Friday 28 November 2008

A Busy Week In Rothera








It's been a busy week.
I'm finally settling in to the work routine now. I have lots to do, and more work rolling in all the time. I'm currently working in a tech services department consisting of one person... me! I'm sparking, plumbing, fixing, digging (constantly!!), repairing and testing (grrrrrr.....!!!). I'm not doing all the work, though. My line manager has rolled up his sleeves and is getting stuck in, doing the nastier jobs while I find my feet around base.
There are a few guys stuck in Punta (I know that feeling!). When they arrive it should help to ease the workload a bit.
See, we do actually work here, it's not all fun and jollies.

However....

Earlier this week I finished my field training. Field training is compulsory for all staff. It ensures that we are confident and competent to live and survive in Antarctica.
The final part covered disciplines such as linked travel (where we are roped together with a partner), fall arrest using an ice-axe, and rescuing the aforementioned partner from an ice crevasse.
It was all was good fun until the crevasse-rescue. I was partnered with Johnny "Splash" (there are a lot of Johns here. He's a diver!), who was supposed to simulate slipping into a crevasse. He was a bit too enthusiastic, though, because, in an incredible display of blind faith he leapt into the abyss like a bungy-jumper!!!
That huge leap took me by surprise, I can tell you! I very nearly ended up in there with him, but thanks to the superb training provided by BAS, and Gabriel in particular, I managed to use my ice-axe to arrest our fall and therefore avoid our appointment with impending doom!
Half-an-hour later I had rescued Johnny Splash from his icy tomb and we were ready for the final part of the training....spending the night in the pyramid tent!

Now, when we started the days instruction the weather was superb, but as the afternoon wore on the weather worsened. The weather can change dramatically and with incredible speed. By the time we had finished all the disciplines and were ready to put up the tents it had turned quite windy....not ideal weather for putting up big tents!!
Everything we do down here is incredibly physical and usually includes digging snow. Pyramid tents are no exception!
With a lot of puffing and sweating (yes, unbelievably, it is not unusual to sweat profusely, even in sub-zero temperatures!) we eventually got our tents erected and kitted out, so we climbed in and started to prepare dinner.
Manfood, as it is called, is not exactly food fit for kings. In fact, some of it can taste quite nasty, but it is calorie-laden, very warming and very filling. Ideal when you are camping out in sub-zero, windy conditions.
Pyramid tents are just perfect for camping in Antarctica. They are rugged, warm and comforting to sleep in, although the noise of the wind keeps you awake for quite a while.

The following morning a couple of feet of snow had fallen and drifted around the tents, so guess what?
Yup!!... We had to dig them out!! For anyone thinking of coming down here, if you don't like digging, don't come!!!

With the tents all packed away we headed back to base, feeling like real intrepid explorers, grinning from ear to ear. We are now officially allowed off the confines of the base, without supervision.
It also means that I can now go out as a co-pilot when the weather improves and the planes start flying again.
My name is on the co-pilots volunteer list, quite near to the top, so hopefully I won't have to wait too long to go on my first flight.

Sunday 23 November 2008

More Wind, More Snow







The wind and snow are continuing relentlessly.
Look at the photo that I posted on Tuesday (18th November, Entitled "Hello (At Last) From Antarctica") of the Gator parked outside my Sparky workshop. Then compare it to the photo taken outside my workshop this morning. Bear in mind that my workshop is quite sheltered and doesnt get the drifting that other areas get.
But we are supposed to be well into summer!
For those of you who may be considering following me down here, this is what you have to contend with every day.
To be fair, this is Antarctica and this weather is what everyone, myself included, expects.
I am not complaining though. I am here because I choose to be here, and I think I would feel a little bit disappointed if there wasn't any snow.

I hear, also, that you are getting a bit of snow back home there in England. I hope you enjoy it while it lasts.

Yesterday I went out ice climbing for the first time. I went with with two of our Field GA's (General Assistants), Gabriel and Paul and my good friend Dr Matt (thoroughly nice bloke). Those of you who have followed this epic adventure from the start will remember Dr Matt (thoroughly nice bloke) from one of my earliest posts.
Paul and Gab chose a great spot to climb that was pretty challenging for novice climbers like myself and Dr Matt (thoroghly nice bloke). It looked like Everest to me but in reality it was probably only about fifty-odd feet high.
Ice climbing is great fun. Although it could be considered a dangerous pastime, BAS provide us with top-class training from the highly-skilled and motivated GA's.
Even when I slipped off the cliff-face (I wasn't very high at the time) and was dangling on the safety-rope, Paul had everything under control and helped me get safely back onto the cliff-face.
We had a couple of hours of great climbing. I had such a sense of achievement when I conquered the cliff for the first time.
I'd like to say a big thanks to Gab and Paul for the best afternoon I've had since I got here. It was even more fun than the skidoo riding.
Incidentally, Gab has been in charge of my personal field training. It's thanks to him that I am now confident and competent enough to be safe here in Antarctica.

This morning I went back to Rothera Point. If you remember, that is where there are memorial plaques remembering our BAS colleagues who have lost their lives here.
I had a few moments in silence remembering a dear friend who recently, and very tragically, passed away.
Jill was an avid and enthusiastic follower of my adventures down here and would always email me after every post. She was living my dream with me, and it was a great shock when I learnt of her passing.
I would like to offer my deepest condolences to her husband, her family and her many friends and colleagues.
Jill was a wonderful, warm and caring person, and I dedicate todays post to her memory.
Jill, I shall miss you very much.

Thursday 20 November 2008

Wind And Snow





We are supposed to be heading into summer here, but it's suddenly turned all wintery.
When I arrived there was bright sunshine and very little wind, but these last few days the wind and snow have been relentless. The wind cuts you to the core and the driving snow stings your skin, if you are silly enough to leave it exposed. Bizarrely, we also have to apply sunblock (factor 30) to our faces because our skin will burn badly within minutes, in spite of the bad weather.

It's getting tedious digging your way out of buildings all the time. Big drifts can build up in less than an hour, so imagine what it's like first thing in the morning!
You start to get used to the blizzards. You have to, really, cos this is where we live, and we can't do anything about it.

I've now been trained to ride a skidoo safely. That was a lot of fun. I can see I'm going to have some great times on those beasties!

I've also met Bubba, our new resident base skua. He is such a character. He came to see me whilst I was working out on the runway. He came right up close, expecting some free nosh. When he realised that I didn't have any food to offer he became quite indignant and shouted at me, whilst strutting and flapping around. I guess I didn't make a good first impression on him.
Bubba was the deputy base skua until the unfortunate demise of George, the head base skua. Both birds have been coming to the base for many seasons, hanging around the kithens for free handouts. Sadly, George didn't return this season, and so we fear the worst, hence Bubba's promotion.
Legend has it that Bubba once ate EIGHT sausages at one time! He certainly has the waistline to back up this reputation!

Here at Rothera we have a memorial area dedicated to those members of BAS who have lost their lives to this cruel wilderness. I went up there for the first time yesterday. Even in the middle of a harsh blow it is a place of serenity and tranquility. You read the names on the plaques and you get a lump in your throat. It is also a stark reminder of how fragile we are on this hostile continent. The environment, though stunningly beautiful, is relentless and unforgiving.

I've only been here for six days, but already I realise what hardships our predecessors had to endure. We have comfortable accommodation, good food and modern technology, but it is still a very tough life down here.
They had none of our luxuries. They were true pioneers and they deserve our full respect for their strength, their fortitude and their resilience. Their achievements should not be underestimated or neglected.

I've got field training tomorrow, when I'll learn all the Antarctic survival skills. Hopefully I'll get to camp out overnight in a pyramid tent, cook on a primus stove and experience Antarctica from the old pioneer's point of view.

Tuesday 18 November 2008

Hello (at last) From Antarctica
































Well, here I am at Rothera.


Firstly, many apologies for not posting sooner. I have been extremely busy with work since I first got off the plane, and also, the internet connection here is extremely slow and a little bit variable. Yesterday, for instance, we had no internet at all for most of the day; then when it came back on line the beakers (scientists) use up all the bandwidth uploading data.

So, you may ask, what's it like here?
Well I'm afraid that words fail me. This barren wilderness is beautiful beyond words. Photographs, no matter how good, could ever convey the reality of what the eye can actually see.

Antarctica is a land of extremes and contradictions.

Everything is whiter than white (obviously!!), and extremely, but not intolerably, cold. We don't get a flutter of snow here, we get snow howling horizontally past the window; in fact, I'm looking out of the window now at a horizontal blow.

Every morning I get up, put on the warm clothes (that's a mission in itself!) and head across to
New Bransfield House, where we eat our meals and socialise.
When I walk out the door of Admirals House (our accomodation block) and look south towards the Bonner Lab my jaw just drops! It is breathtaking!
Also, it doesn't get dark at night...yet!. Very bizzarre!!! Evening starts at about 10 o'clock when the sun dips below the horizon. It stays bright twilight until about 4am when it starts to get light again! As we get nearer to christmas the twilight time will decrease.

The strange thing about 24hr daylight is that you don't seem to feel as tired as you would at home. It's almost as if your brain is saying..."It's still daylight, so you don't need to go to bed."

Summer is well on it's way here. The rock and gravel that Rothera is built on is showing through everywhere as the winter snow and ice thaws. However, most of the buildings here are still buried. We have to cut steps in the snow to get down to the doorways; doorways that usually have steps leading up to them!!!

I saw my first penguin on Sunday. I have named it Pony at Jessica, my daughter's request.
It was an Adelie penguin. He was a very inquisitive little fella, but tended to shout at us a lot. He wandered around the base for a while, then left, still shouting at us.

There are some Weddell seals camping on the ice floes around the north end of the base. We can see them out the window as we eat our meals. They tend to shout a bit, too.

We also had some minke whales in the south bay, but unfortunately I didn't get to see them. Hopefully they'll come back soon. I've been told that we also get visits from killer whales and humpback whales.
I've also been working, too, and pottering around in my little snow-buggy. There was quite a backlog of essential works to attend to, after my extended holiday in Punta Arenas.
Working in these conditions is physically demanding, time consuming, and very tiring. You have to wear bulky clothes, a hat (essential), and you never go outside without sunglasses or goggles, because of the risk of snow blindness.
It's a tough life here, but BAS do their utmost to make us comfortable.
I've got some more training tomorrow, and hopefully, I'll be camping up the mountain at the weekend. That should be a lot of fun. I will, of course, let you know how I get on.
I feel very lucky and extremely privileged to be able to experience this unique continent.

Saturday 15 November 2008

Rothera, Here I Come...Yayyyeeeee!!!

It´s been confirmed. I leave Punta Arenas in about an hour.
It´s been good here, but now it´s time to go.
My next post on this blog will be from Rothera.

"Once more into the breach....." etc, etc. (Thanks for the quote, Will.)

Antarctica beckons.....

Time To Leave...Maybe

I´ve just heard from the Air Unit guys.
If the weather is good I fly to Rothera tomorrow morning.
I´m not getting too excited yet cos the weather round here can change in the blink of an eye.
However, I´m hopefull that tonight will be my last night in Punta Arenas. I´ve enjoyed it here. It´s a nice place, but it´s not where I want to be.

I thought I´d show you my hotel. This is the slum where I´ve been roughing-it this week.
It´s a tough life being an intrepid blogger. You can´t imagine the things I have to go through to bring you a good story....

Right, I´m off to pick my socks up off the floor, just in case the weather does hold out.

Friday 14 November 2008

Still Stuck In Punta

We´ve just had our morning brief...we´re not flying today! Just as well, really, cos I´m nursing the hangover from hell!!!

I have a name for my pain and discomfort... caipiriña ...a brew created by Satan himself!!

But I´m not alone in my misery.

Yesterday saw the arrival of more BAS personell. I hadn´t seen them since the Cambridge Briefing Conference. It was good to see familiar faces again.
They had travelled non-stop from London and all looked a little bit travel-weary.
I am soooo glad that I opted for the overnight stop in Santiago.
Despite their fatigue, they still wanted to go for a drink in the town, and me, being almost native by now, was press-ganged into leading them into trouble.
Using my extensive local knowledge I led them to Santino´s bar, a pleasant little refuge that I had come to know during my extended stay in this little town.

It was there that they were seduced by the Devil´s brew... caipiriña ...!

One drink turned into many.....oh dear!!!

This morning, at breakfast, there were displays of body-language indicating a rather fragile disposition.

Breakfast for most, myself included, was a rather unpleasant affair. So far, I´ve managed to keep mine down, but the longer the day goes on, the less optimistic I feel.

The Air Unit have told us we´re not flying today, so everyone can spend the day how they chose.

Me...I´m off to the pool where there´s a glass of milk and a comfy lounger waiting for me.

Wednesday 12 November 2008

Stuck In Punta

More delays.

The weather at Rothera is not good so I´m stuck here.
It´s a nice little town, but you can only walk up and down the main street so many times....
Food is cheap, especially the seafood; beer is cheap, cocktails are cheap, but they are not ideal ways to relieve boredom.
The pilots (great bunch of guys) are going stir-crazy just sitting around waiting. I hope they´ve calmed down by the time they get to fly again.

Many of you are e-mailing me and/or adding comments to my blogs.
Your interest and comments are very much appreciated.
Thank you, so much. Please keep ém comming.
I´m making new friends down here, but I am missing my old friends back home. I am starting to realise how important it is to keep contact with home, and with people I know and love.

If I do anything interesting today, rest assured you will be the first to know about it...



Tuesday 11 November 2008

AAAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!!!!



I don't believe what I've just done!

I was trying to add some photos to the ''Hello From Santiago'' post, but I ended up deleting it. Don't ask me how. If I knew, I wouldn't've done it.

What a muppet!!!

If you read it, I hope you enjoyed it.

Here's the pics that I was trying to show you

Just Waiting Now...










The wandering luggage turned up safe and sound last night. That´s a relief. It means that I don´t have to make one set of undercrackers last for two years!!
I´ve been playing with my camera this morning, and found a picture of me hugging a tree, taken last night.

This is why...

I met the pilots and air mechs of the BAS Air Unit last night, cos we are all staying at the same hotel. They are a great bunch of people, really down-to-earth guys (hmmm...).

It seemed like a good idea to go for a wee drink with them, to break the ice (oh dear!)...

What a bad idea that was!!!

We went into Punta, to their favourite bar. They´ve been flying out of Punta for a few years now, so they know all the best places to go.

Introductions, handshakes, then beer(s).

So far, so good.

Then...cocktails. Not so good!

I can´t remember what it was called, but it was delicious...full of limes, lemons, ice and some sort of secret rocket propulsion fuel!

I only had one. That was enough!

This morning I discovered that a herd of migrating wildebeest had somehow managed to find their way into my head, and were stampeding in blind panic, trying to get out again!

Today is going to be a l-o-n-g day.

Anyway...I´ve had breakfast and the headache is almost gone now.

It is unlikely that I´ll be flying out today. There is some sort of beaurocratic delay with the Chilean aviation authority. That should be cleared up by lunchtime, but the met guys (called metbabes in BAS-speak) at Rothera have reported that they are expecting a storm this afternoon, so right now it is unlikely that we will fly, but I´ve been told to be ready "just in case", because things change very quickly and things happen at a moment´s notice down here.

Punta is a nice place. I like it here, which is good, because the Air Unit guys say that it is not unusual to be stuck here for days on end.
I hope I can cope.



Punta Arenas...Minus Some Luggage!!!

Well, it just had to happen, didn´t it?
I´ve travelled halfway around the world without a hitch, until today.
I´ve arrived in Punta Arenas, but only half of my luggage arrived with me. The other half is....well...no-one seems to know!!!
Because I´m staying in Antarctica for a long time, I was granted special baggage allowance of 40kg, as opposed to the standard allowance of 23kg.
Both bags were checked in at Santiago Airport, but only one (the smaller of the two) arrived here at Punta Arenas. The larger bag is off on a jolly somewhere.
I´m due to fly to Rothera tomorrow, weather permitting. If the bag is not here it will have to follow me down later. If it doesn´t turn up at all then I´ll really be in the soft & smelly!!!
I don´t really want to think about that. It will really be a test of my powers of enterprise if I have to spend the next two years with less than half of my essential belongings.

On a brighter note...
Punta Arenas http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punta_Arenas is a pleasant little town. It´s much colder here than in Santiago, and it is so very windy. The coutryside is quite bleak and uninspiring.
There appears to be a lot of construction going on. Tourism is in its infancy here so not a lot of English is spoken. I´ll be ok though, as I speak pretty good Spanish.....!

There are a lot of trees here in Punta, but they appear to be mainly in the town. I didn´t notice many in the countryside as I was driven from the airport. I´m gonna hug a few before I leave, cos I won´t be seeing any for quite a while now, but I´ll try to do it when no-one is watching. I wouldn´t want any of the locals to think that I´m wierd....!
The trees in the main plaza are very big, and seem to be quite old. Quite surprising, really, as it is so windy. And this is summertime. I think this place must take a real battering from the elements during the winter months.

I´m going to get some dinner now.
This should be interesting....

Monday 10 November 2008

Santiago Nosh-up!!


Well, I´ve had my dinner.

It started this afternoon.
I was wandering around downtown Santiago and I was a little bit off the beaten track when I passed by a small restaurant that was full of locals.
Santiago doesn´t get too many foreign tourists (although I would certainly recommend it) so it was obvious that this was a popular place to eat.
Someone once said that you should never eat in an empty restaurant, so I made up my mind that this was where I would eat tonight.
I walked in and fluently asked for a table "para uno" (for one).
I was given a menu and I casually ordered a beer, which arrived swiftly and was ice-cold and frothy. So far, so good.
None of the waiters spoke English, but hey, I´m almost a native now.
The menu made perfect sense.
I´m on a roll, now.
I ordered a traditional Chilean mixed grill with mixed salad and salsa.
The waiter gave me a funny look but I put it down to my dodgy accent.
I sat back and waited.

My food arrived, hot and sizzling, ...and there was loads of it.
I couldn´t believe that Chileans had such large appetites.
There was all manner of local sausage and steaks; a meat-eater´s heaven.

This was gonna be a mission, but I tucked in with gusto.

The steaks (beef, pork and lamb) were delicious. They were coated with local herbs and spices. Mmm mmm.
The sausages were local produce and were soooo tasty.
The salad was crisp and fresh, and the onion and jalapeño salsa instantly cleared my sinuses!!! WOW!!! it was hot stuff!!!

I fought valiantly, but reluctantly conceded defeat.
There was just too much food there, and I felt like a weebil. (Weebils wobble but they don´t fall down).
The waiters gathered round and started clapping.
Some of the other diners applauded too.
How nice, although I wasn´t sure if they were being complementary or just taking the p***.

Then a new waiter came to me and in broken English, complemented me on my sturdy appetite.

Then he offered me the desert menu!

NO WAY, JOSE!!!

I very politely declined, so he brought me a complementary liqueur instead.

It was a camomile liqueur and it was very sweet, but it was very medicinal, both in taste and effect. I certainly couldn´t drink another one though ...yeuch!!!


I struck up a conversation with the new waiter. His English was as bad as my Spanish, but somehow, we understood each other

Apparently, I was the first Brit to eat in their restaurant and he enquired if all British diners ate a meal for two...!!!

DUH!!! No wonder I´m so full!!

I asked for the bill.
Twelve quid!! How cheap is that?
But I can´t believe that I ate a meal that could´ve fed three people!
I´m sure the menu didn´t say the meal was for two people. I mean, I can read Spanish, can´t I?

I had to try to walk it off.

I paid up, and the waiters lined up to shake my hand as I left.
I felt like such a muppet, and a big fat one, at that!!!

The mountains looked so cool in the twilight sky as I took a (slow) walk back to my hotel.
My belly was so swollen and sore!
I waited ´til all the crossing lights turned green. No jumping the red lights. I didn´t fancy bouncing off the bonnet of a taxi-cab!

When I arrived back at the hotel I was ushered into the bar for a complementary cocktail.
By this time I´d walked off a good part of my dinner, and it seemed rude not to accept.

The house special was a Pisco Sour http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pisco_Sour. It tasted really good. I don´t think I´d´ve had room for a beer, so I finished my rather nice cocktail and came upstairs to write this.

I think travel fatigue is catching up with me now so I´m gonna take my fat lardy-arse up to my room and crash out on my king-size bed.
Well, if it was any smaller I wouldn´t fit on it, would I?

Punta Arenas tomorrow, if I can get out of bed, that is.

Friday 7 November 2008

Time To Go...

"Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;
Or close the wall up with our English dead.

In peace there's nothing so becomes a man as modest stillness and humility:
But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger;
Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood,
Disguise fair nature with hard-favour'd rage;

Then lend the eye a terrible aspect;

Let pry through the portage of the head like the brass cannon;

Let the brow o'erwhelm it as fearfully as doth a galled rock o'erhang and jutty his confounded base,
Swill'd with the wild and wasteful ocean.

Now set the teeth and stretch the nostril wide.
Hold hard the breath and bend up every spirit to his full height.

On, on, you noblest English.
Whose blood is fet from fathers of war-proof!
Fathers that, like so many Alexanders,
have in these parts from morn till even fought and sheathed their swords for lack of argument:

Dishonour not your mothers;
Now attest that those whom you call'd fathers did beget you.

Be copy now to men of grosser blood,
and teach them how to war.

And you, good yeoman, whose limbs were made in England.
Show us here the mettle of your pasture;
Let us swear that you are worth your breeding;
Which I doubt not;

For there is none of you so mean and base,
That hath not noble lustre in your eyes.

I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips,
Straining upon the start.
The game's afoot:

Follow your spirit, and upon this charge
Cry 'God for Harry , England , and Saint George!' "

Henry V - Act III, Scene I.
William Shakespeare, 1599.


Upon the eve of my departure I make no apology for quoting this; the Mother Of All Pre-Battle Speeches.

It is my favourite piece of Shakespeare, and it will ring in my ears as I venture into the unknown.

Tomorrow I head for that stark, beautiful Antarctic wilderness, and I am eager to embrace the challenge.

But my excitement is tempered by my sadness at leaving behind all that I know and love.

This week has seen many hugs, cuddle and tears, plus messages of support and goodwill.
I thank you all, most warmly.

I'm a little bit lost for words right now, so I'll just end with these thoughts:

I don't know what awaits me, but I know that my life, and my lifestyle, will be changed in unimagineable ways.

It seemed that this day would never come, but here it is.

Antarctica beckons...
And I am ready to answer her call...
To run, willingly into her outstretched arms...

I feel it is my destiny to follow in the paths of heroes such as Scott, Shackleton and Fuchs.
But, hold on a minute. I'm not an intrepid Polar explorer really!
I'm just an ordinary bloke, about to do an ordinary job, in a weird place!

My plane leaves tomorrow.


Watch this space....!!!