaps it’s from all the years of conditioning that the stress and craziness are just a part of Christmas.

In the northern hemisphere, Christmas happens during the darkest time of year with the shortest hours of daylight. Being there are 24 hours of daylight, it really does just seem like one long day. I often forget which day of the week it is. The darkness makes the Christmas lights seem brighter and brings an air of coziness to the brightly lit houses.

During a conversation on the lack of the feeling of Christmas, my friend Bill mentioned that the sound of children was missing. We haven’t heard the laughter, playing, crying, silliness, or innocence that is children in over 2 months. In his normal life, Bill would hang out with his nieces and nephews on a weekly basis. I realized that this was it for me! The reason a Christmas feeling was missing. The excited and wide eyed children remind us that Christmas means happiness, innocence and hope; a new beginning. Children allow us to become children again, revisiting memories and gaining shear joy from giving.

The day before Christmas Eve, my friend, Stacia, reserved one of the movie lounges and played Peter, Paul, and Mary’s Christmas Concert special. As cheesy and nerdy as it sounds, I knew this would be the one thing that I could do for myself that would make my Christmas. Before seat belts and car seats were determined to be important, my mom would rock each of us to sleep as we drove long distances in the dark North Dakota winter as she would sing Peter, Paul, and Mary songs. All you would see is the snow drifting across the road shining in the headlights, hearing the wind and my mom’s singing. I drank my bottle of wine and became nostalgic as the concert special brought back those memories of Christmas past that normally children’s voices do. That was my Christmas. That was when I felt like Christmas.

Today the South Pole web cam will be directly pointed at 90 degrees South and capture a traditional flag rising for POW/MIA and the Race Around the World. It will be up from 8 am – 12 pm (2 pm – 6 pm CST). http://www.usap.gov/videoclipsandmaps/spwebcam.cfm

A Harsh Continent

2006-12-20T11:28:00.000+13:00

-32.1 C (-25.8F)
wind chill: -41.9C (-43.5)

The Happy Camper group getting ready to go home. I'm in the middle with my hood up.

Just after telling you all about the nice creature comforts the South Pole has to offer, I need to remind myself that Antarctica is a harsh continent.

All of these comforts have been instituted because of the very long and hard work hours in the harsh conditions. Not only is the South Pole cold and at a high elevation, but it is also an extremely dry desert with only 2-3% humidity all year long making it the driest place on Earth. In comparison, the Mojave Desert has an average of 10% humidity during its driest summer season. The dryness causes your mucus membranes to be excessively dry causing it harder to fight viruses. Sleeping is difficult with a dry nose and while you sleep the tiny capillaries in your nose break. I normally have a little bloody nose every morning. I also get edema, or water retention and swelling in my hands every night. On most mornings, when I wake up my right hand is so swollen that I have trouble making a fist. I usually stick my hand in the snow and walk without a glove on for a few yards. By the time I begin work, the swelling has gone and I’m fully functional.

My hands have aged by 50 years since I’ve been here. It’s strange having a body part that you no longer recognize as your own. When my nephew, Tyler, was a little boy, he looked at my mom’s hands and said “Your hands look like lefse.” Today, my hands look like lefse that has been sitting out on the counter for over a month, brittle, hard, wrinkled, pale, and dry. (for my city friends who don’t know, lefse is a Norwegian potato bread that is flat, and wrinkled with brown spots) I am in a constant battle with my knuckles and fingers splitting and being painful. In the galley we are continuously washing out hands so it is difficult keeping them moisturized. At one point I had over 7 splits and 2 of them deep enough that they looked like cuts from a knife. Finally super glue came to my rescue and allowed the splits to heal into calluses.

Since the dryness of the atmosphere is so severe, we are continuously losing water through our skin and while we breathe. All of us have a Nalgene bottle which can carry 32 oz (1 quart) of water. I try and drink a minimum of 4 battles (1 gallon) of water a day. In talking to my friends who work outside, they try to drink a minimum of 6 bottles (1 ½ gallons) of water a day. Immediately when you arrive at Pole you have a huge thirst of water. Over time, that thirst has subsided but the need for the water doesn’t. Of course we are extremely fortunate here in that we are drinking the purest water found in nature. Our water comes from a deep wells drilled through the ice to capture the underground melt water. The water we drink hasn’t ever been involved, either directly or indirectly, in human activity. This water was frozen before humans were around. The ice taken from deep below the surface has the air bubbles trapped inside that are so tiny and concentrated that it makes very loud popping noises (louder than normal) when you put it in your drinks.

In America, we associate snow with it being wet. At the Pole, the snow is very dry. It blows around and feels like fine sand on a beach. Cardboard boxes are used for outdoor storage and are never in any danger of getting wet. Also, the outside particle board of the main station has been and can be exposed for a long period of time without fear of moisture damage until the siding is completed. The snow doesn’t really stick to you or your clothes, but when it does, the dryness allows it to be brushed off as easily as dandruff so it never makes your clothes wet. There are also certain common items that don’t work very well when it gets this cold, one of them being tape. The boxes containing our frozen foods are taped together and are always coming open. It’s also hard to tape any labels to anything. Also the emergency oxygen masks and tubing snap and break easily in this cold. We found that out the hard way during some of our outdoor training drills. I don’t imagine there’s a huge need for -40 to -100 F oxygen tubing and tape.

Most people lose weight while at the Pole. Your body consumes more energy from continuously working harder than normal to keep warm, hydrated, and oxygenated. A GA (general assistant) is one of the hardest working positions. They do everything from shoveling snow, construction, and delivering food. It is estimated that people in outdoor positions such as these can consume over 6000 calories a day and still lose weight. In general, most people can increase their calories by 50% and they will still lose weight or barely maintain. You are definitely hungry on a consistent basis and cravings for high calorie foods such as desserts increase. I suppose that is why they hired Jake the Baker who is the most talented of all the galley folks and does and excellent job of keeping us fat and happy.

The dryness, cold, and living in close quarters also makes it significantly harder to stay healthy. Two years ago a flu epidemic roared through the South Pole population and incapacitated over 75% of the population and yet the station had to still function. We receive passengers going in and out from McMurdo on a weekly basis as they come for brief visits for their scientific projects. We are warned of flu and cold epidemics in McMurdo and Christchurch, NZ as they are likely to spread here. I have friends in the galley at McMurdo who were quarantined to their rooms immediately after getting the flu to prevent spreading. This past week we’ve have 2 South Pole galley workers sick with colds and 1 was just diagnosed with strep throat. I’ve been working longer hours to fill in when they are gone and I’ve been fortunate enough to stay healthy. I’m obsessed with getting plenty of sleep and always taking my vitamins. This place is difficult enough without having to deal with being sick. Signs posted all over the station promote frequent and proper hand washing to prevent the spread of any illness. Of course this just exacerbates my already painful hand problems.

Me, crawling out of a single man trench or quincy.

So every morning I wake up with an incredible thirst, extremely dry nose, a small nose bleed, swollen and achy hands, cramps in my stomach from hunger, and an achy body from standing at work for 12 hours. All of these things resolve quickly as I make my way to the main station to enjoy the wonderful South Pole comforts. It is said that the greatest attribute to a mountaineer is their short memory and I would say they same thing of Polies. Sighting my short term memory of where I was currently living, I did the most stupid thing I have ever done. I decided to sign up for Extreme Cold Weather Camping. In fact, I was so excited to go that I lined up ½ hour early and missed a trauma training in order to sign up! I had been preparing JB for permission to go and arranging my work schedule for this adventure for over 3 weeks!!

Our fearless leader and guide, CC, traveled from McMurdo for the weekend to educate us and take us on this adventure. CC hails from Vancouver, BC and is a very experienced mountain guide and currently works for a department that leads teams over the harsh continent to their desired camping areas for their scientific research. We met for a 2 hour briefing on Friday night and then departed on Saturday night to spend 14 hours surviving in the Antarctica cold. I was still very excited to do this along with the 11 other people who also signed up. I knew everyone on the trip very well and knew that they were all fun people to be around. CC was encouraging and optimistic saying that they’ve geared the South Pole camping trip to be more recreational since we weren’t there for training as much as fun. Yes! I said fun – we were all excited because this was going to be fun! It was to be a relatively warm night of -20 F, bright and sunny with little wind (wind chill -30 F). I can do this – even though this will be the longest consecutive amount of time I’ve spent outside at the Pole how bad can it be? That 15 minute walk outside from the Jamesways feels great and refreshing! Besides, it’s summer at the Pole and I always go camping in the summer.

On Saturday with all of us wearing more clothes than that kid who couldn’t put his arms down in the movie A Christmas Story, we took a Piston Bully about 3 km outside of the station to arrive at 8pm with all of our equipment waiting for us. CC gave us a tour of our camp site showing us the 2 previously built Quincy’s from earlier camping groups. A Quincy is essentially an igloo made of snow, but instead of using blocks of snow it is made out of compacted snow. There are 2 methods of construction. One is to make a mound of compacted snow and then dig out the inside. The second is to place all your gear in a pile and place several feet of snow over the top of it. You then dig out all the gear from the inside creating a hollow space which is easier than digging out the snow. A rear construction entrance is used to hollow out the interior which is later sealed up again with snow while a front entrance is created that goes down under the wall of the Quincy and curves up into it. The concept of the low entrance is that when the air on the inside is heated up slightly with body heat, the heat will remain inside since heat rises and not escape the low entrance in the floor.

CC then continues to show us around the camp showing us the Scott tent which is essentially the same tent that was used by Robert Scott and his team traversed across the Antarctic to reach the Pole in 1912. It resembles a teepee right down to not having a floor. The other major construction at the site is a previously made wind wall made out of blocks of snow. The obvious purpose being to block the wind from tents and other structures.

After a short break of hot chocolate from our thermoses, we started constructing our Quincy. We take off our ECW jackets while we shovel to prevent sweating, pile all of our sleeping bags and tents together and shovel layers of snow on top, packing down each layer as we go. My hands begin to get cold and numb and I remember a friend from the galley gave me a package of hand warmers and chocolate to take with me.
The hand warmers were a godsend as once they warmed up, the rest of my body became warm. After we finished piling on the snow, we needed to let the snow settle or rest before we dug it out. While we waited, we began constructing our wind wall. We first dug a trench and then used saws to saw through the snow and create even blocks. We piled the blocks making a large wall to protect our tents. This was easier said than done since the snow is so dry it doesn’t stick together very well. At times it was like building a wall with sandstone. We finally found a few quarries of snow that held together and made nice blocks.

Both of these construction projects took substantial time. After we dug out our Quincy we had been watching the sun travel in a circle for over 5 hours. It was now 1 am. Since my normal bedtime is around 9 pm I was very tired. CC gathered us together and talked to us about where everyone was going to sleep and how to prepare for a comfortable night. She said that here is no reason why everyone couldn’t get a warm night’s rest and that it just came from being adequately situated. Since CC painted such an optimistic picture I figured that I didn’t come all the way to the South Pole to camp in a tent and opted for a Quincy. Jeff Kind, our South Pole HR representative, and I were assigned to one of the previously built Quincy’s.

We first gathered the equipment of 6 sleeping pads, 4 sleeping bags, and our personal gear. CC told us to keep anything we wanted to prevent from freezing inside the sleeping bag with us. It took Jeff and I nearly 1 ½ hours to get situated in the Quincy through relaying all of our gear through the small door. The Quincy we were in had a very low clearance making it difficult to move around and situate your bed. I could only sit up in a low, crouched position. The key to keeping warm is to put as many layers between you and the snow you were sleeping on as possible. I placed my sleeping bag on top of 3 foam sleeping pads and my ECW jacket and pants. I layered on 2 more layers of fleece pants and sweatshirts and crawled in. I wore 2 hats and pulled the hood of my sleeping bag tight around me. I used the second sleeping bag as another layer to cover me up. I curled around my full Nalgene water bottle, my camera, and a baggie full of almonds and walnuts. One of the main ways to combat hypothermia is to stay hydrated and keep your body fueled with the good high fat foods such as nuts.

I opened up four more hand warmers and gave them to Jeff since I noticed that he was no longer able to use his hands and he complained of severe cold on his feet. Jeff and I were both exhausted!! It was extremely exhausting getting situated and we had to take frequent breaks. Even after we were both in our sleeping bags, it took another ½ hour to wiggle around and find any comfort. Since the hood of my sleeping bag was pulled tight around my head I struggled between needing fresh air and wanting to stay warm. When my head was inside my sleeping bag I was warm, but was unable to slow my breath down and relax. When I stuck my face out to breathe the air was bitter cold, beyond any cold I could remember! Within the first hour to trying to find comfort, Jeff and I both agreed that this was the most stupid idea ever! We were miserable and started praying for the morning to arrive quickly!!!

I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew I woke up freezing from the waist down. My feet were incredibly cold and my legs were cramping. I could feel the cold from the snow and ice through the sleeping pads and ECW gear. I realized my horrible mistake. Cotton is the worst fabric to keep you warm. You should never wear cotton as a first or second layer of clothing since is absorbs and releases moisture cooling you off. I followed the rules with all of my clothing except I had on cotton socks as a first layer since I didn’t having anything else. I started shivering which is a sign of hypothermia. I placed my second sleeping bag underneath me as another barrier against the snow and put my hand warmers in my socks. My body very quickly warmed up and I was able to find sleep again. The hand warmers came to the rescue again.

Sleep was not constant or restful. Jeff was having a very hard time and tossed and turned with intermittent bouts of snoring. Every time I heard snoring I was insanely jealous that I wasn’t sleeping. For long periods of time we both lay there staring up at the compacted snow just 4 feet above our heads. Since the snow is so incredibly pure, it shines a soft beautiful blue as the sun hit it from above. It looked as if we were sleeping under the ocean but felt as if we were in the coldest hell cave on Earth. Those 6 or 7 hours that we struggled for warmth and sleep in the Quincy were my longest hours ever!

Of course the one thing that always wakes you up doesn’t take a break when you’re freezing in a snow igloo at the South Pole – you eventually have to pee. CC warned that you should always do what will make you most comfortable, no matter how short-term horrible, to fight against hypothermia. During our initial meeting it was suggested to pee in your pee bottles and keeping the bottle in the sleeping bag with you in order to generate more warmth. That may be good in theory, but bad in practice. First, I had only 4 feet of clearance to struggle out of my multiple layers of clothing and try to squat, and second I was sharing this very small space with a boy I didn’t know really well. I had to get up.

I put my ECW pants back on and for the first time took advantage of the most wonderful feature of the pants, the attached Velcro, drop down back end. By the time I took care of business, my hands were so frozen that I could only pull back up 2 layers of my clothing. My fingers weren’t able to grasp any zippers. I quickly crawled back into the Quincy to find some warmth and more hand warmers. Jeff was up at this time wandering around the camp praying that it was close to morning and therefore soon to go home. I was nauseous, achy, freezing cold, and very very dehydrated! I found my water bottle in my sleeping back and was shocked to discover that I had to poke through a layer of ice covering the inside in order to reach the water. This was the water bottle next to my body all night and there it is partially frozen?! How cold could it have been inside my bag? I took a long time eating frozen nuts and chocolate, hugging my hand warmers, and wiggling back into my clothing. I knew I would feel better as soon as I had some water and wouldn’t allow myself to leave the Quincy until all of it was gone. Jeff was eager to pack up and so I also handed him all his equipment and supplies. It also was a great activity to keep moving and get warm.

Every cell in my body screamed for me to curl up in a ball and not move. I had to fight against what my body was telling me to do and what my brain knew was a much smarter decision to getting warm, to get moving. I finally finished getting the rest of my ECW on, finished the water, and hauled my gear outside to join Jeff and the now-awake Jason from a neighboring Quincy for a walk. After a very long 45 minutes I was starting to feel better. My hands and feet were warm again and the little quart of water I did have was beginning to make the difference! Jason then told us it was 7:30 am which picked up my spirits since the Piston Bully would pick us up at 9:30 am. Only 2 hours left to go! I can do this!

Everyone else in camp slowly started to wake up and CC began making us hot water for drinks. Since the sun was immensely bright, my goggles were frozen over, and I was standing directly under one of the largest ozone holes in history I began searching for the sunscreen again only to find it frozen solid. I don’t imagine there is a large market for sub-zero anti-freezing sunscreen. I’ll just have to face the consequences. I then noticed that certain people in our group were having a much harder time this morning than I was. Those of us now healthy and strong were beginning to help the others. One person’s hands were hurting so badly that she began crying as others made her walk around to get her circulation going. I found one friend sitting directly on the snow as she told me she was having trouble waking and she seemed apathetic that her ECW coat wasn’t zipped. I made her walk with me the same route I had done earlier while drinking hot chocolate. Another in our group was a diabetic and couldn’t make her hands function properly to open any food to eat and someone else helped feed her until she recovered. Everyone recovered after receiving water and moving around and was able to help tear down camp.

When hypothermia starts to take its hold very funny things happen. Since your body is trying to reroute blood to all the essential organs including diverting blood to your brain stem, your hands, feet, and frontal lobe of your brain begin to suffer. You begin to get apathetic, crabby, angry, lethargic, not wanting to participate, tired, and very emotional. You just want to sit there. You have to fight against all the urges your body is telling you to do and trust on the reasoning side of your brain. It’s very scary stuff and it is now extremely easy for me to see how quickly and why someone could just sit there and die from the cold. I had profound and new respect for those adventurers such as Ernest Shackelton, Scott, and Amundson who had to live in these conditions for months on end. I was miserable after just a few hours and was suffering after 14. I always thought I would have the will to survive under such conditions but now am completely doubtful that I would.

We quickly tore down camp and watched at the Piston Bully made its way from the station. We were all very excited! Even though we could see the station on the horizon the entire time we were camping, we all felt a million miles away from warmth. We took a few moments for a group photo with all of us having the “let’s get the hell out of here” expression on our faces. The drive back was long as we were pulling our heavy equipment on a sled as most of us slept.

I was the only one of the group who had to work immediately when I got back. I had to put on Sunday brunch. I had convinced JB to allow me to be an hour late for work because of this adventure. I can’t believe I begged for this opportunity and now had a long day on my feet in front of me. Nonetheless, I was happy to be back to civilization.

It has taken me over 2 days to recover. I have a slight sunburned face, can’t seem to get enough sleep, and am still slightly dehydrated. I think someone forgot to tell me I was camping at the South Pole! I guess my short-term memory is taking effect again as I am very happy that I tried this adventure but I’ve learned a few certainties about my life through the process. I will NEVER do it again. I will never be a mountaineer. I have no desire to go camping ever again below 32F. I will never be a part of an extreme cold weather scientific team. I’ll be happy if I only spend only 30 minutes a day outdoors at the Pole for the remainder of my 7 weeks here. I may move to Florida when I return to America.

Me on top of the quincy where I spent the frigid night.

Day to Day

2006-12-16T06:46:00.000+13:00

-27.5C (-17.3F)
wind chil: -35.8C (-32.5F)
Wind: 6 knots

I FINALLY made it! I finally walked to the other side of the station and traveled those few yards to the actual South Pole! It became one of those things that was just outside the door, but you never made time for. I am constantly gazing out the window at the Pole and the brilliant world before me, so I can’t believe that it’s taken this long. Also, I needed to find someone who wasn’t working when I was to follow me and take pictures. The main thought that plagued me is if, knock-on-wood, something were to happen to me again and I had to leave the Pole immediately I still wouldn’t have the pictures that said it all. The picture that said I stood at exactly 90 degrees South, the point about which the Earth rotates, and that it was a long, damn hard road to get here.

95 years ago on Dec 14, Roald Amundsen and his party arrived at 90 degrees South, the first person/s to stand at the geographic South Pole. It’s amazing to think about what it must have been like to achieve that goal at this very location, alone, and without any back-up support. I thought it was hard enough to get here with all of our modern technologies.

I receive many inquisitions on what day-to-day life is like on this bitter cold continent. What is it like in when it’s THAT cold? Do you always have to walk outside completely covered up? Would you get frostbite instantly if you didn’t? Actually, I’ve seen a few people walk to the bathroom from their Jamesway in shorts and a T-shirt. At first I thought my brother, Erik, had followed me here since he is always walking around in the snow in shorts and sandals. I’m unable to do that. You can be outside for VERY short periods of time with exposed skin, but it’s a quick cold jog to the bathroom and not really worth it to me (besides, I now have a very comfortable pee can). I can walk outside to the other buildings in Summer Camp (gym, lounge, and bathroom) with only my insulated sweat pants, heavy bunny boots, T-shirt, fleece, hat, sunglasses, and gloves. I don’t necessarily need my ECW pants or jacket for short distances. Anything longer than 20 yards or so I need to gear up completely. I absolutely cannot go outside without sunglasses or gloves.

I’m still amazed that my Jamesway room keeps me as warm as it does since I can see the daylight through the weakening seams of the military canvas. Each Jamesway is heated by a diesel fuel furnace and I’m able to sleep comfortably in only shorts and tank top. Donya, my sister-in-law, did the most thoughtful and loving thing for me before I left. She and Brother Erik both took a day off of work to meet me in Denver while I was going through orientation. Donya had painstakingly put together a photo book/diary for me. I hadn’t had the time or energy to take any pictures with me to keep me company. She included several extra photos with the book. I’ve now taped all those photos to the canvas that hangs over my bed along with all the cards of encouragement I’ve received. I had to do something to cover up where the previous occupants wrote “105 days in the hole,” “it’s a harsh continent,” and so-and-so “was here and was miserable.” They certainly weren’t encouraging words on my first day.

I spend most of my time in the main station. My Jamesway is extremely comfortable to sleep in and do a little reading, but not much else. The Summer Camp exercise room has old equipment and then you’d have to travel outside after you get all sweaty working out. I haven’t spent any time in the Summer Camp lounge although it is just cheesy and hole-in-the-wall enough for me to love and is a great place to meet friends. There is a toga party in a few days in the lounge. I just hope we don’t lose anyone in the snow with their pale skin and white toga’s. I think I’ll find some blue or flowered sheets for my toga.

Anyway, as I was saying . . . main station. The main station is situated right next to The Dome, or the old station. The Dome is exactly that, a dome that was placed directly on top of the snow and ice without a floor. It essentially was built to protect against the wind and therefore cut out some of the cold. The Dome once covered other buildings offering protection such as the galley, living quarters, and scientific operations. As technology advanced, so did the need for a South Pole modernization project and hence the new station which is still under construction. Early pictures of the Dome show it sitting directly on top of the snow. Now, the snow has drifted around it in such quantities that it looks as if it was built below ground and the entrance is continually dug out. The Dome is now used as storage and all of the buildings inside have been torn down. The Dome will eventually be dismantled as well.

Just across the entrance to the Dome is a large, tall, silver, un-insulated, cylindrical structure attached to the main station. This structure is called “the beer can” and has a very scary and unreliable freight elevator and several flights of stairs. You can take these stairs into the main station and it’s a favorite exercise activity for some to run the stairs of the beer can. The beer can is a remnant of

I still can’t get over the fact that the inside of the main station looks like something directly out of 2001 Space Odyssey. Then again, this entire area looks and feels as if we are on the moon. I am certain that they will use all of the information gained here about how to successfully populate a space station or the moon. I pack a bag every night and drag it with me to the main station to have everything I need for the day: gym clothes, work clothes, books, etc. They activity coordinator does an excellent job making certain there is something going on every evening of the week. Monday is board game night and Charleston Dance lessons, Tuesday SciFi movie night and basketball, Wednesday documentary film and volleyball, Thursday swing and salsa dance lessons, Friday basketball and dodge ball, Saturday bingo, and Sunday is most everyone’s day off so everything is going on. I sometimes take part in the board games on Monday, Tuesday I work late, Wednesday is my day off but the evening is full of meetings and training. I then go to Thursday swing/salsa lessons and bingo. Every week we receive tapes of the pervious week’s NFL games in which one game is shown on Saturday afternoons.
All of these activities are taught or organized by volunteers. For example, swing/salsa lessons are taught by Andy Martinez our station manager. Bingo on Saturdays is the craziest bingo I’ve ever experienced! My boss, JB paints his face and slips into a crazy bingo caller mode and the crowd heckles and cajoles him.

If you want, you can come and visit me for approximately 3 hours through an adventure/tourism group called Antarctic Logistics and Expeditions. It will cost you just over $30,000 and being this is a government building you’ll need to get special permission for a tour, but I can run our and meet you. We had our first tourists yesterday and all of us wanted to run out and take pictures of them. A father/son duo from Austria had gone to the North Pole last year. Usually the tourists come inside for coffee and shop at our little store.

I have volunteered for the trauma team since I thought my experience having EMT training, being a CRP instructor, my comfort around medical procedures, and working in various hospitals around Chicago would come in handy. I’ve come to discover that my experience is much more in need than I expected. For a community with a population of 250, there are only 20 people who have volunteered on the trauma team and very few of them have any medical experience. The worst fears of anyone is an incident involving multiple victims in which case, all hands are needed despite experience. (The worst case scenario they envision here is an incident with one of the LC-130 landing/take-offs.) They teach safe transport to medical as the best method to treat any patient since the weather is our worst enemy. Without knowing my background, I was asked by Dr. Bruce and Dr. Jay, the doctors at the South Pole who took care of me while I was sick, to join the medical response team consisting of only themselves and 3 others. It’s very interesting how things come full circle. They asked me to be on the team after our long conversations of when I was sick. We are equipped to handle 2 major traumas concurrently, but both doctors would still need assistance. If major traumas were accompanying by minor ones, the doctors would quickly become overwhelmed and really need assistance. I’m currently spending my Wednesday evenings learning how to assist the docs and set up the medical ward as well as cold weather first responder tactics with the trauma team. I’m issued a radio in order to hear emergency calls while sleeping.

Life outside of the main station is also very interesting and exciting. They’ve now set up a Frisbee golf course outside and a rugby game usually breaks out once a week on the ice. There are skis and boots to check out in order to use a cross-country ski route. I’m eager to try cross-country skiing, but I hear it is a very difficult cardio run and I’m trying to get my endurance up first. Although it hasn’t snowed here in hundreds of years, snow removal is a constant job. All the snow that is here has just stayed here since before the Roman Empire and just continually blows around burying things. They’ve made a giant pile in front of the station that has now been converted into a sledding hill. Some dinning trays have been smuggled in from McMurdo and are now used a sleds.

The main mode of transportation around the Pole is snowmobile. They have several old ski-doos (the kind with only one ski in front which are now outlawed in the US) which pull these crazy sleds to haul people and equipment back and forth from a work site. There are 2 cargo vans, a few pickup trucks, and 4 cranes.

Work outside the station is just as busy as work inside. There are multiple construction projects going on such as Ice Cube, a new telescope (more on these things later), and finishing the new station. Work is conducted around the clock. The crews who work the swing shift (2 pm-midnight) are called “swingers” and social activities are set up for them around 2 and 3 am and as well as at 9 am for the night shifters. So if you ever have trouble sleeping there is always something going on.

There is no wildlife at the South Pole. All of the penguins and seals are around the coast with many colonies near McMurdo. A few weeks ago several penguins decided to take a walk along the ski-way at McMurdo and had to be ushered off in order for the planes to depart and land. Although I wasn’t there, I’ve been able to get some pictures from people who were. You can find several more pictures of the penguins on the photo book link. I like the ones where they are walking near the LC-130’s. Humans definitely seem to be the ones out of place.

I’ve painted a bright, cozy, and wonderful life here at the bottom of the Earth, but in reality it is still a very harsh continent and life isn’t easy. Although cold, on most days the weather is an extremely bright, clear blue sky. I’m still amazed every day at how bright and beautiful and clean the world is here. I recently overheard a conversation of someone expressing how they miss dirt. I began thinking about how I miss colors -- the bright greens and red or trees and flowers. Living in a world of white, I'm certain everything will seem brighter to me when I leave.

We have had several reporters traveling to the Pole recently. One reporter and photographer was from MSNBC. I've added the link to his blog. He was only at Pole one day, but he goes into more detail on day-to-day operations in Antarctica in general. He has run an excellent series of stories with details of things that I just don't have time to tell you. He called the food excellent at Pole (and he was here on the day when only Francie and I were cooking). There was also another reporter/photographer from the Chicago Tribune which will run a series of stories about life at Pole in February.

Enjoy!

Snow Stakes

2006-12-07T07:31:00.000+13:00

-29.7C (-21.5F)
Wind Chill: -41.9C (-43.5F)

Aerial photo of the South Pole Station. The new main station is just to the left of the Dome. The actual South Pole is south of the main station, in the lower right hand corner. The Summer Camp is the first set of horizontal lines you find going north of the Dome.

When you’re young you have a very small vision of the world. Your world consciousness doesn’t reach beyond yourself and life is very good when it’s only revolving around you. Now being older and having broad world awareness it’s strange that the world still appears very small. Right now, the world is literally revolving around me, or just a few feet away from me and yet someone said during dinner “What are the chances that 3 people sitting at this table have traveled through Minot, ND and are currently at the South Pole?” Small world indeed. Francie had traveled to Minot during her stint in restaurant sales and Don had traveled through as he returned from Alaska. Don was very excited to go to Tool Crib in Minot and had a meal at a diner there in which the meal still stands out in his memory.

It has been estimated that fewer than 10,000 people in the history of mankind has ever stepped foot at the South Pole. More people than that have stepped foot in Minot, ND but the number of people who have done both is minute and quite the accomplishment. Thoughts of eternity and numbers and statistics plaque me often these days. I am continually wondering how many people have ever been on this exact spot and made a snow angel? How many have walked this line and thought these thoughts? How am I different from everyone before me? How am I the same? This is a vast, harsh continent.

All of the station managers cooked this past Saturday giving the galley workers a day off for their Thanksgiving holiday. The meteorologists (mets) on station gave the galley workers first opportunity to volunteer for a field trip. The mets have stakes placed every 20 meters for 20 km leading in 7 different directions from the station. The stakes consist of bamboo poles with a flag marking the path next to a small diameter pvc pipe stuck in the snow. Once a season, they take 7 trips and travel straight out in each direction measuring each snow stake to determine accumulation and to replace the flags that mark the way. Four of us galley workers were excited for the adventurous trip on our day off. We traveled in the Pisten Bully, a slow moving, mini tractor-type, snow ATV that bounced and jostled us across the vastness on hard benches. The entire trip takes anywhere between 5-6 hours. At each stop we would take turns jumping out to record the data as John, the meteorologist took the measurements of all 40 snow stakes. Often we would all jump out to take pictures and run around in the complete isolation.

As we traveled further and further away from the station, again complete vulnerability and insignificance set in. All we had marking our way was a set of bamboo flag poles, no road, no previous tracks. For 360 degrees around us was one long, beautiful complete horizon of solid white that continued on without interruption by a telephone pole or wires or road or hill or mountain. Only the sun that chased us in a circle overhead broke the horizon view.

We were to check in the comms (the communication office) every hour. We eventually drove out of radio range by stake 35 and were unable to check in. This silent, bright and brilliant white world with all of its bitter coldness now felt more cold knowing a very limited amount of help would be hours away if needed. It also evoked a very calming and peaceful reality. Life always goes in circles, uninterrupted like the sun and the horizon. Nature does not have perfect straight lines.

After our short break of hot chocolate and sandwiches at the end of line, we turned around and now, since our work was done, were able to return driving continuously. I sat in the passenger seat of the Piston Bully on the return trip and quickly became mesmerized by the small ripples and waves of snow passing beneath my feet. One of my most favorite pastimes is fishing with my dad and siblings on Lake Sakacawea. When I was younger I used to crawl to the front and hang my head over the bow and stare at the waves being swallowed up by the boat as we drove fast over the water. This was very hypnotic and calming to me, the feeling of the safest place on Earth, meditation of being one with the water. Whenever life gets too crazy to handle I find my center again staring at those waves. I guess that’s why my dad named his boat “My Therapy.” Now, in Antarctica, just off center of the axis of the Earth it was happening again. The waves of snow being swallowed by the Piston Bully were eerily reminiscent of hanging my head over the boat. I slipped into a trance and stared at the waves all the way back to the station.

During the trip, Francie commented how crazy it was that 2 months ago all of us where in completely different parts of the US not having any idea who each other was and that now we find ourselves at the South Pole sharing our inner most selves. Although nature does not have any perfectly straight lines or direct routes, some adventures certainly feel as if a direct route was taken to get here.

Thanks and Giving

2006-11-30T07:22:00.000+13:00

-18.2F (-27.9C)
Wind chill: -42.7F (-41.5C)
Wind speed: 13 knots

We had a small heat wave two days ago with it getting as warm as -13F! It was excellent timing as I woke up and realized that it was colder in my Jamesway than it had ever been and my light wasn’t working. I dressed quickly in the dark and made my way to the main station where there seemed to be organized chaos with several people dressing and working urgently. There had been a power outage and we were now running on back-up generators while they fixed the problem. The power was only down for 45 minutes as we have very skilled engineers and maintenance crews, but it served as a reminder as to how vulnerable we really are at the South Pole. The Jamesways are now fully occupied and aren’t on any back-up generators. It would only take a few hours for them to become bitter cold, uninhabitable, and create dangerous situations with the limited shelter areas. Most people slept right through the chaos. For all of us it gave great comfort knowing we have excellent people who continue to make this place run on this harsh continent.

(Galley Crew, L-R) Will, me, Carol, Leah, James Brown, Michelle, Joel, Francie (missing: Eli, Laura, Jake, Nicole)

Thanksgiving at the South Pole is celebrated like any other family celebration, with lots of food and wine! Everyone in the galley worked especially hard to make this holiday feel as close to home as possible. Turkey’s were cooked throughout the week in three different ways, traditional roast, deep fried, and smoked. I was as surprised as you to find out we had a smoker here. It’s an outdoor, medium-sized, portable smoker that held 4 turkeys at a time and the wood was flown in with our usual supplies. Just as all of us have our own family traditions, I’m quickly finding that most returning Polies have their own traditions as well. One gentlemen stops in the kitchen every year and carves up all the turkeys. The rest of the galley crew was busy making roast vegetables, green bean casserole, real (no flakes here) mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries, sweet potatoes with marshmallows, and salad. Earlier in the week, volunteers stopped in and made apple, pumpkin, and pecan pies. We served appetizers of baked brie, shrimp cocktail, and baguettes with olive and sun-dried tomato tampenade.

Several people volunteered and decorated the dinning area to create a more formal atmosphere. The windows were blocked out to appear night-time, real linens were used, lights were dimmed, candles lit, and servers poured wine and dished pie. In the galley, we were chaotic but well orchestrated as all of us struggled to find space to prepare what we were assigned. I was in charge of the roast vegetables, cranberries, salad, and whip cream. We made massive quantities of food for 3 separate dinner seatings. I, along with everyone else, was exhausted but it was the type of exhaustion that comes with immense pride and satisfaction. The toast for each meal really summed it up. It went something like this: “Today we give thanks and celebrate all of our families back home as we celebrate with our new family away from home. We also toast those who pioneered this new frontier as they were setting up the first research station at the South Pole 50 years ago in which Thanksgiving marked only day 4. Without the support of our friends and family back home and those first pioneers, we would not be able to be here today to continue the important quest of the international scientific efforts today.” The evening ended with everyone dancing the night away with JB playing DJ.

This year I am thankful for this opportunity and everyone’s unending support! I’m also thankful that my friend, Eli, has made it back to the South Pole healthy and ready to go back to work. I’m thankful that I have so many people caring about me and watching over me at every turn, in person and in spirit.

27 Mothers

2006-11-22T12:07:00.000+13:00

-37.9C (-36.2F)
Wind chill: -49.2C (-56.6F)

I apologize for my sparse blogging, but I have been very busy these past several days at the South Pole. My body has been slowly adjusting to the harsh conditions here once again. They medi-evac’d the 7th HAPE person last week, which is a record since Raytheon has been the contractor of the NSF Antarctic operations. What that means to me being one of the first evacuees and one of the first returnees is that the corporate office is watching us carefully for any signs of acclimating problems. Extra precautions were taken and I was asked to rest an additional day. I first worked two half-days and started full days of work as of Monday (that would be your Sunday). The satellite hours are now 2:30am-2pm, but are worthless after 1pm as the satellite is low on the horizon and the signal is poor. (The South Pole web link is only working during these times as well.) I usually wake up at 6am, (go to the gym, get breakfast, get ready for work, check in at Medical) and work from 8am-6pm. I only have a few minutes here and there to quickly check the internet. I have Wednesday’s off (Tuesday’s for you) in which I’ll be diligent about updating everyone on my adventures.

For those of you confused about what time of day it is for me compared to you, here is a simple way. For CST, subtract 5 hours from your current time and that’s what time of day it is at the Pole (MST, subtract 4 hours; EST, subtract 6 hours). Then I'm usually a day ahead unless its in the wee hours of the morning (e.g., 3am) then we are on the same day it would just be 9pm for me.

Antarctic was featured on Good Morning America last week. Apparently they did a 2-minute live spot from McMurdo and aired a segment of everyone from Pole gathered around the South Pole saying “Good Morning America.” I was still on “medical leave” but was able to see clips of everyone around the Pole.

The Antarctic Sun published some facts about the Raytheon contractor population this week that I thought you’d be interested in. Out of 863 RPSC working at McMurdo, Palmer, and South Pole Stations as well as the 2 research vessels, the Nathaniel B. Palmer and the Laurence M. Gould the following statistics apply: Race: white 94.67%, black 0.70%, Hispanic 2.90%, Asian/Pacific Islander 1.51%, Native American, 0.23%; Gender: female 32.33%; Age: mean 37 yrs, mode (most common) 28 yrs, youngest 18 yrs, oldest 68 yrs. The most popular name for males is David and for females is Susan. The top three most-represented states are Colorado, Washington, and California with 48 states being represented. No one claims being from Delaware and Rhode Island. Number of people I’ve run into from McMurdo & Pole from North Dakota: 3. The current population of the South Pole is 231. (FYI: Every Antarctic Sun details what those research vessels are up to. Also, in this week’s edition you’ll find details of the underwater sea life in the Antarctic that I’ve briefly talked about in earlier posts.)

My mother is an amazing woman who has the strength and ability to do the job of at least 27 ordinary mothers. At the Pole, I have been so touched and overwhelmed by everyone’s caring and sincerity in my well-being that I feel as if I have 27 mothers and they are lurking around every corner. One of my “mothers” saw me walking to the gym and scolded me as I’m not supposed to be working out, yet. I’m just walking and stretching, I tell her. Do your doctors know, she replies? You better go and tell them. JB watches me in the kitchen and continually asks are you drinking your water? Don’t overdo it and work too hard. (What kind of a rare breed of a boss tells you not to work hard?) JB commented on working too hard so often that it’s now a running joke between us. I get tons of caring advice every day and many inquiries into how I’m feeling. It’s not the type of “how are you feeling” just to be polite and not care to hear an answer, but the kind when people really want to know and they stand there and listen as I relate to them my latest temporary hypochondriac ailments. I now over-analyze every bump and hurt being I missed the symptoms last time. This Thanksgiving I am very thankful for my mother traveling with me and caring for me at the bottom of the world even if it is in the form of 27 pseudo-mothers standing in her place. With this kind of family you are never very far from home.

We will be celebrating Thanksgiving on Saturday instead of Thursday. This way, the majority of people will have 2 consecutive days off for the holiday. In the galley, we’ve been busy preparing for the feast for several days now. We solicit volunteers and hold pie baking parties and potato peeling parties. We dig out the fancy linens for the tables, serve wine, and block out the windows with card board so it feels like night time. It’s my understanding that several people dress up for the occasion. Those of us in the galley will get an extra day off next Saturday when all of the station managers will cook.

Yesterday, (Tuesday) is the PM sous chef, Will’s, day off. On this day, it’s only Francie and I in the afternoon in the kitchen who are responsible for supper. Along the two DA’s on shift, Leah & Michelle, it’s the only time of the week where we have an all female kitchen crew. Since this is the first Tuesday I’ve worked, this is the first this has happened. I volunteered to come in early to make soup and ease the workload of those getting out lunch and to get a jump start on Will’s duties as well as my own. After the morning crew left and a few hours into the all women PM crew, when one person commented on how great she felt at work. The best she had felt in a long time. We all agreed we felt a difference in the air, a difference of the energy in the day. We attributed it to the positive energies of the women working cohesively together and being on the same wavelength. We blasted music over the kitchen speakers and working and dancing the day away. Absolutely nothing against men, but just as men need a “boy’s night out” or an “all male weekend,” we women need our time to connect and feed off each other’s energies. It felt great! I’m especially proud to report that JB commented supper was “awesome!” I was also taken quietly aside by a few people who commented that it was one of the best evening meals they had at Pole. This goes to strengthen my theory that positive attitudes and energies are directly reflected in the food you cook. Despite all the positives of yesterday, the atrophy that had set in over the past 2 weeks combined with the long hours and heavy work on the feet and back, I feel as if I’ve been hit with a Mac truck today.

Today is my day off and it’s my first official one in which I’m now healthy enough to be able to do normal activities. I’m moving back out to the James-ways today. I haven’t seen my room in over 2 weeks I’m a little concerned that I may find a squatter. I’m very excited to go there as I’ve been sleeping and living in the same two changes of clothes for the past 17 days. I haven’t been outside for the past 7 days and despite the frigid cold, it looks really beautiful out there and I miss being out. I’ve long run out of my daily supplies which I can now replenish with access to my cache back in my J-way room. I’m going to relax on my day off by getting a new razor blade, shaving my legs in the sauna, taking a nap, and watching a movie. Believe me, on this harsh continent, it’s all about the little things.

I’ve had a few friends asking me to further explain the James-ways, Summer Camp, and what we do for entertainment. Now that I’m able to be out and about more, I’ll start working on explaining these things in future posts. I’ll be able to take more pictures to help explain life at the South Pole, finally walk those 40 yards out to the real Pole, take you on a more complete tour of the station, as well as tell you about how we keep entertained. If you have questions or are curious about life in Antarctica or at the South Pole drop me an email or just write a comment and I'll address it in future blogs.

Frosty Boy

2006-11-17T10:41:00.000+13:00

South Pole
-31.6C, -24.9F
(wind chill: -44.2C, -47.5F)

People are talking about the heat wave today. It has been colder than normal temperatures and today brought lighter winds. I overheard one guy say he only wore a "light jacket." It's amazing how the body adapts very quickly to the weather. It's all relative. When I was in McMurdo, it was -15F and felt very warm to me. I even saw some mud that was in the direct sunlight. The weather is like anything else. You adapt and you actually DO get used to it, even in these very cold temperatures. It should even warm up to 0C around late Dec/early Jan!

Stacia, one of my fellow HAPE evacuees, and I made it back to the South Pole without incident, although we almost missed the plane. In the wee early hours, long before our transport time of 7:15am, someone decided to pull the fire alarm. Now, we’ve all been through many business mandatory fire drills, but those in Antarctica are different. First, when you evacuate a building you need to put on as much gear protecting yourself from the elements as the firemen themselves. Second, the 24 hr blinding sunlight fools your mind into thinking it’s the middle of the day. Going back to your darkened room and trying to go back to bed after you peel off your layers is a major chore. Stacia and I were asleep for only a second when the transporter called our room wondering where we were. For the second time in 6 hours our hearts leapt out of our chests as we jumped out of bed, threw on our 17 layers of ECW, and stumbled and wobbled as fast as any stay puffed marshmallow men can up a steep hill to the transport. The transport bus whisked us out to the ice runway, or ski-way, just as I was coughing up another lung and undoing all my recouping efforts.

This LC-130 ride was different than the first three. Stacia and I were the only passengers. There wasn’t even any cargo besides our personal bags. I asked why such an empty flight to the Pole? The crew explained that we were transporting several hundreds of pounds of fuel in the wings for the Pole. I guess if we crash, it will be a warm landing. The 5 person crew let us hang out in the cockpit for as long as we wanted and shared bags of M&M’s with us. We were able to stretch out and sleep on those oh, so comfy netting chairs. Being from North Dakota and the great expanse of the outdoors, I’m pretty certain that I’ve peed more outside than I have inside. So, I am just as shocked as you to realize that I’d developed this strange aversion to peeing conditions. It must be a girl thing. Nonetheless, I sucked it up and with such a small audience I had to brave the LC-130 bathroom. I was relieved to discover the rumors weren’t true! Aside from the lovely green shower curtain and the feeling of going in the middle of a room, it was better than most bar bathrooms. There was even a very nice, warm heater blowing up the, well, you know, to keep everything toasty. I could have sat there all day.

I love the friendly, small town feel of the Pole! My executive chef, James Brown, was out in the -80.3F wind chill once again to greet me off the plane, give hugs, and carry my bag. It was so cold that is was an instant ice cream headache all over the body along with all the air being sucked out of you. I panted the short walk to the main station and the tip of my nose that was exposed got frostbite in less than 2 minutes. I was settled in a big, comfy room in the main station as part of the new acclimation plan and then wondered into the galley. Right away when I was recognized, someone yelled into the galley “Stephanie’s back!” and then I continued to receive hugs and well wishes and “welcome back” over and over again and not just from galley workers, but from everyone. It felt great to be “home”! It’s truly amazing how quickly you connect with people you normally may not when you’re thrown down the same path.

After all of the “welcome backs,” the hugs, and the questions answered about HAPE and the drama of the medi-evac, the first thing everyone had to tell me was about Frosty Boy. “Did you hear!? Frosty Boy is back!” Once again, when life is broken down into its simplest elements and is very routine, the tiniest, smallest things make everything else bearable. “Did you hear? Frosty Boy now has chocolate and twist!” Frosty Boy is the soft serve ice cream machine. They’ve never had chocolate before. I very much start to feel like I’m in 6th grade when I round another corner. “Frosty Boy was down last week and they had to get a special part. There was almost a riot.” They had Frosty Boy in McMurdo and it was so popular that they always ran out and so it was only available for a few days after the weekly food delivery, and they didn’t have chocolate. I walk down a hallway “Hey welcome back! Did you hear about the Frosty Boy?”

I just don’t understand the obsession. It’s more popular than coffee. These days it averages -45F (-80 wind chill) and most people work all or part of their day outside. I work inside and have never had a Frosty boy, here or at McMurdo, and all I can think about is pouring the hottest, scalding beverage down my throat to warm up. If I’m lucky, I’ll get blisters. I don’t want to eat something that is freezing cold and looks exactly like you just walked outside to a snow bank with a giant spoon and a bowl. If Frosty Boy ran for President of Antarctica he would win and I highly doubt there would be negative campaign ads or any competition for that matter. In fact, if Frosty Boy would promise to never break down, he could be King of Antarctica. I stopped to greet one of the station administrators and said “Do you realize that the entire fate of successful operations and scientific missions at the South Pole is dependant on Frosty Boy?” He answered “Oh, believe me, we know!” I wonder if they’ll decide to put more money into the Frosty Boy than the Pole telescopes. I wonder if it’s eligible for National Science Foundation funding. I wonder if good ole’ Frosty could use that money for his political campaign. Maybe Frosty would be more warm hearted that some of American’s politicians.

Take 2

2006-11-14T15:13:00.000+13:00

I can't sit still or seem to hold a thought in my head! Medical has cleared me healthy to return to Pole! I'm scheduled on a flight tomorrow morning. It must be a cargo flight as there are only 2 passengers. My friend, Eli, is still recovering and with any luck, she will only be a few days behind me on returning to Pole. Medical has a plan for slowly integrating me back into altitude, so once I arrive it will be another 4 day vacation. Good thing I have many books to read. I must wear my Norwegian stubbornness and independence out in the open a little more than I thought. While I was recovering, the friends and family who know me best sent emails making certain that I was being a good patient and listening to the doctors. I promise this time! I will be a model patient! I will seek counseling on getting over my aversion to peeing in cans and funnels. I will drink lots of water. I will take my Diamox. I will not sneak to the gym and start exercising before I'm supposed to. This time, I will be at the Pole for longer than 5 days.

Solitude

2006-11-11T10:37:00.000+13:00

They cleared me a few days ago to slowly start incorporating back into work. It just feels really good to finally be able to do something, anything. I started to become very frustrated a few days ago because no one seemed to have any answers on recovery from HAPE. There has been precedence, but without any recent large studies of the general population, the opinions on recovery are all over the map. The one prevailing universal opinion is that those who had it once are much more susceptible to get it again. I do understand that Medical has our best interests at heart, but it's difficult to be healthy again and not be able to do what you were hired to do.

After much reluctance and a day of pouting and being crabby, I’ve begun to assimilate once again into the McMurdo culture. I can’t explain the eagerness and desire to be working at Pole. It could be the fact that my mind has enveloped the idea since June and small deviations from that plan are frustrating. Or it could be that it is very difficult to find peace, quiet, and solitude at McMurdo. McMurdo seems to be the place where many people go who never wanted college to end. The North Dakota in me instinctively seeks out quiet and space in the midst of crowds and chaos. Living in Chicago for 10 years it’s hard to imagine how I could enjoy 5 million neighbors and how quiet and space would be easy to accomplish compared to 1,100 neighbors at McMurdo. In fact, it’s easier to find it in a larger environment. At any point I could choose to be alone in a coffee shop, bookstore, or on a walk as no one knows you and you won’t be disturbed. I don’t necessarily need the quiet to find peace and relaxation, I simply need anonymity. You lose yourself in the faces of strangers and find yourself in your fierce independence and desire for self-discovery. After you decompress in your solitude, you then have the choice to be social. At McMurdo, there are very few areas where you can sit and your thoughts not be disturbed. I now share my dorm room with 4 other girls and after living alone for the past 7 years I feel stressed and crowded. Since there are few lounges, only one coffee shop with limited hours, and one dining area, you are always running into someone. There is no such thing as a private phone call. You lose the choice of being alone or social and finding the balance of both. I’m starting to much prefer walking in 80F below wind chill to my crappy little 8x6 J-way space at the Pole compared to the constant comings and goings of my dorm room. At the Pole, there are many more nooks and crannies in which to hide and fewer people to hide in them. You then have the choice to come out of your Zen quietness and be social. In this sense, North Dakota is very similar to Chicago and the South Pole. You have the expanse to find your solace in a quiet field or a long drive and the choice to seek out the communal. You have the ability to customize the amount of each to fit your own personal diet.

I ran into someone recently coming back from Wintering over at the Pole. She was eager to get back to America after 7 months of total darkness and isolation. After living with only 64 people for that long she was frustrated with being in McMurdo for a day until her flight departed. She said it was just too crowded for her. I’ve determined that feeling “crowded” isn’t necessarily in the number or population of people in an area, but the lack of choice in being alone or social when you need to. Since they cleared me to start working again, I finally found my solitude in quietly retreating to a corner of the galley to dice up 200 lbs of chicken. No one bothered me for hours.

Recovery

2006-11-08T22:04:00.000+13:00

The South Pole marker outside of my medical bed window.

I’ve always been a good sleeper and love my naps, but this is getting ridiculous. I slept approximately 18 out of 24 hours on Tuesday, the day after we arrived back at McMurdo. The first day of recovery I was very dizzy and winded. Today I am much better and able to stay awake for longer periods of time. My lungs are all cleared up; Medical is just waiting for the rest of me to recover. Eli was released from Medical the next morning.

It’s very strange being back here at McMurdo. First, it seems like I’ve been gone for a month. Second, I know very few people here anymore. And third, it seems Eli and I have a sort of minor celebrity status. There are a few friends here who were with me in Denver who were never going to work at the Pole. They are all surprised to see us back and had many questions. Then there are complete strangers who keep coming up to us and asking us how we feel. The best I can figure is they were on the plane and we just don’t recognize them. The few people we did know on the plane keep smothering us with attention. I ran into a fellow Denver trainee, Stan, and he said we were the talk of the town. The galley in McMurdo had to send someone to help replace us until we get better and now the galley is calling for volunteers to help out. Seriously, I’m very uncomfortable with all the attention!

I received an email from my galley crew at the Pole. They said word got out in the 200 person community there that we were sick and so volunteers are flocking to help out as much as possible. (Awwww, that’s so North Dakotan of them! I’m very touched.)

Medical at the Pole has a plan for transitioning me back to altitude once I get better. Immediately when I get there, they will house me in the main station and put me on O2 for 48 hours with little or no activity. They will put me on Diamox. They will then limit the O2 and monitor how I adjust and adapt. If everything goes ok, they will then slowly transition me back to work with only a few hours on and then a few hours off. They will slowly increase out workload until we are full time and healthy.

I am bummed I didn’t get a chance to take many pictures during my 5 days at Pole to post for everyone to see. I was just too tired. The ones I did take were from my Medical bed window. I had a great view of the actual South Pole and the horizon! I’ll post pictures of Pole as soon as I can. They are reluctant to say when they plan on sending us back.

Medi-Evac

2006-11-08T22:00:00.000+13:00

Nov 5, 2006
Sunday/Monday
Day 5/6

Ok, they give us multiple warnings about Altitude Illness and I did pay attention. But I guess somewhere along the way, the symptoms get mixed up between what is normal acclimatization, what is a cold or flu (what they call “the crud”) and what is Altitude Illness.

I had a low-grade headache since the day I got to Pole. Ibuprofen had been making the headache go away and I had been drinking tons of water (just not in the evenings). On Saturday morning I was still curious why it was so difficult for me to walk to the main station. It seemed to be getting harder not easier. I was so tired and cursed the new, very large snow pile in my way that increased the distance of my walk. Towards the end of my shift on Saturday, I noticed tasks started taking me longer to get done as my brain wasn’t working right and allowing me to figure simple things out. I was so tired and had woken up the night before gasping for air.

After work I was too tired to walk home so I found a couch in the lounge and watched a movie. My headache grew and grew and now ibuprofen wasn’t helping. I finally made it to my J-way to sleep, but lying down made my head hurt worse so I slept sitting up. I starting coughing and wheezing, but didn’t notice much as my head was bothering me most of all.

As I got dressed Sunday morning to go to work, I noticed that my heart was racing just to put on socks and I was tired beyond any tired I’ve felt before. My head kept pounding and it took me over and hour to get dressed. The walk to the station was a walk from hell and was exhausting beyond anything I’ve experienced! My bag felt like a million pounds. I rested at the foot of the steps before making it to the door. I was early for work so I found a couch and slept for an hour before getting to the galley.

I thought about asking for a day off, but had heard people complaining about how tired they were so I thought what I was going through was normal. Even though my head wouldn’t quit hurting, I thought I could make it through my shift. I then became confused about what to chop and how to do it (it’s not good to be confused with a knife in your hands.) I stopped to get more water to make my head stop hurting. My headache was getting so bad that I started crying and then my friend, Sara, noticed that I wasn’t making complete sentences so she paged Medical and made me go

Once in Medical they had my blood O2 levels at 72 (normal at sea level is 98). They gave me O2 right away and my headache almost disappeared immediately. I thought I was all fixed up, but that was only the beginning. They listened to my lungs and took chest x-rays and diagnosed me with HAPE (High Altitude Pulmonary Edema) as a complication of Altitude Illness. One of the immediate treatments is Viagra, as it is a vessel dilator, along with albuteral treatments and a few other steroids. They kept me in Medical and on O2 for 24 hours and continued to monitor my lungs. They were mostly cleared up by the next morning, but a few rattles remained. They took every measure possible to make certain I didn’t exert myself in any form.

My friend and fellow galley worker, Eli, showed up at medical about 10 hours after I had arrived. She had been fighting symptoms for as long as 3 days which also included vomiting and nausea. She was formally in the military and thought that she was just fighting the crud. The best way to treat HAPE or any level of Altitude Illness is to get you to a lower altitude as soon as possible. Within 2 hours of Eli being in Medical, they had decided to Medi-evac her to McMurdo on the first flight in the morning. Me? They were waiting to see how I was doing in the morning to determine if I needed to be medi-evac’d as well.

What is Altitude Illness? As you go to a higher elevation in such a short period of time (for me it was sea level to 11,000 ft in 3 hours), your body has to adjust to the decrease in oxygen. In doing that, it gives off more Co2 than usual and your acid/base levels shift. Some people don’t compensate for this very well and don’t adjust. If left untreated with simple O2, you can start to produce a lot of lactic acid and your organs then start to leak and produce fluid. The fluid builds up in the lungs. If it continues to be untreated, you can develop pneumonia and/or essentially “drown” from the fluid. Another complication which is really serious is HACE (high altitude cerebral edema) in with the fluid builds up in the brain. This is definitely a sure way to get immediately medi-evac’d to McMurdo.

The May Clinic out of Rochester is here doing a study on trying to predict who is more susceptible to Altitude Illness. I hadn’t signed up to participate in the study, but Eli did. You can read all about it in this week’s Antarctic Sun and they do an excellent job explaining all about Altitude Illness.

Now before everyone yells at me for not taking the Diamox you should know that Diamox isn’t a miracle pill that prevents Altitude Illness. It has been proven to help in the transition, but it’s not foolproof. Eli took her full prescribed dose of Diamox and still got very sick. The symptoms worsen extremely fast. Everything escalated very quickly within 12-24 hours before making it to Medical.

They decided to medi-evac both of us out and that was quite the site! (I'm the one in the green coat & red hat.) I was feeling better and am not used to this level of attention, was quite embarrassed, and couldn’t figure out what all the fuss was about. Really, I felt fine! They flew in a flight nurse and a paramedic from McMurdo who had never been to the Pole and were very excited! (glad I could help them see the Pole) They were taking pictures of the Pole and us. They had outfitted the LC-130 with military stretchers, packed tons of emergency gear on board, and cleared half the plane for us to be comfortable in. The other half of the plane was Winter-over passengers returning to NZ, thank goodness Eli and I knew most of them. The doc and PA at the Pole were also taking pictures of the medi-evac situation, I’m guessing for training purposes. I felt as if the paparazzi were after me. We were both ambulatory and walked to the plane although they made us keep our O2 masks on for the entire trip.

We checked in at Medical and given a full evaluation. They kept Eli for another night for observation and sent me to the dorms with strict instructions to only be up for meals and bathroom otherwise bed rest and daily check-ups until they give us the ok to work again.

Galley Work

2006-11-08T21:54:00.000+13:00

Nov 3, 2006
Friday
Day 3

I’ve been working my shift in the galley for 2 days now and it is really fun! Don’t get me wrong, the work is very hard, especially since we are all still adjusting to the altitude. I’m stiff, achy, and am usually fighting a headache at the end of my shift. I’m also so tired that I dread gearing up and walking back to the J-ways. I work an 8am-6pm shift as a prep cook. I prepare all the food for the AM Sous Chef and the PM Sous Chef. Normally how a typical kitchen is structured is there is only one Chef. Chef means chief in French. Under him is the Sous Chefs who are in charge for everything prepared during their shift. The Chef is usually busy placing product orders, doing paperwork, doing admin stuff, as well as sticking his head in the kitchen and cooking. Then you have production cooks and prep cooks who execute many of the tasks to be done.

I’m very fortunate in that my shift spans the AM and PM shifts, gets a taste of all of the meals of the day, and I get to work with all of the people from all of the shifts. We have an excellent crew and really work as a team in getting everything completed for the 200 or so people who are at every meal. Most of us in the galley have been with each other since training in Denver and have really bonded. I think any crew in any discipline is most successful when their personalities complement each other and they have big hearts that wish to see everyone on the team achieve their best. It really feels that we have that with this group.

The food here is excellent if I do say so myself! The Chef gives us creative latitude in all that we cook. We follow a general menu plan, but are able to create our own soups and pasta salads and add in any details we feel necessary. At McMurdo when I was helping in the galley, I was given a box of cauliflower and told to make a cold salad from it, however I wanted. I made a salad similar to my mom’s. Some of the other cooks tasted it and said in their North Carolina drawl “That your momma’s recipe? Is your momma single? I’d like to marry her.”

There is only one small walk-in freezer directly attached to the kitchen. The rest of the frozen goods are kept outside on a type of patio. Again, there is a huge freezer door leading outside, but this time, your freezer has no walls and is the entire outside. The galley is on the second floor so all goods are hoisted up to the patio by pulleys on palates. I’ve had to make many trips to this outside freezer and most of us don’t take the time to put on our coats, we just do what we need to do quickly. The only mistake, which I will never make twice, is to grab the metal, outside freezer door handle with my bare hands.

The AM Sous Chef hasn’t been adjusting well to the altitude and so the outgoing Sous Chef from the Winter crew has told me that we are to take over her duties until she is better. She instructed me to start planning out and be ready to execute the soups and salads for the coming week. I’m very excited as there is definitely a sense of pride when your creations are on the line to be served.

Pee Cans

2006-11-08T21:48:00.000+13:00

Nov 2, 2006
-40C, -40F
(Wind chill -75F)
Day 2 at Pole

The main station has only recently been built and is located about 300 yards away from the J-ways. I made my way there yesterday and started exploring. Since I’m still adjusting to the decrease in oxygen and to wearing all the ECW gear (in McMurdo it was warm enough to only wear some of it), the walk is exhausting and seems to take me about 30 minutes. I’m surprised to see this side of the main station covered in particle board. I guess down here you don’t have to worry about aesthetics or your neighbors complaining about your lack of siding.

The station is built high off the ground so you need to climb a large flight of stairs to get in. The main door is a giant walk-in freezer door, but this time the freezer is on the outside. Once in, it reminds me of a space station on Star Trek. Everything is metal (although sometimes colorful), the doors have round porthole windows in them, and everyone walks around in heavy boots that clang on the floor. The station is 2 floors with a central, very wide, hallway on each floor. The station is sectioned into what they call “pods” which to me is just one long hallway as I can’t tell when I’m moving from one pod to the other.

They’ve just completed work on a state-of-the-art workout room overlooking the gym. There is also a large game room with pool and ping-pong and every board game imaginable, 2 large lounges with giant TV screens and many, very new and plush couches. They have a giant selection of DVD & VHS movies. There is a small, indoor, hydroponics greenhouse which was currently growing cucumbers, lettuce, and tomatoes. The greenhouse has a small couch so you can sit and relax. There is a quiet reading room with recliners and many books and magazines. The small post office and store are located on the first floor and are only open 1 hour a day. The main station also houses the computer lab and several research laboratories for the beakers (science guys) and administration offices. Off some of the pods are several berthing units in which everyone gets their own room. The rooms aren’t much bigger than the J-way rooms, but are definitely more comfortable just by location alone. I believe the main station houses approximately 100 people, mostly admin personal, seasoned veterans, dignitaries, and Winter-overs.

The galley is the best place in the station. I don’t say that just because I work there, but the view is amazing! There are many windows in the dinning area that look out directly on the South Pole marker and out at the horizon. The skiway is just off to the left so you can also watch the LC-130’s land. Beyond that, it is all horizon, snow and ice as far as the eye can see. The kitchen is an open kitchen style that lets you interact with everyone walking down the line.

Many large, clean, empty food cans are stacked up outside along the galley wall. This is the first place you’re taken once you come in from the J-ways. They are placed here for people to take with them to their J-ways as a pee can. When you wake up at 3 am and have to use the bathroom, who feels like putting on 20 lbs of gear, walking through a few snow drifts in blinding sunlight while doing the pee dance just to make to the bathroom? (They really frown on peeing outside here, besides; it’s so cold you’ll freeze your whoo hoo off before you finish peeing.) Once you’ve made the trip to the BR, you can’t fall back to sleep as the sunlight makes your body think it’s early afternoon.

I quickly learn there is an art to selecting the perfect pee can and once one is found, it is a hot commodity. I also quickly learn that the topic of pee cans will dominate most conversations in the next 48 hours, so hence; I get to boringly relate it to you as I know you’re very interested. (Hey, if I have to deal with it, so do you.) The metal food cans are always abundant, but not popular as all your neighbors can easily hear you. The ideal pee can is one that is plastic with a lid and a handle. As I’ve said, it’s very dark in the J-ways and lids are good for that reason. For girls, the pee can should have a wide opening as we are not as talented as the boys in aiming.

Working in the galley I’m at a prime shopping place for pee cans. We get a handful of mostly men each day searching for the right vesicle. They ask us to transfer salsa or olives to another container so they can use that one. I imagine those heavy equipment operators outside all day don’t have many options of places to stop. I’ve scrubbed out my share of containers slighted for the ill fate of bathroom buddy. During the subject of pee cans, one is certain to bring up that you are to never put your pee can on the floor of the J-way. The J-way floor is cold and by morning, all contents will be frozen. I tested the concept with water, and they were right.

Personally, I hate the idea of the pee can. I don’t know why. I guess bedpans and urinals have been used for centuries (probably since beds were invented) and were even the mark of the wealthy who didn’t have to get out of bed, but instead had servants to empty their containers. I just don’t like it for myself. Just the thought of squatting in my room is, well, gross and I just don’t want to do it. I once again devise a system to avoid the pee can. I hydrate all day but stop in the early evening. I still don’t take any Diamox. It works and I make it through the night although usually doing a very fast pee dance all the way to the BR in the morning. (Even though I hate the idea, I did secure my own pee can in case of emergencies.)

It’s the little things your miss from home. A warm BR is one of them and not having to walk in -80F wind chill and through snow drifts to get to one. And it’s only day 2. It's very amazing, when things are broken down to the most basic (shelter, food, work), life still finds a way to make drama, issues, and lengthy conversation out of the simple and mundane (e.g., pee cans).

South Pole!!

2006-11-08T21:42:00.000+13:00

South Pole, Antarctica
Nov 1, 2006
-45C, -49F
(Wind chill -80F)
Day 1

I woke up at 5am this morning to prepare for the flight on the LC-130 operated by the US Air National Guard out of New York. The night before, you, your luggage, ECW, and hand carry bag were weighed and your luggage is checked in. You have to be smart in packing your hand carry because if the flight boomerangs (returns to original departure point b/c of weather), you may not see your luggage. I’ve known people to live out of their hand carry for a week or more until they get another flight.

There is a big group of us on this flight. Most of us have been traveling together since training in Denver and have become very good friends. For most of us, it is our first time to the South Pole. We are all very eager to leave McMurdo and start doing what we were hired to do and we are all very excited to experience the South Pole! We are driven in shuttle busses down to the ice runway, given sack lunches, and loaded onto the LC-130. This flight is very different from the C-17 transport from New Zealand. First, it is much smaller and there is only seating along the outside edge of the plane on nylon webbing slings. Our hand carry bags are strapped in down the center of the plane.

Take off is uneventful, although we are very crowded. You can see supplies and our luggage packed on palates in the back of the plane. Once leveled off, you can take off some of your ECW, walk around and watch through the windows as we travel over the Transantarctic Mountain range. By this time they’ve debriefed us many times on Altitude Sickness and given everyone Diamox which is supposed to help in the transition to altitude. You take one the night before you fly and then two twice a day for three days. One of the side effects is that it makes you pee all the time. You are also cautioned to constantly drink water. Everyone has a large water bottle strapped to their side as standard gear issue.

On the herc, the bathrooms are interesting, to say the least. Once we leveled off, one of the crew situates a thin, army green shower curtain coving a 2x2 ft square area in the front and says that one is for boys. In the back, another shower curtain is fixed coving a little larger area, about 4x2 and says that one is for girls. The boys’ bathroom is essentially peeing down a tube into a large container. For the girls, they are at least thoughtful enough to include a funnel at the top of the tube. Now, I’ve heard stories of this BR situation in advance and decided to avoid it at all costs. I hydrate excessively the day before, skip taking the Diamox, and don’t drink any liquids the morning of the flight. It worked! I never once had to pee down the funnel during the 3 hour flight!

The landing feels like any other landing except as we taxi to the drop-off point, the back of the plane opens up like a giant mouth and spits out all our bags and supplies. We all put our gear back on, grab our hand carry, and are ushered out the plane. They don’t turn off the engines at the Pole for fear of everything freezing over. As you walk off the plane, someone is there making certain you don’t take a wrong turn into the spinning propellers, although they say it will only hurt for a second. The executive chef, James Brown, is there waiting for everyone in the galley crew and gives us all hugs. The people who are Winter-overs (staying the whole year) are stationed in the main building. The summer crew is stationed out in the James-ways, or “Summer Camp”. James walks us out to Summer Camp. Even though your entire face and body are covered with the ECW, the wind and cold slap you in the face and take your breathe away.

I’ve heard stories about the J-ways but nothing could have prepared me. Every building on Antarctica thus far has been situated 3-5 feet or more off the frozen ground and ice. I imagine protecting it against absorbing the cold off the ice and also so it can be adjusted as the ice and ground move underneath. The J-ways are laid directly on cement slabs directly on the ice. The J-ways are military canvas Quonset huts about 40 feet long and 20 feet wide. I’m in J3, #2. Each J-way has a small 3x3 entry made out of plywood which is painted black. When I came out of the bright sun and into the entry, it felt I was in a cheap, old carnival funhouse. I was blinded by the darkness and expected to see carneys jump out who hadn’t showered in a few weeks. There J-ways are clearly from an era long past when the military had more of a presence here. They expanded them to be civilian housing when the South Pole population began to swell. It’s my understanding they are unoccupied during the winter. Once inside there is a main corridor running the length of the Quonset barely wider than shoulder width. My “room” is the first on the right. The door is a heavy wool army blanket and in the complete darkness, it takes me 10 minutes to find a lamp and plug it in. I’m the corner room of the J-way so 2 walls are the un-insulated canvas, one is my blanket/door, and one is a make-shift plywood wall. I have a window, but someone has taken much effort and time to board it up blocking out the 24-hour sunlight. I have a large foot locker that helps as part of the wall. I notice that at least I have a new mattress that is lofted several feet off the floor to give me more space. This is where I’ll be living for the next 4 months. It’s amazing to think that only one layer of army canvas separates my bed from -80F wind chill. I’m very scared to look under my bed as I believe there are disgusting remnants under there from the last 30 people who have stayed here. My accommodations here make the dorms at McMurdo look like the Four Seasons. Nonetheless, this is part of the adventure I signed up for, right?

The community bathrooms for the 15 J-ways is right in the center, or about 30 feet from my back door. There are small laundry facilities, and an outdoor, unheated supply closet (I wondered how those vacuums can function while in the cold all the time), and a closet that opens to the outside that only has a blanket for a door. As the snow drifts into this little closet, I’m told that’s where we can pick up our luggage in a few hours. Aside from the wind, ice, snow, and subzero temperatures I could be staying at the Epping Bible camp. It really has that sort of feel to it.

Next to the bathrooms another 20 feet away is the J-way lounge. My friend Michelle and I go exploring and find that this converted J-way smells and looks worse than any fraternity house I’ve ever been in. There is a couch covered with snow outside. The couches and furniture inside aren’t much better, but there is a stereo and a TV/VCR for movies. Exploring further, we find another make-shift plywood building that houses some weight lifting equipment and treadmills. Later, some of the guys cleaned up the lounge and I realize its adventurous potential as a fun place to hang out.

I am told that in the history of man kind, less than 10,000 people have ever set foot at the South Pole. I feel very privileged to be one of them.

McMurdo Science

2006-10-31T08:42:00.000+13:00

On Sunday they had an open tour of the Crary Science Lab. I spoke to elementary teachers who are here from Germany, New Zealand, and US about their involvement with the Andrill project and their goals of bringing their experience and education back to their students. (www.andrill.org/iceberg) I then found out about the monitoring of the active volcano Mt. Erebus and saw several videos of its mini explosions. In the marine lab, I watched divers coming in from a dive after collecting several different species of mollusks & invertebrates. One researcher is studying a species of fish that is also found off the coast of New Zealand. The fish are different in Antarctica as it has adapted to have a type of anti-freeze in its system.

All of this science geeky stuff was enough to distract me from the realities of getting to the Pole. They keep giving us warnings about the altitude and how funky and off we will feel once we get there. First, because of the density of the air, the very low 2-3% humidity, the faster rotation of the earth at that point, and the elevation, it will physically feel as if you're at an elevation of 11,000 ft. They warn us of how tired we will be, gasping for breath and needing take several rests while walking off the plane. There are researchers here from Mayo Clinic studying elevation sickness and several of us have signed up to participate. Besides being very tired and wanting to sleep all the time, the cold is significantly different than at balmy McMurdo as the -90F wind chill hits you hard in the face as you deplane. On top of adapting to all of this, I'm nervous about also being thrown into our 10 hour days (60+ hour work weeks) the day after we land. We are currently scheduled to leave tomorrow evening. To combat elevation sickness, they are constantly pushing us to drink copious amounts of water and eat plenty of carbs once we get there. The tricky part is not to load up on too much water before the LC-30 plane ride as all they have for a bathroom is a little curtain and a small bucket with a funnel and hose. I'm very eager to get acclimated and into a routine.

Mortality

2006-10-29T11:31:00.000+13:00

McMurdo Station
(8F, -26F wind chill)

Yesterday I took the day off from the kitchen and was able to watch the World Series live and take a long nap. It felt like I was at home. Leah, Michelle, Francie, and I then hiked up to Observation Hill (Ob Hill). To me it felt more like a small mountain as it was very steep, rocky terrain and quite a challenge in large, clumsy bunny boots. The effort was well worth it as the scenery was magnificent! There was an amazing view of the active volcano, Mt. Erebus, as it billowed out smoke. It was so beautifully quiet and serene!!! It was amazing to think that I will never be at that same spot again in my life and how few people have ever been there. I will never hike up that hill again and stand there overlooking the amazing Antarctic mountain range. Standing there in the quiet, on the top of the bottom of the world, really puts perspective on our mortality on Earth and how we are only here for such a brief moment in time. It makes you think. How am I going to leave this place better? How am I going to be remembered? Right now I'll be remembered as the crazy girl who went to cook at the bottom of the world - which is fine by me.

It definitely feels like college life here at McMurdo. I don't say that with much fondness as I feel a little old and grown out of those days. Because of the college-like feel, I find I'm isolating myself and seeking out as much solitude as possible. Last night there was a huge Halloween party. Since most people don't work on Sunday's, there were several pre-parties in the rooms. It sounded like a lot of fun, but my heart wasn't in it. My roommate and I took advantage of the empty lounges and made popcorn and watched a DVD. Along with most colleges, there tends to be several cliques and groups. The general support staff seem more separated from the science guys (Beakers). I'm eager to get to the Pole where the population is smaller and it seems everything will be more community-like and cohesive. On the flip side, the college life at McMurdo also brings good things that I won't get at Pole, like live TV, longer & frequent showers, more laundry, private bathroom, & more opportunity for solitude.

Antarctica has a weekly newspaper publication which is very informative about life on the Ice at all three research stations: Pole, McMurdo, & Palmer. This week they talk about the ozone hole as well as how the delay in getting people to the Pole is affecting McMurdo. The population here is now at 1125 and the station is only designed to support 1100. Check it out at http://antarcticsun.usap.gov/. They also talk review a new book out about the 50 year history of science and exploration on The Ice.

I had lunch with the Deputy Director in Charge of Antarctic Operations for the National Science Foundation. He came to Antarctica 20 years ago as a general assistant (the guys who do general carpentry work) and now is going to the Pole is liaison with the Beakers and see what all the NSF money is paying for. This year is the 50 year anniversary of the first flight to the South Pole which took place on Oct 31, 1956. They are planning several anniversary celebrations commemorating the event and were trying to coordinate a flight to be at the exact same time as the original flight. The weather is getting warmer at Pole (-51C, -59.8F) (wind chill: -70.1C, -94.3F). Remember it has to be -50C in order for the hercs to land there. If the weather holds, I'm scheduled to leave on Tuesday. For the latest up-to-the-minute weather at the Pole go to: http://www.southpole.usap.gov/.

Neighbors

2006-10-27T15:20:00.000+13:00

Scott base is the Kiwi (New Zealand) research facilities located just 1.5 miles from McMurdo. We can hike there anytime we want, but aren't supposed to be in their facilities unless invited. Every Thursday is American night when they invite everyone from McMurdo over to hang out at their bar. So last night many of us took the shuttle over to visit the neighbors. With only 150 Kiwis living there during their summer season, we came close to doubling their population. It was a fun evening as I met several more people from McMurdo and Poleys that I hadn't run into, yet. I was also able to get rid of some of my Kiwi money buying the NZ beer Tui.

I met Megan who is here from U of Nebraska filming the Andrill project for education in elementary schools. She showed part of her footage and it was amazing! She had interviewed kids from a New York City elementary school regarding how they would overcome the obstacles of the Adrill project. They had just pulled their first core and she also showed us footage of that. I like keeping educated on the science that is going on here as it keeps me focused on what I'm supporting by working here. If you're curious about the Andrill project and the amazing technology and multi-country efforts check out http://www.andrill.org/. You can also find more information on the school kids’ project.

My friends at the bar said that I needed to drink more because I was talking science and wanted to leave the bar to see the geeky science lecture. I had to do a double take because it sounded like my sister was talking to me.

ClubMed

2006-10-25T21:40:00.000+13:00

I'm still at the McMurdo research station. The scheduled flights to the South Pole were cancelled again today as the weather still isn't cooperating. (-57.6C, -71.7F) (wind chill: -75.8C, -104.4F) They've set a limit of -50C for the flights to land and I'm on the 4th flight out.

The first 48 hours here at McMurdo were really long for me. It felt as if I had been here for weeks. Now that I've had some time to recover, I finally felt 100% today and I took advantage of it. It now feels as if I've relocated to a retirement community. I was booked solid with activities. After helping out in the kitchen for a few hours and attending a sanitation lecture, several of us went for a short hike, then I went to yoga, and finally attended a science lecture on the guys who study the B15 iceberg that was in the news last year. At McMurdo (aka Mac Town) there are so many activities and facilities that besides putting on 30lbs of gear to take a hike, you wouldn't notice anything different from any other small town in the US. They have several bars, a bowling alley, craft shop, ceramic hut, workout gyms and aerobic facilities, and cross country skiing.

The Poleys (people going to the South Pole) are putting a strain on Mac Town's resources. There are an extra 200 people or so hanging out here waiting to get out. People are having to sleep 6 to a room and the people working here seemed annoyed that we are taking up there space. I'm fortunate that I'm rooming with only one other fellow Poley.

We are encouraged to work in our areas while we are waiting. After all, they aren't paying us to go to yoga. I helped out in the kitchen today and it was great to get my feet wet. I haven't been in a production kitchen for a long time so my confidence was lacking. Today it was restored a little bit as everything starting coming back to me. Most of us Poleys are trying to eat as much fresheys (fresh fruit & veg) as possible because they become very rare as the season progresses. I'm constantly eating salads, bananas, and drinking fresh milk. We'll only have powdered milk at the Pole.

I'll try to post pictures soon.

Cheers, Steph

Beginnings

2006-10-25T21:26:00.000+13:00

Transport plane taking off on the ice runway at McMurdo.

View of McMurdo. Scott's Hut is in the foreground.

The following are a few emails I sent out prior to starting this blog. For those who hadn't recieved them, I wanted to copy them here to update everyone with my adventure so far.

Oct 23, 2006 Monday
Friends & Family!!!
I'm in Antarctica! Can you believe?!! This is totally crazy!
We were debriefed and screened and loaded onto the USAF C-17 cargo plane starting at 6am this morning from the Antarctic Center in NZ. I have some really great pictures! After a very long 6 hour flight, we arrived at McMurdo around 3pm only to go to another briefing. My first impression of The Ice after stepping off the plane was how it looked so similar to any number of ice fishing spots in NoDak. Another guy from NoDak said the same thing and it was hard not to look around for the tip-ups (ice fishing poles).
It was a warm 5F above when we landed, but I've had a crude awakening since then. Trying to lug around 75lbs of luggage with huge layers of ECW gear up a steep hill against a very cold wind was really exhausting!
The word is we will be here in McMurdo for a few days. There weather hasn't been cooperating at the Pole and no planes have gotten in or out yet this Spring. I can imagine how those Winter-over people at the Pole who are eager to get home must feel.
It has to warm up to -50C (-58F) in order for the plane to land (yes, that's warming up to NEGATIVE 58F). The LC-30 has landed in much colder conditions, but with the crosswinds and air density, this is the limit they've set. Right now it is -59.9C (-75.1F) with a wind chill of -77.7C (-107.9F)! They are behind schedule getting planes and supplies to the Pole. There are 3 planes to go before mine is scheduled to leave. We are supposed to go on Thur, Oct 26, but my guess is it will be later than that. I heard talk tonight that they've scheduled a smaller plane to try and get in there tomorrow with a small amount of supplies and people. The talk was because of the conditions they are going to have to fly so high that the passengers will need oxygen.
It's beautiful landscape with these ugly, old military buildings plopped in the middle. McMurdo looks like an old mining town. We will keep busy while here helping out for a few hours in the kitchen, get caught up on HR paperwork, and go hiking. It's like camp or college. I'm lucky that I'm housed in a dorm right across the way from the main building where all the computers, offices, and galley is located. It's so close that I don't have to gear all up to get there, I only need the ECW jacket.
I found out that the kitchen staff at Pole gets a shower every other day instead of twice a week! I also found out that a "2-minute shower" means simply no continuous running water for 2 minutes but you can take as long as you want. They just want you to start and stop your shower as you soap up.
I'm going to try and get a blog to post pictures and so you all don't have to read these long emails. Until that happens, go to http://www.usap.gov/ and click on South Pole Station web cam for the latest weather conditions.
Cheers!
Steph

Oct 21, 2006 Saturday
Friends & Family,
It's 11:28am, Sat Oct 21 which makes it about 4:30pm on Friday in Chicago & NoDak.
I landed in Christchurch about an hour ago and am getting settled. All the people are wonderful! I am going to have an amazing group to work with in the galley. There are many more women than I thought. Most of us in this group are all first-timers and are at the Pole. It's very comforting to finally talk to others who have been and are going through the same mental and emotional stuff as I am just to come here! It's wonderful to meet so many people from all over the US and we all have very interesting stories on how we got here. I'm also excited that I'm at the Pole as it's definitely the more interesting and exciting place to be (compared to McMurdo.)
We go and get issued our ECW (extreme cold weather) gear tomorrow and then try to fly to McMurdo Station on Monday, Oct 23. (I say try as it all depends on the weather.)
Just wanted to let everyone know I was safe and very tired.
Cheers!
Steph