Tuesday 4th December Today we were uplifted without fuss and were back at Rothera by mid-afternoon. I took great pleasure in showering, and then eating as much food as I could in the evening meal! It’s great to be here and everyone has welcomed us back. There are lots of new faces around base, which …
Saturday 1st December After a final difficult day striking camp and manhauling everything out to the new depot and skiway on Friday, we were airlifted out and moved to Fossil Bluff, where there is a small hut and a fuel depot. We joined Andy and Rob, who are responsible for maintaining the hut (Bluebell Cottage) …
Wednesday 28th November Today we took all but essential living kit (leaving behind the pyramid tent, P-bags, tent box, pots box, medical box and 1 manfood box) out to the depot. I had two sledges with my orange BAS kitbag, rucksack, 1 rock box, and the red geology trunk. So a reasonable load, perhaps slightly …
Friday 23rd November It has been an exciting few days as we near the end of our third week. Yesterday we had a good, fruitful day in Unnamed Valley and today we walked right to the head of Ablation Valley. We climbed to the top of The Mound, a large bedrock hump in the middle …
Thursday 15th November Today, like yesterday, was relatively warm, wet, windy, overcast and foggy. Pretty miserable weather with a cold wet wind and snow. I prefer it when it is colder but dry – this temperature (-03°C, wet, humid), is most unpleasant. Like an English winter!
Friday 9th November And so fieldwork begins. Today we have had exceptionally good weather. -08°C, clear, sunny, no wind. Yesterday was rather windier with many snow snakes that I spent ages (rather unsuccessfully) trying to photograph.
Monday 5th November We were dropped into Ablation Valley in the afternoon following a morning of waiting for a weather window. We finally departed around 4 pm following the arrival of the Dash-7 at 3:01 pm local time.
Thursday 1st November Today our training for deep field began in earnest. We were given a more extended tour, taught how to safely drive skidoos, how to avoid being eaten by aeroplane propellers (Rothera is a busy airport with one of the few gravel strip runways in the area), how to use the items in …
Introducing the Antarctic Diaries. This series of blog articles is about my exploits at Rothera and Alexander Island with Michael Hambrey, a professor at Aberystwyth University.
It’s now less than two months until we depart for Ablation Point, Alexander Island on the Antarctic Peninsula, and it’s important that you’re fit and healthy. I’ve been doing lots of exercise recently, and am trying to climb a mountain every weekend in preparation! Fortunately there are lots to choose from in Aberystwyth. You also …
