WOO HOO! Penguins! My Antarctic journey is complete, I can go home happy and fulfilled knowing that I actually saw penguins while here. Probably 90 percent of the folks that come down to work for Raytheon miss out on this amazingly beautiful and comical event. The three Adelie penguins probably came up through a naerby working-crack caused by the shifting sea ice and tidal range.

~G

Last Sunday I scored a spot on the weekly trip to Cape Evans, the site of Scott's hut, from which he launched his 1911 attempt to ski to the south pole and back. His team of four made it there only to find that the Norwegians had beaten them by just days. The return journey proved to be too much for Scott's team and they all froze to death in their tents (all except one who had wandered out into the night several days before to relieve the team of his burden.)

Amongst the books, old leather clothes and sleeping bags, I noticed a great abundance of chemistry equipment, which was fasinating to me... I wonder what they were studying? A frozen emperor penguin still lies on the table next to Scott's bed and there is a large cache of seal blubber in "the pantry" by the door.

The trip made for a very relaxing Sunday with several hours in the back of a Delta as we crawled across the sea ice at 15 miles per hour. The company was very pleasant; however, the advent of the penguins really made the trip something special.

~G

Back to the Taylor Valley for another polarhaven-pitchin'-party. This time, we had two to build on the same lake; one at the west end and one at the east. Our helicopter ride was a bit sketchy going out due to low clouds and gusty winds, but the beam of light from above (shown in first picture) served as a nice comfort.

On day one, we were unable to start work due to a delayed helicopter that couldn't make it over behind ours and as a result, our cargo didn't get slingloaded out to the lake until much later in the day. So after a relaxing afternoon of hiking, napping and horseshoes we were able to zoom down the lake on six wheelers (a most exhilarating ride... thankfully I didn't get picked to tow the sled with the 200 lb propane tank in it... casually nicknamed "rocketsled") and get started at 6 in the evening. We worked steadily through the evening and made it back just before midnight, cooked up our shrimp stirfry and hit the sack.

The next morning was an early riser, but we had to finish the second polarhaven before our 1:30 pick up. We stopped off at Lake Fryxell to add a couple parts that were left off the polarhaven we had put up earlier in the week and had time to hike around a bit before our homeward flight. I was lucky enough to get to ride up front in the A-star and enjoyed a good view of the sea ice dotted with seals, which looked a lot more like garden slugs from 1,000 feet. Our pilot was nice enough to fly a bit off course for sightseeing and even attempted to land on that same iceberg that was shining in the storm the day before; however, upon final approach, it turned out to be too snowy on top of the block to land the helo.

The other pictures are of a mummified Wedell seal and an adelie penguin both found in commute to the west side of the lake. It is unknown why penguins and seals make these oneway trips deep into the dry valleys. Some scientists speculate that they may contract a virus that affects there sense of direction and navigational capabilities, but it is still a mystery. The last picture is of my coworkers Graham and Luke having a game of horseshoes on the beach.

~G

Here's a few more pics from my Dry Valleys trip and amazingly enough, there will probably be even more since I'll be returning again tomorrow! This time it will be up the drainage one more lake to Bonney. This place is so amazing and I can't believe I get to go back. Maybe this time I'll get a break to go hunt for ventifacts (the one above is relatively modest) and mummifid seals.

~G

I just returned from a two day trip to the Dry Valleys and I don't even know where to begin. The pictures here are, in order: me looking down at my bunny boots and through the ice to the bottom of Lake Hoare, the Lake Hoare camp that appears to be being swallowed up by the Canada Glacier, the first polarhaven that we constructed on Lake Fryxell and me hooking a sling load on a C212 helicopter (talk about a windy and exfoliating experience.)

The trip started with a morning flight out of McMurdo 35 miles across the frozen sound to the coast of continental Antarctica. Just up from New harbor, along the Butter Coast (named such for Shackleton's crew leaving 2,000 of butter behind at camp while venturing up the valleys) we set down at Lake Fryxell on the beach. There was a nice Jamesway there that we warmed up a bit to keep our water from freezing and then proceeded to move our gear and ourselves out onto the lake to set up the polarhaven. This little hut will be used to take water samples from the lake. There's no diving in this lake since it is shallow and has a very complex and fragile thermal stratification that should not be disturbed.

We finished around 4:30 and the heli came by to take us up a few miles to Lake Hoare on the other side of the Canada Glacier, which divides the two lakes. We had warm buildings to sleep in and the caretakers out there cooked us a steak dinner and had fresh baked cookies and bread. The following morning was slow since we were waiting on the helo to show up and do another sling load, so we just drank cocoa and bummed around until they finally showed up after fixing a broken door on the helicopter.

The second polarhaven went up very quickly and we had the luxury of a fourwheeler to haul our gear in, as opposed to an 8 foot sledge that was pulled by "the G.A." (that's "General Assistant"... yours truly, haha) across a deadly mine field of pinnacle ice, which I managed to punch through more than once up to my waist. Not to worry though, the water was well below another 15 feet of solid ice.

After finishing up, we had time to poke around a bit and finish what little near camp exploration I hadn't accomplished the night before. Hopefully if I return, I can hike around the ridges, see the ventifact forest and the mummified seals and penguins that have wandered up the valley over the years. The flight back was smooth, white and beautiful; like good ice cream... mmm... ice cream.

~G

Here's some more seal pics from today's encounter. And oh yeah, I'm off to the Dry Valleys tomorrow! It should be the trip of a lifetime.

~G

I got an amazing opportunity to drive out across the sea ice in a Piston Bully (snow cat type vehicle) to bring some fuel to some cold scientists today. When we arrived they greeted us warmly with hot cocoa and lots of thanks. As it turned out, they weren’t really cold, but they had run out of fuel in their lab, which needed to remain warm to protect expensive equipment. One of the scientists took us out a few hundred yards from the camp (second photo) to look at the Weddell seals they've been studying. They had just begun birthing within the last week and there were cows with pups strewn all over the sea ice near tidal cracks, which are their access to the water. The team of biologists there are measuring the mammary gland output of the mothers and weighing their pups daily to gain more information about their metabolic rates.

As we approached the colony the sight was very foreign and still hard to describe. The first thing we came upon was the cow depicted in the last photo (below) that was crying and moaning over her pup (bottom right corner of picture) that had died earlier in the day and lay frozen in the snow. There was blood frozen to the ice from the birthing and seals everywhere that looked cold and frozen. However, it is their summer time and they were simply sunbathing in a cool breeze (-15 degrees plus 20 knot wind… balmy by their standards). The biologist said that today was about as mild as the weather had been since they'd set up camp, which was hard to picture.

Apparently these seals have about a 30% mortality rate when birthing and the team had already collected 2 dead pups in the last week. It was a sad sight, but numerous others that had been more fortunate nursed healthy and chubby pups while rolling in the snow for fun. The mothers will nurse their young most of the day for one to two weeks before leaving them to hunt for more food. The pups aren’t weaned until six weeks, but will begin swimming at two.

~G

Dos amigos

~G

Here's a look at one of my favorite little McMurdo hidy-holes. The Coffee House is the cozy little quonset hut where I spend many a evening sipping hot cocoa or wine with a book or friends. The ceiling is all wood and there's plenty of old relics from the pioneer days hanging up to make you feel like you're really in Antarctica.

I spent the last two days at “Happy Camper School,” which is what they call snow survival school here on the ice. We loaded up in Deltas (big military vehicles), drove out onto the shelf, walked a half an hour and set up our camp. The tall tents are called “Scott Tents”, as they were used by Scott’s party on the journeys here. They are cotton, so they breath well and are pretty durable. Others slept in mountaineering tents (very cold choice), the quinzee hut (kind of like an igloo), or dug snow trenches. I elected to dig a trench.

I was surprised at how well the snow breathed, which kept it from getting clammy and wet inside; however, do to the nature of being underground and having a large amount of snow around me, I never was able to warm the thing up above -20 or so. The temps dropped to around -40 with light wind that night (which made for a quite exhilarating midnight run to the bathroom) and most people froze. The sleeping bags we were given were just old REI bags with a fleece liner thrown in, so everyone wrapped their down jackets around their feet and took bottles of hot water to bed with them. I probably burned several thousand calories keeping warm that night, but luckily they supplied us with a box of salami sandwiches that could have fed a small country. Eating throughout the night was crucial for just about everyone.

The next day we enjoyed more survival training including a whiteout simulation.

~G

Sundays in McMurdo are a wonderful time. Nobody works and rest and relaxation are highly encouraged. Activities for the day often include movies at the theater, open bowling, tours of the Discovery Hut and science lab, services at the chapel, evening science lectures and of course… a Sunday brunch of biblical proportions.

The Chapel of Snows, where I attend church weekly, has a beautiful sanctuary overlooking the sea ice and mountains far beyond. The pastor here turned out to be a Lutheran and by the grace of God alone, I have found myself singing old hymn favorites a capella in a small but warm church community. In exchange for sheep, penguins are depicted in various art pieces around the church... a worthy substitution.

Discovery Hut: This is the sight of a 1902 camp made by Robert Falcon Scott on one of his expeditions to Antarctica. The hut was made from Australian woods (Douglas fir and Scot's pine) that worked well for insulating out the heat and keeping cool in the outback, so it was assumed to work well for keeping warm here. However, the explorers assumed poorly and the hut proved to be so cold that they only stayed two days and went back to the ship. Others have used the hut over the last century and it is full of neat antartifacts, history, clothes, books, dead seals and old tin cans. All of it is preserved perfectly due to the cold and it is truly a neat experience to walk inside.

Well, I've completed my first week in Antarctica! It has been a pretty great experience, thus far and I'm looking forward to the rest of it. Today was odd due to the warmer-than-usual temperatures which must have been in the 20s. I have to say that I'm not looking forward to the temperature increase here, because it can make work hard to do. We all found ourselves covered in melted snow, which turned to ice (especially on the gloves) and left us useless when trying to hold on to anything. Not to mention, we're all getting really hot too, even with no coats on. I'm also rather unexcited about finding out why they call this place McMudhole in the summertime... the gym was flooding today due to a leaky roof and melting snow... yuk.

The photos above are of the 8x12x8 walk-in-freezer we are building out on the ice. It's a lot of work, but fortunately those cheesy little electric chainsaws cut snow pretty well.

~G

I just figured out my mailing address here, so if you feel like sending me a new bicycle or a puppy for Christmas, feel free. (actually, neither would probably make it here since the boxes would be so big... They say the smaller the box, the quicker it will get here.)
~G

Greg Albrecht
McMurdo Station
PSC 469 Box 700
APO AP 96599-1035

Here's the one and only "carp shop" of McMurdo. It's really a great place to work, with plenty of nice folks and lots of power tools.

~G

Here's a look from our latest job site about 8 miles out of town on the ice shelf. We've been constructing the jamesway in the forground for the last couple of days. You can also see the most active volcano In antarctica (Mt. Erebus) in the background smoking away. The weather has been nice out there, mostly -15 or so without wind, and the work is really great. I sure enjoy the sense of accomplishment.
~G

Today we opened up some large wooden crate/boxes that had been out on the ice for the last year and although totally sealed, they were found packed solid with snow. It's pretty amazing how much wind there is down here.
~G

In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him.
~Psalm 95:4

The strange irony of McMurdo: Buildings are too hot and all the icemakers are broken...

Anyone have a giant 9-iron?

~G

Here's a few more photos from around town including (in order of appearance): A view looking south with Observation Hill in the background, a creative welding project, looking west towards the airfield past 3 dorm buildings, and a view back to town from part way up observation hill.
~G