Beaver Lake, Friday, 11th January 2002
HF Comms bombed out again completely today. Al Rooke "Rookie" could only make contact with Bernd up on Radok Lake. Altostratus cloud was quite scattered about the area, but without being able to obtain an accurate weather picture via HF it would risky to fly in these circumstances. A very strong 40 knot katabatic was also blowing from the SSW. I configured the Ashtech Z-FX receiver for Tom to setup in one of the old TS boxes on Beaver Lake to observe tides. Dave took Bill and me back up to the GPS site now that I had been given an extra lease of time to sort out the problem with the equipment. The winds were very strong at the site and we setup a quad bivvy next to the solar frame to get out of the wind. At least snow and dust wasn't blowing, but the crackling sound inside the bivvy was quite remarkable. Cables, handset etc. were passed through the vent at the top of the bag. I called Jeremy Smith at Davis to exchange some news. The Polar Bird had finally broken out of its ice cage and was only 10 nm from the Aurora Australis. The weather was expected to remain bad for the next day with increasing cloud, but Jeremy would nevertheless make an effort to get us on the ship if there was any possibility. The problem with the PCON/ board was fairly well isolated after a few hours work on the setup and we decided to return. I called Kath the met observer at Davis for an update on the cloud picture. A band of cloud was moving our way from the NE this evening and she said she would endeavour to keep an eye on developments for us, as she predicted fine weather on Sunday. I had my first taste at cross-country skiing and Bill and I made it back to the camp in 45 minutes after a few clumsy falls on my part. Mind you it doesn't help having 40kg of gear on your back to keep one's balance. The skis were terrific as the snow had become exceptionally soft and sludgy over the last couple of days. Major melt was happening all around, and bare ground was being exposed by the hour. Rookie cooked up a magnificent beef curry this evening which was thoroughly enjoyed by all. Later I tested out the old PCON board with the new chip and found it to work fine. So I'd return at the earliest opportunity to test it at the GPS site. In case it would be good weather again in the morning I rationalised the gear ready for RTA (return to Australia) before turning in at 2.30.

Beaver Lake (BVLK) Technical Inspection

Beaver Lake, Base Camp S 70°48'11" E 68°10'46"

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