Some pics from the last two posts!

Negative 75 the day I left, just so I could remember how it was when I first arrived
- our wonderful Kricket to send me off!

Sorry for the delay, I've been busy, and internet is expensive in NZ. But here are some pics - the last from the ice, as I left and re-entered this "real" world? Strange it feels to be in what seems to be one of the most touristy places I've ever experienced just after the pole. odd. Don't get me wrong, NZ is also an amazing place. The juxtaposition is odd. Kind of makes me miss the cold desert. (Maybe because I had to make so few decisions for the past few months?)

Without further adieu,

The flight crew was excellent, and let me sit on the flight deck! The intense sun makes for a tough picture - the map they had stuffed in one window improved the situation!



They were excellent on descent, they even had the book open to the right page as we dove down to do some Killer whale watching in an open channel made by the ice breaker. We probably saw about 50 of them!


McMurdo in mid-February - the sun beginning to dip in the sky. Not setting yet, but creeping in that direction. They have about one month of sunsets and sunrises in every direction. Pole only has one which lasts 30 hours. The sun sets next week - the last full week in March.



From Mactown to New Zealand, again on the giant C-17. This time we rode with a helicopter in the next seat! Here they prepare the hour-long process of loading the thing. This is a permanent ocean ice airfield. After we travelled the 20 miles from McMurdo, we had to wait several hours till the Air Guard was fully ready. In order to lift off with the chopper, they mounted JATO (Jet Assisted Take Off) Rockets to the outside of the plane. These solid-fuel, one time use rockets help get the load off the ground. We didn't notice the difference.

That's all for now folks! Next - New Zealand mountain tops and Kiwi oddities!