13 November 2017 Hiking Around McMurdo

Journal

Virtual white-out today. Both runways are listed as condition 2. I am so happy that we were able to get our snowmobile ride in yesterday. A storm was predicted for Saturday afternoon and all day Sunday, but I think today is the day. This will delay our icepod flight once again, but I am confident we will get in one before we leave in two weeks.

White-out conditions — Near white-out conditions today. This is looking towards the mountains to the North, but they are not visible at all.

Blowing snow — Looking south towards Discovery Mountain and White Island, things are not much better. Visibility is low, both airfields shut down for the day.

Weather can change on a dime in Antarctica. One must always be prepared even for a short hike, better to go with too much than not enough. I love hiking here but it seems all of our hikes have had stints of fierce wind and bitter cold despite leaving under near balmy, breezeless conditions. I have also discovered that hiking in Antarctica is never easy. The trails listed as "easy" would likely be black diamond trails back home, okay maybe that is a bit of a stretch, but they certainly wouldn't be categorized as easy or moderate! There are no guardrails or ropes, loose rock is abundant, snow and ice pack hard and slippery and at times, a trail is barely visible. You basically need to be a mountain goat. I am an avid hiker, but these trails take the best out of me. I struggle with the uphills, a fact I am embarrassed to admit, but, the extra weight in clothing and thick awkward boots make every step up a bit more taxing. My glasses fog as I tend to work up a lot of heat wearing six layers, hiking up mountains. Once my glasses fog, they frost up and I must constantly take them off and scrape ice from the lenses. This is annoying but if I don't scrape it off, I can't see where I am stepping and that would be disastrous! I take both my hat and neck gator off to release extra heat, but can't keep them off too long for the wind starts whipping and my ears, nose, and lips start to freeze! It is hard to find a balance between maintaining clear vision and a warm head! Contacts would be a great option if it weren't for the bright sunlight and intense UV rays. Sunglasses are a must. Some people don't seem to have these issues with heat. Wish I could be one of them!

Looking out from the top of the Discovery Hut Loop Trail. — A beautiful vista from atop Discovery Hut Loop Trail.

A sunset? — This is about as close as one gets to a sunset here. It isn't obviously, but it looked pretty as I glanced out over the Ross Sea which at present is covered in ice, but from this vantage point, I am not sure I would believe that if I hadn't been out there on it!

Trail at ob hill — Trail starts winding around the mountain. Hongjie takes the lead while I stop to take the pic!

Trail ledge at Ob Hill gets to be pretty narrow. If you step into the rocks, they often slide on down but there isn't much snow to hold onto either and no guard rails or rope.

Half way round ob hill — About half way around Ob Hill, I stopped and looked back at the trail we had been climbing. We are at least half way up the mountain and the Ross Sea looks like an actual sea instead of a body of ice. Sea ice won't break up until February!

Another precarious perch — Again, another ledge, this one even more menacing. Icy and on a slant going the wrong direction. This is supposed to be the easy trail??

Hiking though, is still desirable. I enjoy the views and the chance to get off station. It is also very neat to be out hiking at 10pm and have it still look like it is the middle of the afternoon. Today's pics are from two of the most recent hikes I completed with Hongjie. We decided to go back and finish the Ob Hill Loop Trail on Friday before heading to karaoke at one of the the adult establishments and for the record, I did not partake! On Thursday, we took the longer Discovery Point Loop Trail which took us about 1.5 hours. During both trips we saw Weddell seals, including two moms with their pups, but those pics and video will be shown in an up and coming journal!

Mother Mary — Our Lady of the Snows shrine to honor CD3 Richard T. Williams, a construction diver of the US Navy who died while in service of science off the coast of Cape Royds.

Glacier — A true glacier ahead, perched precariously as though it could start sliding forward at any moment. One of the many spectacular sights to see on the Discovery Hut Loop Trail.

Glacial lake — A glacial lake on the Discovery Hut Loop Trail. The water is such a fantastic blue color, so difficult to describe!

Water inlet tube — The water supplied to McMurdo comes from the Ross Sea. Along our trail to Ob Hill is the intake tube that brings in the sea water to be desalinated so we have fresh water to drink and bathe in!

seals — You can't see them well in the pic, but there is a seal pup and it's mom just to the left of the rocks down below. More seal pups to come in another journal!

Cirque — A cirque. I was able to figure out this glacial feature all on my own! A depression formed by glaciers moving down mountains and settling causing this bowl shape.

Last look back — Finally down most of the mountain, I took a shot looking up at where we had been. You can see the faint snow line of the trail about halfway up the mountain.

We have yet to hike the Castle Rock Trail. That is the longest trail here and offers the best views of Erebus. It is also the most deadly of the trails. Three hikers have died. One fell off of Castle Rock in an attempt to climb up its rocky face (currently not open due to snow cover) and two others went off trail and fell into a crevasse. I will stay on the trail, as it is only good to practice what I preach... right APES Students? The trail is seven miles with an additional section for Erebus viewing that adds an additional two miles to the journey. I am hoping we can make this hike next weekend if the weather is good. This hike requires an e-foot plan, a radio, and extreme cold weather gear in hand or on body. While a nine mile hike would normally not phase me, here that hike turns into a six hour hike instead of two. You are probably thinking much like I did when I first got here, "how can nine miles take six hours?" Well, after consulting with a number of groups who have done this trail, with picture time and spectating as well as trudging through the snow and stopping at the apple pods, it apparently does take six hours on average. What are apple pods? Not a place that hands out apples, rather, tiny domes along the way in case one needs to warm-up. I haven't been inside one yet, but if we get to make this hike, I am sure we will check one out!

"Apple", a term given to these safety pods. They are spaced on the Castle Rock Trail at one and two mile intervals in case of inclement weather or just a need to warm-up while on the route!

Flat Lorax enjoys all the hiking too. He is suited up in a big red and ready to go courtesy of Hailey, an 8th grader at John Long Middle School in Grafton.