Dry Valleys.........12/27-29
South Pole.........12/21-23
Ice Runway................12/6
Thanksgiving..............11/28
WeddellWorld.............11/12
Happy Camper School........10/30-31
Cape Royds............10/28
Cape Evans............10/25
My trip to McMurdo............10/22

Happy Camper School
Oct. 30-31
 
 

Around noon on Oct. 30, 18 other U.S. Antarctic Program participants and I embarked on an overnight adventure on the ice. We went through what is commonly referred to as "Happy Camper School," an outdoor survival class. Here we are making our way to the camping spot, where we would learn how to build snow caves and wind barriers. The spot is located on the Ross Ice Shelf -- permanent ice that is about 100 meters thick.

The instructors showed us this snow-block wind barrier that another group had made in the last few weeks.

And here's someone popping out of an existing snow cave.

To make snow blocks, we actually cut them out using a saw. The consistency of the snow is unreal -- similar to chopping into styrofoam!

While my group worked on building a snow-block wind barrier, the other group built a snow cave. Here they are piling snow on a mound of bags. (You can't see the mound of bags because they've covered it entirely with snow.)

We also learned how to put up a Scott tent. This is the tent that I slept in.

It was so cold that the guy on the left had to thaw out his mustache. It was entirely covered in icicles.

This is the end result of that wind barrier we made.

It was darn cold at night -- probably about minus 20 F. We had pads and thick sleeping bags, but I could still feel the chill of the ice below. My contact lens solution and toothpaste froze as hard as rocks. (Yuck, bad breath) And I couldn't wait to get back to the warmth of McMurdo Station. I've got it easy compared to many USAP participants who go out in the field and camp out in tents for three months.