Here are WAIS we don't have a mailbox. Instead we have what we call a Cruise Box. A cruise box arrives on each flight to WAIS and sometimes contains mail for members of the camp.
Believe it or not, there is a Post Office in McMurdo. This PO serves McMurdo and most of the U.S. field camps. As a result, my friends and family can send me packages. It takes about three weeks for mail to arrive at WAIS Divide. That's not bad considering how far the mail must travel in order to get out into the middle of this ice sheet! Once the mail arrives by airplane in McMurdo, it is sorted and then put in the WAIS Divide Cruise Box.
Every week we have approximately two flights to WAIS Divide. Aside from fresh food, or freshies, the mail is the highlight for most of camp. Many packages contain candy, snacks, or magazines. Since we have no real connection to a news source, we are always thrilled to get newspapers and magazines, no matter how outdated they are! We currently have quite the collection of reading material including newspapers from Maine, Colorado, and Nevada and magazines like Backpacker, Backcountry Skier, Alpinist, Oprah Magazine, the New Yorker, US Weekly, Ode, The Week, Time, and Popular Mechanic.
This week I received some lovely packages from my family. One package contained 25 chocolate bars (thanks Mom!). What a treat to have good chocolate! I am sure it will be gone by the end of the week.
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