Vestfold Hills, Sunday, 2nd December 2001
Sleep was very good indeed, our first night off the ship in over 18 days and the first for all of us (except Chyunky) in Antarctica. This morning was warm bright and sunny, 4 degrees at a guess. We quickly packed and cleaned the hut before tearing down Long Fjord, stopping for a while to some doughnuts, fishtails and figure eights with the quads (to improve our handling skills !). It was certainly an exhilirating start to our Antarctic experience riding over froxen fjords and inlets past barren rock hillsides and Weddel seals. The barreness highlighted the numerous dark igneous dykes which marched across the landscape. We passed through a tricky section where snow drifts had accumulated after the recent blizzard causing us to get bogged. This was in itself good training and definitely hot work. We stopped for lunch just before entering Breid Basin. The view here was excellent, The immensity Antarctic Ice sheet stopped abruptly several km away completely dominating the surrounding Vestfold Hills. The day's heat was surprising, with the diffuse sun re-radiating intense UV and heat off the ice. We dropped down into the basin, negotiating several more tricky snow drifts before arriving at the spectacularly located Platcher Hut, right at the toe of the ice sheet. Gary and the Mawson field group were already there. We immediately commenced a vigorous afternoon of field training, building snow and ice anchors and bollards for quad recovery. Martin and I assembled our polar pyramid tent next to the hut on a dry scree. After a quick supper of Pasta "Arafat" (pasta with falafel mix!) and New Guinea coffee we practiced self-arrest techniques with the ice-axe and ascended the high snow slope up onto the ice sheet. Our efforts were rewarded with views to the west over the Vestfold Hills to the grounded bergs in the fast ice, To the South-East nothing but the daunting white expanse of the Antarctic ice sheet uninterrupted for thousands of kilometres, thickening to depths of more 4 km, the coldest place on Earth. At Vostok station 1300km away -90 degrees was recorded during the polar winter some years ago. We came across some lichens growing on some rocks nearby, what a hardy existence ! Down below, dirty big skuas were circling our encampment hoping for some scraps. These birds terrorise the smaller snow petrels and Wilson storm petrels which are very common around here, and show little fear of humans. Rob explained the origin of the wide variety of erratic rocks lying around, dumped there as the ice sheet retreated at the end of the last ice age (Last Galcial Maximum). We then built a two-man igloo which was surprisingly strong. Martin and I climbed back onto the crest at midnight, for another view as the sun started hovered over the southern horizon alternately illuminating and sillhouetting the saw-tooth landscape. Spectacular stuff. It was difficult getting to sleep, with the strong ambient light.
Platcher Hut, Vestfold Hills S 68°30'42" E 78°30'44"
23 km ENE of Davis
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