Snow petrels cruise past in formation above the cliffs on which they nest (and on which we work!)
So, where was I.....
Storm over. Phew, a little softer than we expected but can't complain all in all! And now it's time to pack up and move on to our second main camp of the season, a complicated process with many stages - finding a crevasse free route to the camp, doing a linked travel run of fuel and supplies to the new site, digging like prisoners of war to extricate the tents and equipment from up to a metre of drift, then loading it all on to sledges in a slightly haphazard way and driving down the glacier doing a rather good impression of a Gypsy Caravan.
Tent Extrication - many tons of snow to move!
The recce of the route down the glacier was carried out by Danny and I a few evenings before the move - an amazing trip, the first of many down the valley. It's good to check out the route in the evening as the low sun angle means it's more likely to spot crevasse shadows. Using high-res sat pics and google earth to plan routes in advance means we were on the right track and don't have to carry out any difficult route finding which makes life easier (and safer)
Packed up over two days, we were ready to do the main camp move - gypsies on tour.
Danny packs up boxes hoping for clear skies tomorrow
Chris ready for the big move
The Gypsy Caravan waves goodbye to Bird Bluff and the crags we'd been working on
Our Caravan arrives at the new site - ready to start digging!
And now, after the big move, the work begins. Building a solid camp
capable of standing up to the famous Fosdick storms is a time consuming
and physical exercise! We use a chainsaw to cut blocks then shovel out the snow to make lowered platforms for
the tents to sit in - this reduces the chance that the wind will be able
to get under the tents and also reduces the area exposed to the wind -
making things stronger and more likely to be there at the end of the
season!
Danny cuts a snow platform in the afternoon sunshine
Geotim shovels out the foot or so of snow to make our tent platforms - one down, 5 to go...
Setting up the solar power system to soak up the midnight rays
Chris ties guylines whilst balancing a snowball on his head
Job Done!
Skidooo recce past the cinder cone over to our new area
So, our new "Icefall Camp" was set up, Danny and I were in situ and ready to go and the Geologists were primed with hammers ready to rock. Not long til there's a team change and Tim and Fawna will desert us to warmer climes so lots to do before that happens!
Under the main cliff sections at Avers Bowl
Fawna had been waiting to get her hands on some in situ gems
A cluster of Cordiorite crystals are a good example of how sparkly and gorgeous the rocks were here
The layers and faulting at this spot near camp were pretty spectacular
A russian literature fan, Chris is just missing a sickle...
Trying to decipher the complicated nature of the rock needed endless discussions
The camp is by no question the most stunning spot I've slept so far in my now 10 seasons. Yes, TEN seasons in the Antarctic. Bonkers. But that's another story altogether... So we explored the area on recces and geo trips for a few days until time ran out for Geotim and Fawny.
Chris salivating at the Strata in front of him.
Standing water becomes an issue as summer progresses
Fawny's Famous Fish Face
oooh, CORDIORITE!!
A close up of the sparkly nature of the rocks here
And so Geotime was up. The plane was on the way to whisk F&T away and bring new blood - and we had a GLORIOUS day to receive it. A morning spent packing up and eating mexican food was spent whilst dishing out weather observations every hour (thanks Chris and Danny!), packing and making preparations for the plane. All very emotional really, after spending so much time together as a close knit team.
Breakfast Burrito quality time - waiting for the plane to come
Geotim knows his place when Fawna wants to wash her lovely locks - making herself beautiful for the aircrew
Chris has to call in weather observations every hour for 6 hours before the flight is due to take off - normally this means from around 3am!! As you can see summer is hotting up in the Fosdicks
So the plane arrived, unloaded Christine, Mike and a load of food and other random items (including a GPR - ground penetrating radar, tell you why in a minute!) and took off with Fawny, Geotim, lots of rocks and all our rubbish from the season so far. A brief time on the ground of all of us together and then the plane leaves us and we are alone once again.
The Basler DC3 at camp loaded and ready to go
Tim and Fawny looking sad to leave us. Woe is them.
The Basler DC3 pulls away from camp
Doesn't red look GREAT with white and blue...
So the new team was in place ready for training, exploration and digging. Now here's a long story cut relatively short. Last season we managed to put in a large depot of food and fuel to use but never got there to use it. When we arrived at the new campsite we were nearby so went in search of the cache - marked with well over 20 x 8ft flags. We found nothing. We double checked GPS coordinates and found that we were in the right spot, just that there was nothing there. Anyway, we probed for hours on end hoping to hit something hard but had no joy. So the new crew brought in with them a Ground Penetrating Radar which is usually used to locate crevasses in front of vehicles - but will pick up anything else under the snow. The full story from the team blog is HERE if you want a giggle. Anyway, the dream team of Danny and Chris saw something under the snow on the readout but then it was Chris and I who had the job of digging to see if we can find anything. There was well over 5000 litres of aviation fuel there so it was worth finding! And enough Biscuits to feed a small village for a year. So, after digging several feet I found a flag, and a few more had the satisfying "dink" of hitting something metal. A Drum. However, the snow was like concrete and the drums were almost 3 metres below the snow surface. Ouch. We hid the hole when the others arrived and wound them up as long as we could handle - much to their disappointment - and then said something along the lines of "well, we did find this..." and uncovered the drum at the bottom of a very deep hole to much whooping and laughing. Then the realisation set in that it was going to be a mammoth task with only shovels, ice axes and a petrol chainsaw (filling the hole with fumes very quickly) However, Operation Dig was put into place and we all moved several tons of snow to extract 9 drums over 2 days. With 18 more to go we realised we couldn't afford the time to get the rest so had to come up with another plan. You'll have to read on to see what it was! Anyway...
Danny enjoying Health and Safety at it's BEST! Using a petrol chainsaw in a confined space around 45 gallon drums of aviation fuel and gasoline!! Lucky he's got his chaps on...
The three muppeteers at the bottom of a very deep hole
So we left the hole alone and went off to do what we came for - Geology! Hoorah!
A little visitor cruiding past
HOORAH!!! No more drum digging!
Cruising back up the valley for a trip down memory lane and to show Christine and Mike what we'd already worked on
That is one BIG cliff
Chrstine comes back to the skidoos after scrambling up along the cliffs
Zorro was in the area!
Mike and Chris hanging around looking at dark and light, dark and light
Mike and Chris Geologising away with their tape and pens
Danny boy enjoying the warmth and sunshine of summer
But the sunshine and nice weather wasn't going to last now was it!! Another famous fosdicks storm - and a little bit more windy this time. Gusting towards 60mph which was a bit more exciting. This means that we needed a flagged route through camp. Digging was imminent, although the wind direction was perfect for the "leisure tent" as it kept both doors clear of snow - Nice one Danny for getting the angle of the dangle right...
Christine braves the storm to take wind speed recordings
And everyone knows what to do in a storm. Sleep, read. cook, eat, drink tea and play cards. Continually, for days on end. Brilliant. The highlight for me was the pancake making. I obviously had a sheltered childhood as had never received a pancake in any shape other than a round one. Little did I realise they were an artform waiting to happen. You don't have to just make boring round pancakes, the possibilities are endless.
"Tim on Skidoo" by Danny
"Naked Lady" by Tim for Danny
Tortilla making from scratch - those Americans LOVE mexican food
A lovely set of baps ready for the box oven
So we ate our way through the storm ready for a final week of geologising, christmas and Christine's birthday before the plane came back to start taking people away back to civilisation.
When the tent started to tear in places in the storm (UV takes it's toll over a season) we used heavy rock boxes to build a wall around the "leisure tent," protecting the front of the tent from the worst of the wind and channellingit around the sides to keep the doors clear of snow
Back out geologising - by the lake shores...
Not sure what this was geologically, but it reduced Danny and my mental age by between 20-35 years. More than two months south was taking it's toll...
Mount Marashoegoo - a shark fin of a peak split between two glaciers
And for those bird enthusiasts out there, this is the Snow Petrel - rare in the world and breeding on a handful of spots in the Antarctic. A beautiful bird that is pure white with black eyes, beak and feet (which tuck away into the "fuselage" for aerodynamics) that are inquisitive and cruise around checking us out all the time in the region. Only predator in the region is the Southern Skua which cruises around looking for the kill or any chicks that might be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Two snow petrels squawking to each other
A Southern Skua patrolling the skies looking for Snow Petrel Dinner
The Snow Petrel before being caught by a Skua
The Snow Petrel after it has been caught by a Skua. Very angel like don't you think?
Anyway, I think I'm done once again for the blog - you'll have to wait for part three (yes, it's an epic isn't it) to see more about Christmas, Christine's birthday surprise, the Dig team and heading back to Siple Dome.
