Monday 19 April 2004
Winter holidays
The light is fading rapidly now and the temperature has dropped below -40C for the first time. The last of the winter trips has now finished, which reminded me that I never described my first Antarctic holiday which was a few weeks ago. I got a week off, and the plan was to go and visit an area called the Hinge Zone which is 45km south of Halley. Unfortunately I ended up spending most of the time stuck on base because the weather wasn't good enough to travel in. We did get a couple of days away though, and they more than made up for the frustration.
To get there we travelled in linked skidoo convoys: one skidoo attached by rope to a sledge, which in turn is linked to a second skidoo, and finally a second sledge. Travelling like this takes a certain amount of skill and concentration - let the rope between you go too tight and the skidoo in front will be taking all the weight, but if the rope slackens off it can get caught beneath your tracks and flip your skidoo! Unfortunately the extra effort is necessary over crevassed terrain - if one skidoo falls in a crevasse it shouldn't go too far and if one sledge is lost the other contains enough supplies to get by. The skidoos we used are the best and most reliable on base. They even have heated handlebars to keep your hands toasty on long journeys!
It took us around 4 hours to get to the camp site and as we got closer the scenery slowly changed from the flat white ice shelf we know so well to the rolling hills and cliffs of the Hinge Zone. When you're so used to a featureless landscape even small hills seemed like spectacular mountain ranges!
When we arrived we spent a few hours putting up our pyramid tents, unpacking the supplies and covering the skidoos to protect them from drifting snow. By the time we'd cooked some dinner and contacted base by radio it was time to go to sleep.
We awoke the next morning to a fantastic clear day - which meant we were able to get out and see some of the sights. We got kitted out in all our gear (crampons, harnesses, ropes, climbing equipment and ice axes) and headed by foot to the nearby hills. Like skidoo travel crevasses are the main danger while walking around, they can be covered by fragile snow bridges that hide their existence until you walk across them. Once again we travelled in roped pairs and will all the equipment you need to get out by yourself, or to winch out your partner in case they get in trouble.
As we walked about our field guide Ed taught us the best way to use our crampons on different surfaces - by the end of the day we were using them to climb fairly steep icey cliffs. We walked along ridges, up a small berg, and climbed up into an ice cave known as Aladdin's Cave. It was a brilliant day out, although we were all quite tired by the time we got back.
The next day we were hoping to abseil into a crevasse, but the wind had picked up by then so we spent the day holed up in our tent. After that we had to pack up and head home to give the next group a chance to get out. I had an excellent time, and I'm very much looking forward to the post-winter trips in a few months time, when we get ten days away.
Posted by simon at 9:32 AM