A Small Island in the South Pacific

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I thought that all of the boats had left for the season, but then, on my way to lunch, I looked out in the frozen channel, past all of the slumbering seals, and I saw another large icebreaker. It was a Russian ship, but it was not the Krasin, which had been gone since the supply vessel left. This ship was here on an entirely different mission than the previous three icebreakers - it was a tourist cruise ship! Leaving the lunchroom, I was greeted by a hallway full of tourists wearing large yellow coats with the name ‘Quark Expeditions’ embroidered above the front left pocket. When I stepped outside, I asked two of them, a British couple, what the name of the ship was. They replied, “It is the Kapitan Khlebnikov” and proceeded to ask me for directions to Scott’s hut. After pointing the couple in the right direction, I walked out to a small hill near the frozen ocean and took in the scene: The boat was lodged into thick ice and a pair of small helicopters were busy collecting people off of the boat and dropping them at the heliport in town. There was a large group of yellow-coated people at the entrance of Scott’s Discovery hut and a few more on the hill next to Vince’s Cross. In the sky, the helicopters were cruising up and down the coast and back and forth between the ship and the town. All of this activity made me realize, for the first time, that I am working in a place that has all the makings of a tourist town - a large coast line, lots of sun, interesting wildlife, a shop full of Antarctic t-shirts and now, tourists. In fact, I realized that I am technically on an island in the South Pacific and, yes, there is a volcano! Of course, I realize that there are no sandy beaches or tropical vegetation and the longest swim you want to do is about five seconds, but there is still a lot worth seeing in the area and the diving is supposed to be amazing. Seeing the boat full of tourists reminded me of a time about four years ago when I was planning my journey around the world. I had figured out a long list of things I wanted to see and places I wanted to go and I had run into a snag with the Antarctic portion of my trip - I could only find a few ways to get here. One way was to pay for a plane ride from South America, which would have cost me around $25,000 plus all of my expenses while here. The other method I found was on a cruise ship, which would have cost me as little as $5000. The expedition I liked the best, however, was the one with Quark Expeditions, because it would go to places that are rarely visited and are extremely remote. The problem I had was that the cost of the expedition was, at the time, around $25,000 per person, which was quite a bit more than I had saved for my entire trip. This minor setback sent me down a path that eventually led me to my current job with the U.S. Antarctic program. Now I am at McMurdo Station, one of the destinations of the expedition I wanted most to go on, and I am being paid to be here! Sure, I will not see some of the amazing sights that I would see if I was on the boat, but I will get a chance to experience the Antarctic winter, in all of it’s ferocity, which has only been experienced by a few thousand people to this day. I will have the opportunity to see the aurora australis, the southern hemisphere’s version of the aurora borealis, dancing across the star filled sky. I will, with luck, experience storms of epic proportions, with hurricane force winds and wind chills of less than -100 degrees Fahrenheit. I will also get to see the coming of the sun after many dark months without seeing it or feeling it’s warmth. I am glad that things worked out how they did; besides I will always be able to take the boat ride.

I made plans with a few friends to go on a hike to Castle Rock, which is one of the longer and more interesting hikes you can do here, on Sunday. I woke up Sunday morning to strong winds and very cold wind-chills. Since I was fighting a cold and nobody else was willing to do the hike in these conditions, I decided to do a tour of the Discovery Hut instead. A few of my friends and I bundled up, got the keys to the hut and began our trek to there. The wind was blowing very hard with a wind chill of around -35 as we made our way to the hut. Before we went in, we decided to climb the hill up to Vince’s Cross to see if there were any seals in the hole they had been keeping open in the sea ice. By the cross, the wind was howling and it was difficult to stand, but we braced ourselves and leaned against the wind, nearly falling over with a few of the gusts. Down at the seal hole there was a seal swimming around the edge, keeping the ice from forming by gnawing on the edge of the ice with its teeth. After a few enjoyable minutes on the hill, taking on the full force of the wind, we retreated to the hut and went inside. The hut is filled with artifacts, including food and supplies, leftover from Scott’s many expeditions. Great explorers like Scott and Shakelton have stayed in this hut, so I am honored, and a bit awed to be under the same roof that gave them shelter so long ago. There is mutton and seal meat still stored awaiting the next expedition to arrive. There are crates of supplies, some labeled with expedition dates others labeled as dog biscuits or chocolate. All of the items in the hut have been catalogued and preserved as best as they can be and the Antarctic Treaty protects the hut and everything in it. There is a strange, musty smell in the hut - possibly remnants of the hut’s former heating method of burning seal blubber, hinting at what it would have smelled like one-hundred years ago. I absolutely enjoyed the time I spent in the hut and I left wishing that I had been able to experience an expedition of the caliber of the ones that passed through this hut in it’s earlier years - I guess I was born a century and a half too late. On the way out the door, we each signed our names into the register on a table by the door - above our names were the names of people from South Africa, England, Germany, France, Australia and New Zealand; all people off of the tourist ship.

The wind was blowing strong for the next three days and I ventured out to the hill by the cross each day to enjoy the elements. On my third trip out there, with a temperature of -5 degrees F and a wind chill of -45, the wind was blowing and, as I watched three seals swim and play in the hole, I noticed a crack at the base of Vince’s Cross. The next day I brought the crack to the attention of station management, so, hopefully, I have done my part to help save the monuments that I have grown to love, from a time that I wish I could have lived. Incidentally, I now have a few people wondering why I like to take walks when it is so cold, but I was completely warm during all of my walks and the extreme conditions make me feel alive - Don’t worry Mom, I am following all of the rules like I promised I would. Tomorrow, the last flight will leave McMurdo Station, not to return until late August, and the winter season will officially begin.

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Photos

The Kapitan Khlebnikov
This is the cruise ship from Quark Expeditions.

Inside Discovery Hut
This hut has sheltered great explorers like Scott and Shakelton and is now one of the many historic sites on Ross Island.

The Kitchen
This is the kitchen area of Discovery Hut. Many seals and penguins have been cooked and eaten in here.

Me In Discovery Hut
Here is a picture of me just to prove I was here and to show everyone at home my new beard.

Yummy! It's Mutton
Here is some very aged meat still ready for the next expedition (Yummy!)

The Storm
This is the view from Vince's cross with Discovery Hut in the forground and McMurdo Station in the background. This was taken during a small storm with strong winds.

Seals in the Seal Hole
Here is a picture of two seals working to keep the hole in the ice open during strong winds.

The Crack in the Cross
Here is a close up of the crack I found in Vince's Cross. Hopefully it will get fixed.

Cool Ice Formations
This is just a cool picture I took on a walk I did. It has nothing to do with the story.

Don't look at the Sun!
Here is another picture that has nothing to do with the story, but I like it anyway.

The Famous Chain Whale
This was a large whale sculpture that was built by some very ambitious, or very bored, people. In this picture the whale is eating Mt. Discovery.

Comments

[anonymous]

Beard...
Um... wow. My little brother with a beard! Not shaving can be very liberating, eh? I do hope you are having a good time. When the darkness kicks into full gear, I expect you to be watching the skies... I want "pizza" stories!!! - Dr. Bingham Neddlemictius

[anonymous]

"Epic Proportions"
Son, If you want so badly to experience an Antarctic storm, I'm sure you will. However, I'm afraid I'll be praying for something a little less than "Epic". Have a nice day! Love, Mom - Kathy Leipman