Hike to Castle Rock

There are a variety of hiking opportunities down here that vary in difficulty.  Since I’d already become familiar with the hike to Scott Base and Ob Hill, I decided that Linda and I should venture to Castle Rock.  It’s a 3 1/2 mile moderate hike each way.  There are two apples that serve as huts to get warm or away from the elements.  

Linda and I picked a day she was off since I work in the mornings and am free after 2pm.  We put on all of our ECW and headed to the Firehouse to checkout.  Since it’s a longer hike and off the main roads, you have to go with a partner, checkout with the firehouse, pick up a radio in case of any emergency, and identify a designated time to return. 

We began our journey around 3pm.  To get to the trailhead was the most difficult part.  Getting out of  town in any direction is all uphill.   We hadn’t realized this until now!  As we walked and walked and walked, we realized that we were definitely warm enough, but exhausted before we even got to the trailhead.  We were in for a long afternoon. 

It was a beautiful afternoon with clear skies and the temperature was 15-20 degrees Fahrenheit.  We worked up a sweat pretty quick and felt we were warmed up by the time we actually found the trail.  The road was pretty challenging to walk on having to walk thru the path of the variety of vehicles that ride on this road.  There were all sorts of large tracks from SnowCat type vehicles (the ones used to groom ski mountains) and it made it really fun to maneuver around.

We came to the first apple and had to check it out.  It was really cute inside and really perfect for a little getaway from the weather and/or really bright sun.  We rested for a few minutes and then headed out to continue our journey. 

We peaked into the second apple along the way, but didn’t stop.  We had a goal in mind and were really excited to get to the rock.

We neared the base of Castle Rock and it got much more icy and slick.  Linda assured me she would keep me safe and sound and she did.  We made it safely halfway to the top of the rock which is as high as we were allowed to hike at this time of the year.  The scenery was so amazing.  We just sat for awhile and took in the views.  It was really worth all the effort. 

As it began to get more windy, we decided to head back to town.  The walk back was obviously much easier since most of it was downhill.  We knew what to expect and knew exactly where we were going.  The clouds rolled in pretty quick and it became colder and more windy.  We made it back to the firehouse to check in by our designated time and completed the route of 7 miles in a little under 3 hours.  I was impressed with our time.  It’s very important that we head right to the firehouse because if you don’t check in by your time, the firehouse activates the SAR team (search and rescue) and then they start looking for bodies!  It’s NO BUENO! 

The hike was really enjoyable.  It gave us time to chat and catch up as well as quiet time to just take in the beautiful scenery, think and reflect.  It was challenging at parts and it definitely appeared to be easier than it really was, but it was such  breathtaking views throughout the whole hike.  I am anxious to do it again or try the Castle Rock Loop that is about 8 miles and continues on from Castle Rock to Scott Base and back to McMurdo. 

Right after the trailhead…looks daunting, hugh?

The apple. It’s cute hugh?

Inside the apple is food and various other supplies for emergency use.

Still inside the apple…a sign in book if you want plus causal reading material.

An awesome view of Mt. Erebus (the southern most active volcano) while we were hiking.

Another awesome view of Mt. Erebus along the trail.

This is Castle Rock. We climbed up about halfway along the right side by all of the snow.

The view from half way up Castle Rock. It might not seem amazing, but you could see for miles. Look at how beautifully blue and clear the sky is.

Linda admiring the view from the top…Mt. Erebus is in the background.

Gossip and Greens

We have a very small, but efficient greenhouse down here.  It’s run by one of the Galley staff, Karen Harvey.  She’s this really cool women that has all green hands, not just a green thumb! 

Another way that I have been involving myself in the community is volunteering at the greenhouse about once a week.  I do a vareity of things while I am there; harvest, plant, etc. and one of the best parts is to get the chance to chat/gossip with Karen.  It’s not really gossip, it’s just being an informed community member.  This is her fourth year and she’s got great stories and advice.  We talk about work, friends, boys, life, love, the pursuit of happiness, and much, much more.  It’s almost a type of therapy for me (and I think for her too!) 

I have made it my routine to visit the greenhouse about once per week to catch up with Karen as well as play around with some greens.  While there, I have harvested and planted lettuces (arugala, butterhead, swiss chard), harvested and planted herbs like dill, cilantro, curly and flat leaf parsley, basil and lemon basil and generally helped Karen maintain the green house.  The greenhouse is hydroponic meaning that it uses water to grow plants rather than soil.  There are special lamps used to simulate the sun and special nutrients added to the water when it doesn’t have the proper balance for growth. 

The products of the greenhouse are used every week in the kitchen in a vareity of ways.  The lettuces are used for salad during dinner.  The herbs are used by all in the kitchen from the bakery using fresh edible flowers or mint for garnishing to the cooks using fresh sage or basil in an Italian dish.  It’s a nice touch to add these things.  The community really appreciates all the efforts that are put into the greenhouse.  It initially started as a project by an employee about 20 years back and slowly grew and developed into this amazing place that people will go to volunteer, relax on a hammock, or just take in some fake sun.

Karen, the greenhouse queen.

This is the before picture of what I harvested.

More lettuce we harvested.

Three bags of lettuce is what I harvested one afternoon. It was very back breaking, but worth it!

The incubation tray, the first step in preparing plants. The sees are planted in this stuff call rockwool and then given time and nutrients to sprout. These are arugala plants.

The nursery, the second stage in preparing plants for transport to the beds (the white rows of PVC piping that the plants grow in).

The herb room.

Isn’t this georgous? It’s basil. It just makes my mouth water!

Karen also grows flowers…just for fun!

Edible flowers like these violets are great for adding color to desserts.

More flowers, but I can’t recall what they are.

Imagine the cold weather of the Colorado mountains in the dead of winter and then going into this warm, sunny, moist little hut.  It’s a pleasure to visit the greenhouse and a great opportunity to learn about gardening down here.  It’s inspired me to do more gardening when I return to Colorado.  Maybe I can create my own little hydroponic garden?

Halloween on The Ice

Okay, so it’s now January and I am a little behind in posting my adventures, but this is better late than never.  So, for Halloween down here, there’s this HUGE party in the Big Gym.  There are several costume contests and boatloads of decor in and outside of the gym put on by the one person Recreation Department and lots of volunteers.  Words can’t truely express the evening, but the following photos will do the job. 

This is what greeted us at the entryway to the gym

More new friends, Linda with Ben (same Ben from the Jewish Holidays), and Lou.

Some more new friends of mine (minus the blow up doll), from left to right, Tamra, Linda, (don’t know) Danny, and Brittany.

Justin (Lead DA), Davie (one of my AM peeps), and Linda showing off their awsome customes.

Leon (he does have a costume on) and Eric enjoying the party.

More peeps of mine, from left to right; (not sure who the sherriff is), Lou, Joe, and Carl.

Kevin and Jenn. I just loved these two and their costume. Look closely at what Kevin is holding.

These guys are representing the Crary Touch Tank. Crary is the science lab and the touch tank has a vareity of water species from nearby.

Karen (from the greenhouse), Linda (in her terriorist garb), Tamra and I.

One of my cool neighbors Holly dressed up as Sarah Palin.

Jackie as ‘One Night Stand,’ the costume that won for the most creative.

Davie showing off his Roman body.

Another kitchen peep, Eric, the pirate.

Not sure who this is, but I really liked the costume.

Also not sure who this is, but I love Willy Wonka and the Oompa Loompa’s.

I had a ball at the party and realized that it doesn’t take much for the community down here to find an excuse to both drink and dress up (Especially for the boys…they seem to enjoy dressing up like women!  Go figure!)

Thanksgiving at the Bottom of the Earth

Thanksgiving down here is a big deal!  And people can EAT!

We’d all planned on this huge and elaborate meal for the past three weeks and all crews (AM, PM, and Midrats) had been working overtime all week to prepare for the big day.  We also had some community volunteers throughout the week that helped with odds and ends and espcially helped with breaking down the whole turkeys.  It was a huge feat.  We had 800# of turkey to deal with.

McMurdo’s Turkey Day was celebrated on the Saturday following Thanksgiving so that the majority of the community could have a two day weekend.   There is a continental breakfast from 530-730 and brunch served from 9am-12pm and then the big meals. 

My day started later than usually, around 8:30am (normally I am at work by 4:30am) to begin to prepare for the three seatings we offered.  There was a 3pm, 5pm, and 7pm seatings to feed approximatly 1100 people.  It might seem a bit much, but dividing the population into thirds makes each meal very do-able!

The menu consisted of Roasted Turkey, Greenbean Casserole, Sweet Potato Souffle, Baked Potato Bar (with all the fixins), freshly carved Beef Tenderloin, lots of fresh vegetables and fruits, a cheese platter of really yummy NZ cheeses, a huge assortment of truffles, creme brulee, pumpkin pie and cheesecake, and wonderful fresh baked rolls.  There was even special items for the vegetarians, a napolean with tofu, cous-cous, roasted red peppers and a few other things I can’t recall.

The day was extremely easy with the loads of volunteers we had doing miscellaneous activities around the kitchen (mostly the stuff we didn’t want to do!) and the fact that every cook was working.  There were a lot of people in the kitchen and not that much to do.  We often found time to lean and watch others until something inspired us to work.  It was a very chill day (no pun intended!).

We prepared all the food and sat down to a beautiful table at 1:30pm.  Instead of the 30 minutes we usually have for lunch, we had one whole hour to sit and enjoy our festive meal.  Thee was one long table for all 75 of us.  (That’s a really long table.)  It was really nice to share this special meal with the people and friends you work with. 

The day continued after our big meal with continuing to prepare for the three seatings.  Everything went extremely smooth throughout the remainder of the day.  We all worked really well together and were able to accomplish a great deal while still having an easy day. 

There were lots of compliments and comments of gratitude and thanks.  It was nice to be able to create and serve the community a really nice meal on this holiday.

Cindy (one of the DA’s) soliciting volunteers to help us during the week & on Thanksgiving Day.

Kristina (one of the bakers) bruleeing the Creme Brule

Davie in the background about to dive into the steam kettle (not sure why) and I’m preparing umpteen gallons of turkey gravy (no lumps this time, sorry).

DA’s Leslie and Kat preparing the dessert table with Josie (baker). The desserts were the best part of the meal!

My peeps Lou and Micah setting up the cheese platters.

Leon was deep into Sweet Potato Pie heaven!

Just a few of the incredible volunteers that made the day so simple.

Mary Catey (in the center with the chef’s coat), Lou (far back with the chef’s coat), and DA’s Leslie and Kira preparing Smoked Salmon trays for Sunday’s brunch.

Leon (one of the first people I met on my way here) was so thrilled to be baking fresh potatoes for 1100 people. If you look close enough, you can almost see his smile.

The very large table at family meal. We all look so happy to finally be sitting down!

More wonderful volunteers carving the beef tenderloin to order.

Linda was so happy things were going swimmingly!

My boss Mark and his boss Jennifer relieved the day was going so well!

Under the Sea…Prom in Antarctica

Linda and I in the photo booth. Isn’t the backdrop great?

One of the nominees for Prom Queen. You can see why of course!

A scene from Grease…very entertaining!

Davie (kitchen coworker) gettin’ down.

Karen, the Greenhouse tech, and Keri, the lead Janitor showing off their raw inner beauties!

Aaron and his women of the night. What a lucky man!

I got a special invitation from Peggy and Anne (our friends that have been here for the last decade or more) that the BFC (Berg Field Center) was hosting Prom with ‘Under the Sea’ as the theme.  Since I recall how fantastic prom was in high school, I figured I would give this a try. 

I was told it was a formal affair and people were wearing ball gowns and such, but I found a few things to dazzle me up and worked on a date.  Linda and I decided to take our neighbor Aaron.  He was a lucky man that night with two women on his arm.

We arrived fashionably late but just in time for all of the fun.  There was great 80’s music and wonderful dancing if you can imagine how great it was back in highschool.  We stopped by the photo booth for a few snap shots.  We even were just in time for the annoucing of the prom king and queen.  The royal court was drawn in a carriage by some strapping young men around the room and they took their first dance to some really cheezy 80’s song that was probably written by Air Supply, Journey, or REO Speedwagon. 

Linda, Aaron and I enjoyed our time thoroughly and got a kick out of all of the costumes, the music, and the great dancing.  People really go to town on these occasions.