28 September--Flying Again. No, really!

We got to the Clothing Distribution Center in Christchurch very early and took off at 0800, still flying in the Airbus but with the C-17 following  few hours later.  That means out bags will be down shortly after we get there, a good thing.  The flight over the open water is not so interesting as when we finally get over the pack ice.  There are a few breaks in the clouds but when we get to the TransAntarctic Range things open up nicely, again.  So far, so good!  In over McMurdo Sound and there are views of Mount Erebus, the most southerly active volcano in the world.  The landing on the runway is as smooth as any tarmac, a testament to all the work that the crews do.  One of the first sights is Ivan the Terra Bus, one of only 10 or 11 such vehicles.  All the others are apparently up in Canada, some at Hudson's Bay doing the polar bear watching trips.  Th front door is said to be espcially armored against polar bears trying to get in.  I'll eventually get to drive it.  The drive into town is like 12 or 18 miles at 25 miles per hour tops.

McMurdo is not an attractive place.  Some people liken it to a mining camp.  It's pretty raw, built on a volcanic island.  When the snow melts later in the season, the wind whips up the dust and it gets difficult on the eyes.  Contacts not advised here!  The buildings are a jumble of styles, mostly just utilitarian industrial, built for staying warm and resistant to the wind.  There has been a time when the winds hit something like 150 knots here with gusts to 175.  A hurricane would be anything over 75 (or is that in miles?).

There's a welcome briefing in the galley of Building 155, which is also where I'll be berthed.  Lots of returnees and they're all much larger than life, welcoming each other back from theire travels.  Listening to the places they've been in the off-season is pretty amazing.  I'm guessing that there is no place they really call home.  Some joke that home is where the storage unit is.  It's all sort of reminiscent of the old river guide scene.

My home is a pretty dark room with no window and space for 4.  There are 2 beds and 1 bunkbed, a couch and a chair.  Frankly it makes a dorm room at college look pretty darn good.  I suspect that it's someplace to sleep and not a place to hang out.

First impressions on food are that it's plentiful and that they do an extraordinary job without having fresh food much of the time.  Rumor has it that there will be "freshies" coming in a few day.  The overwinterers are supposed to be almost desperate after 5 months of canned or frozen vegetable and no salads, though they apparently grow sprouts.  There may be some limitation there due to the Antarctic Treaty and Antarctic Conservtion Act about introduced species, but I may have that confused.

Computers are in short supply and because of narrow bandwidth, they move very slowly.  There are only 17 lines out to call off the Ice and competition at times can be fierce.  No calls can come in.  No Skyping is allowed due to IT security issues.  I'm thinking that this is going to be a little harder than I had imagined.  But then again, the erly explorers were probably out of touch almost completely for several years at a time, making this look pretty petty.

Decked out in full ECW gear in preparation of landing.

Deplaning!!