~ Thomas “Tree” DaCosse, Antarctic Fire Department, Summer ´09 -´10

While my trip to Antarctica was by no means disappointing, the above quote sums up how things aren’t always what they seem, how you often need to make due [...]]]> Antarctic Perfect: “All kinds of disappointment wrapped in a package that looks like something you’d want.”

~ Thomas “Tree” DaCosse, Antarctic Fire Department, Summer ´09 -´10

While my trip to Antarctica was by no means disappointing, the above quote sums up how things aren’t always what they seem, how you often need to make due with what you have, and how humor can make a harsh environment more bearable.

As I review photos of my time at McMurdo Station, I realize how deeply I miss it. I’m happy to be home with family and friends of course, but there is something about that far away place that I’ll never forget. The following photos still give me a chuckle.

Due to the extreme cold, all the water and other utilities are run in utility chases with heat trace to keep them from freezing. Fire hydrants are enclosed and stuffed with insulation and equipped with drains to prevent them from becoming unusable.

Antarctic fire hydrant.

Not all stop signs in McMurdo have been obscured. (No, there are no traffic lights.)

Antarctic stop sign.

Snoopy and Charlie Brown riding the perpetually blowing wind.

Antarctic wind vane.

Random funnies:

I just shook my head at this and went to bed.

Get 'er done!

Antarctica or Bust. I remember that feeling well.

In one of the supply yards, locations were not indicated by a boring numbering system…

…they were referred to by mustaches.

Things need to be weighed down to prevent them from blowing away.

Antarctic portable toilet. (Note the frowny-face on the concrete block)

The summer sun is very strong in Antarctica. On the rare occasions when the wind isn’t blowing and the sun is not obscured by clouds (Yay – Pink Floyd reference!) it feels downright pleasant. The thermometer pictured below was mounted at the entry of my dorm building. The high temperature was 34°F that day, but this photo was taken prior to 7:00 am so it was probably around 25°F at the time.

Wishful thinking.

The power plant is undergoing an upgrade. And one of the generators crapped out.

Failed generator.

At times it felt like I was on another planet. This little fella reminded me of Star Wars.

Antarctic droid.

I’m not sure how heavy this thing is, but whatever.

"Just stick a rock under the tread."

"There, that'll do it."

Keeping people entertained without hurting or killing themselves was the responsibility of the recreation department. I was only able to find this one Frisbee Golf thingy. Oh well, it’s a harsh continent. At least the scenery is splendid.

Frisbee Golf?

Keeping the infrastructure maintained is the responsibility of FEMC – Facilities Engineering, Maintenance and Construction. Here are some examples of infrastructure stuff.

The simplicity with which the utilities are run to and from the power plant, water plant, and wastewater treatment plant is staggering.

Mama tank and baby tank.

This guy was lying next to the nuclear plant demolition site. The light bulb was not lit, so I assumed it was safe to pass.

Oven upgrade?

One day, while attempting a photo of scenery, I took a bit of a tumble.

I believe this is what I was aiming for:

Skua, my frequent companions.

“May the time not pass so slowly before I set sail again.”

Green and Red of Mayo
The Saw Doctors

Thanks for following along on my travels.

“The sun is down, enjoyed the dream I’m full of hope that you think of me. I [...]]]> After six flights taking me from McMurdo Station to Christchurch, New Zealand; Sydney, Australia; Honolulu, HI; Los Angeles, CA; Chicago, IL; and finally Newark, NJ; I arrived home on Saturday, Feb. 20, 2010.

Thanks for following along on my travels.

“The sun is down, enjoyed the dream
I’m full of hope that you think of me.
I think of you and how much you mattered
when I’m torn, torn and tattered.”

Torn and Tattered
Carbon Leaf

After lots of flying, I’m scheduled to arrive home late Saturday morning, 2/20/10 Eastern time.

I leave Christchurch tomorrow afternoon (2/19 here, 2/18 Eastern) and fly to Sydney, [...]]]> We left McMurdo Station at 4:15pm local time on Thursday, 2/18/10 and arrived in Christchurch, New Zealand at 9:30pm. It was dark and raining with temperatures in the 50s.

After lots of flying, I’m scheduled to arrive home late Saturday morning, 2/20/10 Eastern time.

I leave Christchurch tomorrow afternoon (2/19 here, 2/18 Eastern) and fly to Sydney, Australia; Honolulu, Hawaii; Los Angeles, CA; Chicago, IL; and finally Newark, NJ.

Don’t go saying I’m leaving you thinking I never got close enough to stay. Time runs in, and then runs out starts again and it’s always been that way. You’re gonna drown tomorrow if you cry too many tears for yesterday. Tomorrow’s half of all you’ve got so treat him good, ’cause when I’m gone, he’ll stay.

I [...]]]> Only Him or Me

Townes Van Zandt

Don’t go saying I’m leaving you
thinking I never got close enough to stay.
Time runs in, and then runs out
starts again and it’s always been that way.
You’re gonna drown tomorrow
if you cry too many tears for yesterday.
Tomorrow’s half of all you’ve got
so treat him good, ’cause when I’m gone, he’ll stay.

I won’t be forgetting you.
You won’t be forgetting me, I know.
If memory comes a summer cloud
rains her sweetness down to me below.
I’ll see you like you look right now
maybe wonder why I had to go.
But heaven is the way she is
rain falls and rivers flow.

So here’s to feeling good
and here’s to feeling bad.
Here’s to being thankful
sorry for the pleasures that we had.
And autumn days and window panes
god forgive us if you feel deceived.
But the clock don’t know you like I do
and it’s only him or me you got to believe.

Update: My flight is scheduled to leave McMurdo at 3:30 pm Thursday, 2/18, McMurdo time, which [...]]]> The bags have been dragged. I’m scheduled for the next flight out on a C-17, the big military plane on Thursday afternoon, 2/18/10 (Wednesday evening, 2/17/10 in the States). Kind of hard leaving this place, but it’s time to go.

Update: My flight is scheduled to leave McMurdo at 3:30 pm Thursday, 2/18, McMurdo time, which is 9:30 pm Wednesday, 2/17, Eastern time.

I’m obviously looking forward to seeing my wife and pets, family and friends, but I’m also curious to see other things people see everyday, like night and stars and trees. (Like everyone else in the northeast U.S., I’ll have to wait a little longer for spring, rain, and grass.) I’ll have to remember to pay for stuff like food and coffee and that traffic moves at speeds greater than 15 miles per hour.

I’m looking forward to driving on a highway, walking in the woods, sleeping in my own bed and maybe going to a hockey game where there may be fifteen times the number of people in one building than I’ve been with in McMurdo since October, 2009.

Of course, there is no Frosty Boy at home (it now comes in lime, and for a brief period we had chocolate), and I’ll miss the McMurdo library. Hopefully I’ll continue my habit of reading rather than watching television, although it will be interesting to see a television commercial rather than the military public service type messages we get here.

I’ll greatly miss the scenery here too. I never tire of seeing mountains, sky, snow, ice, and the effects of wind; and penguins, seals, skua, and whales.

“The land looks like a fairytale.” ~ Roald Amundsen (1872-1928)

Update: My flight is scheduled to [...]]]> I’m all done with work here at McMurdo Station. Tomorrow afternoon, I bag drag, the process of checking and weighing bags and gear (and people) in preparation for the flight out. I’m scheduled to leave at a yet to be determined time on Thursday, 2/18/10 (Wednesday, 2/17/10 in the States).

Update: My flight is scheduled to leave McMurdo at 3:30 pm Thursday, 2/18, McMurdo time, which is 9:30 pm Wednesday, 2/17, Eastern time.

Stick around, I’ll still be posting here for a while as I review photos and notes I’ve accumulated over the past several months and as I answer questions folks have been sending me via email.

"Bye."

Not sure what they are looking at.

Suspicious penguin is suspicious.

In this early evening sunlight, [...]]]> Here are a few shots of penguins hanging around near the seawater intake, where McMurdo Station meets the Ross Sea. The lone penguin from the other day is probably in this group.

Not sure what they are looking at.

Suspicious penguin is suspicious.

In this early evening sunlight, you can see the penguins are molting. Some of them look a bit ragged as their new feathers come in and push out the old. But who am I to judge? I look pretty ragged in the early evening sun too.

"Oh hi!"

Disgruntled penguin is disgruntled.

Sizzle-chest.

Walking to Hut Point the other morning, I noticed what appeared to be a crack in the ice pier. At first, I thought maybe it was something Fleet Ops was doing. They were in the process of removing the layer of dirt and gravel that is placed on the pier for traction during vessel operations.

"That looks like a crack."

Turns out, what I saw is a crack in the ice pier.

"That is a crack."

Good thing it didn’t break in two during the cargo vessel offload. That could have been a problem.
Since it can’t be repaired, the ice pier has been freed from its moorings to float to open water. From there I guess it will either break up or sink on its own, or will be broken up or sunk with the help of meddlesome humans. Since being released, it has already floated a couple hundred feet toward Hut Point. You can see where the bridge is on land and where it used to line up on the platform upon the ice pier.

Ice Pier floating away.

About twelve hours later.

There is a good deal of open water to drift to.

…and it sure is windy enough.

A lone Adélie Penguin on the road between my dorm and Winter Quarters Bay.

Cheers!

Discovery Hut, located just to the west of McMurdo Station, was built in February 1902 by the members [...]]]> Antarctica is the only continent on earth where man’s original buildings remain. On February 9, 2010, I was privileged to take several members of the New Zealand Defense Forces (NZDF) on a tour of Captain Scott’s Discovery Hut.

Discovery Hut, located just to the west of McMurdo Station, was built in February 1902 by the members of Captain Robert F. Scott’s Discovery Expedition of 1901-1904. Built of Australian jarrah wood according to a design used to keep cool in the Australian Outback, the hut turned out to be too cold to live in. As a result, the hut was used for storage, emergency shelter and a theater to keep the crew’s morale up. The crew actually lived aboard the Discovery, in Winter Quarters Bay where the current ice pier is located.

Captain Scott's Discovery Hut at Hut Point, Ross Island, Antarctica.

The artifacts inside the hut remain in fairly good condition considering some have been there for a hundred years. The cold, dry air prevents decay. There are also no vermin or other pests to destroy the building or its contents. While Scott and his men failed to reach the South Pole on this journey, Discovery Hut provided as an emergency shelter and a supply depot for later expeditions, including Scott’s Terra Nova Expedition of 1910-1913. While they reached the Pole, they did so a month after Amundsen and his team from Norway. Scott and his men died on the way back. Discovery Hut was used as a base for the search party that located the bodies of Scott, Wilson and Bowers.

Inside Discovery Hut.

Seal blubber.

Scott’s Terra Nova Expedition of 1910-1913 was based at Cape Evans, about 14 miles north of Hut Point. Discovery Hut was used as an advance camp for the southern journeys. After positioning supplies at depots for the late 1911 attempt at the Pole, sixteen men lived in the hut from March 5 to April 21, 1911. In addition to the search parties for those who didn’t return from the Pole, eight men occupied the hut while they erected the Memorial Cross atop Observation Hill, from January 20-21, 1913.

Various supplies, including oil cans.

During the Discovery Expedition, Scott and Dr. Wilson brought Shackleton back to Hut Point after being stricken with scurvy. Shackleton was then sent home as an invalid, creating his rivalry with Scott. Shackleton then organized his own expedition to the South Pole. Shackleton’s Nimrod Expedition of 1907-1909 was based at Cape Royds, about 20 miles to the north of Hut Point, but used Discovery Hut for storage and as an advance camp. Shackleton again used the hut during his and Mackintosh’s Aurora Expedition from 1915-1917. Several men spent five months recovering from scurvy at Discovery Hut. Two of them, Mackintosh and Hayward, attempted to reach Cape Evans, 14 miles to the north, over thin sea ice. A storm blew the ice out to sea and the two were never seen again.

Food on the stove, probably from Shackleton's Aurora Expedition 1915-1917.

Underbriches.

Included in the supplies brought by ship at the beginning of the expeditions was livestock, some of which still remains in the hut.

Delicious Mutton.

These early Antarctic expeditions provided much in the way of scientific discovery. Oceanography, meteorology, biology, geology and other scientific disciplines were studied in addition to attempts at the South Pole.

Bones.

“We must always remember with gratitude and admiration the first sailors who steered their vessels through storms and mists, and increased our knowledge of the lands of ice in the South.” ~ Roald Amundsen. (1872-1928)