Beautiful Day for a Walk!

11-5-2022

It was a beautiful day for a hike at McMurdo so after work that’s exactly what I did. I walked back to Scott Hut and on up the Arrival Heights path. I clearly wasn’t the only person who had the same idea. I walked by the memorial cross dedicated to those who have lost their lives exploring this continent. Just over the cliff from the memorial of death is new life. Weddell seals, sunning themselves, mothers with pups. Babies of any kind are cute. These seals have teeth and mouths specifically designed to bore holes in the ice. It’s safe now for these seals to sun themselves close to shore but in a few weeks the killer whales will enter their realm and then they must be far more cautious where they play. My walks will get longer and longer as the summer weather overtakes us.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Cargo Ships and Whales

Image
  2-7-2023 Ship change…The first cargo ship left port last night and the next ship pulled right in behind him and began off-loading. Because of that, our Yacht Club meeting was cancelled because our Commodore was pulling line duty on the ship change. (For non-nautical people it means he was handling ropes used to tie the ship up to the pier) Because of the sun falling further in the sky it now feels like dawn and dusk all day. The first sunset is February 20 th , the day I leave McMurdo. The days are also getting cooler.   It’s not too bad when the wind isn’t blowing. If I can stay awake, I can visit the McMurdo Museum which is open from 8:00 to 10:00 this evening. The Minke whales are in the sound in large numbers. Last night I watched a pod of about 12 swimming around. It’s fun to watch them all “blow” as they surface. The Orcas are also still around. Penguins stay near the ice edge and are in jeopardy. All the seals are near Scott Base away from the ice edge and danger.
Read more

The Gerbil Gym

Image
1-27-2023 Gerbil gym… I’ve talked about it on a few occasions but when I was working out today, I realized I haven’t sent any pictures, so I’ve included a couple for you today. Historically what is now the gerbil gym started its life as “the Acey-Deucy club” on the Navy base. This was a club for enlisted people in pay grades E-5 and E-6. They also had a club for E-1’s through E-4’s known as the Enlisted Club. Chiefs (E-7-E-9) had the Chiefs Club and of course what we now know as the Coffee House was the Officers Club. I have spent many hours in the gerbil gym. It’s good for the body and soul I think, and it helps pass the hours when not at work. The alternative is to spend time at the bars. I can tell you from personal experience that far more people spend time in the bars. The last two days, weather wise, are what people expect to see in Antarctica. Heavy winds and blowing snow continue again today. It is significant because there is much flying and resupplying that remains to be d...
Read more

My Dorm Room

  2-11-2023   I thought you might like to see my living arrangements here at McMurdo. I have a twin size bed (very comfortable mattress) with a sink at the end of it that I share with my roommate. There are 2 drawers under the bed and 3 more drawers (about the size of standard filing cabinets) in the locker. The locker has hanging space with a shelf above for storage. Nothing is allowed on top of the lockers because we can’t block the sprinkler system. We share a bathroom/shower with the room next door. All in all the room is about the size of a “normal” hotel room. Very similar to most college dorm rooms. Certainly, tight but doable. If the shifts work out right, you get some privacy if not you get to know your roommate very well. My roommate Mark is a weatherman. He, like me,  works  rotating shifts. The good news is he doesn ’ t snore and when we were in the room together, we share some good conversation and laughs.   I saw the moon over arrival heights this ...
Read more