Hello Darkness, My Old Friend

I left the ice on New Year’s Eve.  I have two regrets; one that I left just before the “Icestock” festival (McMurdo’s version of Woodstock).  Bands have been rehearsing for months now, to play on an outdoor stage with food and refreshments and all the fun.  The other regret is that I didn’t have time, or make the time, to visit any of the outlying base camps, in various places around the continent.

  

The C-17 has been unable to land at McMurdo for several days because the warm weather has made the runway temporarily unusable, and in need of repair.   So, I hitched a ride on one of the Ski Birds rotating Air National Guard troops back to Christchurch.  Whereas the C-17 can make the long crossing of the Southern Ocean in about 5 hours, it’s closer to 8 in the C-130.  Rumble, rumble, rumble—but, I still prefer that to the flying cattle cars that we call commercial airlines.  At least the Ski Birds have lots and lots of leg room.

In the occasional breaks in the clouds, I saw more of the Trans Antarctic Mountains and glaciers that are so familiar on the continent. Then I saw broken ice and open water.  I haven’t seen much water in liquid form for two months.  It means that warm summer will continue its work and allow ships to come to McMurdo soon.  Then I saw what seemed to be small white blocks in the ocean.  At first I wondered what kind of strange pontoon boat was out floating in this vast ocean.  But, then I saw more white blocks, and realized that I was looking at massive icebergs.   Many hours later, near Christchurch, the bergs were much smaller, but I was surprised to see them at a time when air temperatures in New Zealand average in the 70’s and 80’s F.  Then, as the plane descended and began to depressurize, I could feel and smell the humidity.  I was back in a world of sounds and smells and colors again.

I checked into the now familiar Commodore Hotel and enjoyed a New Year’s Eve BBQ with friends of the 109^th Airlift Wing, who make the Commodore their home away from home when not on the ice.  As we enjoyed the nice tree lined patio and good conversation, an amazing thing began to happen—the sun started to go down.  Back at McMurdo on TV weather page, you can read the temperature in Centigrade and Fahrenheit.  You can see the high and low for the day, the wind direction, and the forecast for tomorrow.  Down in the corner it says “Sunset: 01:52 A.M. February 20.”  At the South Pole I think it’s more like March; and it will be the only sunset all year.   I’m thankful that I don’t have to wait that long.  Even though it was overcast, I just had to go out for a walk (without my big red parka) and let my brain absorb this wonderful sensation that most people experience every night—glorious darkness!  Meanwhile, my skin seemed to be drinking up the moisture that it has been deprived of for so long. Aaahh!





Darkness!

Christchurch is in beautiful mid-summer.  I was able to meet with my replacement here, as well as my Kiwi friend, Father Dan.  We enjoyed a long walk in the indescribably beautiful botanical garden downtown, and a visit to a museum display of the photos taken by photographers on the original Antarctic expeditions.  These historic pictures are of places that are now familiar to me.  I could say, “You see where these guys are standing—I walked right across that picture 100 years later.”

Well, as the fickle finger of fate, and airline schedules would have it, I have a few more days in New Zealand before my final 36 hour endurance trip home.  I bought myself a train ticket for tomorrow to cross the Southern Alps from the east coast to the west coast of the Southern Island of New Zealand.  They say this is one of the most spectacular train rides in the world, and I don’t expect to miss it.  I don’t know exactly how or when I will end this blog, but I will probably go on at least until I share with you some of the results of that little adventure—No promises—I just want to keep you in suspense a little longer.