basagix field notes

I awoke this morning to the sound of exploding rockfall from the mountain above. I unzipped the tent in time to see the peppering of boulders strike the slopes below and begin to tumble while rock dust began to cloud the area. Several boulders continued to tumble down the slopes far enough and long enough to calculate its trajectory. When all settled, a long streak of permafrost was exposed along the slope below the rockfall. An incredible way to awake on Christmas morning. Life is going well here at Lake Hoare. Work has kept me busy over the past several weeks and maintaining this blog had became far too difficult. I am doing my best to catch up on things during the two day holiday. Ive been working on maintaining weather stations, installing new instruments, and assisting Liz and Matt with their experiments. The sensors on the weather stations need to be swapped for calibrated sensors every 2 to 3 years. I visit most stations by helicopter, and others by foot.

On Saturday morning I hiked the high route to Lake Bonney. My pack was full of meteorological sensors, warm clothing, a sleeping bag, pee bottles, and lots of high calorie food. My path went up Andrew's Ridge, across the upper valley, over to the Marr Glacier lakes, then down through the ventifact gardens to Lake Bonney camp. My favorite part of this hike is coming off the high route where you can opt to walk along a thin black dike protruding from the granite. The view of Taylor Glacier winding its way up toward the polar plateau is spectacular. My purpose to head up to Lake Bonney was to meet with a BBC film crew. The group was shooting footage for a bit on climate change and the role of Antarctica. Two other LTER groups were already busy at work when I arrived at camp. The BBC crew were interested in what we were all doing, but were most interested in collecting footage to tell their story. I was interviewed while working on the L. Bonney weather station. Then again that evenin...

Liz, Danny, and I have completed the glacier measurements on Commonwealth, Howard, Canada, Seuss, Hughes, and Taylor Glaciers. The work went very smoothly and we had good weather (clear to overcast, temps around -10 C, calm winds). We didn't find much new snow accumulation from last year. Most all of the new snow was from the recent October storms which was heavily reworked by the wind. a typical day during glacier measurements… wake for coffee and bagel make lunch and suit up helicopter pick up, fly to glacier drop survival bags off at base of glacier then fly to the upper glacier and get dropped off measure stake heights and snow density while walking down the glacier ~6 miles(preferred over walking up glacier) helicopter pick up at end of day transfer data into field notebook enjoy a delicious meal. From Antarctica 20...

worked on Commonwealth glacier today making mass balance measurements with Liz and Danny (FSTP). Good day out. The katabatic winds that have been blowing for the last 3 days let up. The winds blew out all the snow and warmed the temps to -4 C. I just got good news that my luggage has arrived on the continent. One step closer.

Wednesday morning was white with blowing snow. With all the poor weather, it was looking unlikely that Liz and I would be able to make it out to Lake Hoare on our scheduled helicopter flight. Rae surprised us in town and was scheduled to fly out with us. After lunch, the snow ceased and visibility improved a little. Just 30 mins after our scheduled time we received a call notifying us that they were going give it a shot. We loaded our helicopter and were on our way. Our pilot, Paul, navigated out to the ice edge and then over to the valleys. An unusual sight welcomed us into the Dry Valleys... several inches of snow cloaked the valley floor all the way up to the peaks. It looked like a different place. I was quite happy landing at Lake Hoare. Sandra welcomed us and we began to unpack. Later in the evening I was overcome with joy.. eating some of Rae's famous pad thai, sipping a GnT and finishing the evening with a very fine moist German chocolate cake that Sandra made. Its good to...

4 days after our arrival in MCM, Liz and I are ready to head into the field. We have completed our refresher courses on cold weather injury, radio and communications, drill and augers, and an environmental course that highlights ways to reduce the impact on the fragile environment of the Dry Valleys while working there. We have also completed preparing our cargo. While our project is far from"fast and light", our project strives to keep things simple and by Antarctic standards light. That said, I have just completed organizing and packing 1200 pounds of cargo which will be flown to the field with us. Personal gear for Liz and I is about 150 pounds. The remaining is camp gear, lab and meteorological equipment including car batteries, sensors, dataloggers, etc. There is a large amount of work and many tasks which must be completed before heading into the field. What make its possible to complete is the amazing science support. The folks down here are amazing at what they do. ...

My time in Christchurch was good and fairly brief. I was able to enjoy a breakfast at the Windsor Hotel and some Ginger Tom beer. I was outfitted with cold weather clothing at the CDC and off the next day to MCM. We had a good flight. I was able to visit the cockpit while flying over the Transantarctic Mountains... beautiful icy peaks poking out of the low clouds. Upon arrival with the plane doors open, I emerged on a familiar place where it felt nothing had changed. Time away from here feels like it is preserved in a dream. The weather has been colder than previous years. After getting settle here in McMurdo Station, Liz and I quickly shift to preparing our equipment and attending field refresher training. Its also really good to see old friends down here, its quite an extraordinary community down here. I am glad I wore clothes I liked because my luggage is still missing. Its good to be reminded that I really don't need all that stuff. Not yet at least.

I now live closer to a large airport than in any other time in my life. The frequent sounds of small craft overhead have been incorporated into the background of my life. This morning is an exception. I awake to the groans of a commercial airliner laboring on its decent to Portland. The sound of planes seems more relevant, today I begin my journey south. With last minute packing completed my friend Rhonda gives me a ride to the airport... 230pm - Portland - I am bounced between airliners as my original flight was late. I get all the extra treatment in security for having all the last minute changes. 630pm -Los Angeles - Arrive in LAX and meet up with my field partner Liz. We grab sushi and head through security. 830pm - Begin the long journey over the Pacific. Got some good sleep in. watched "Once" and a documentary on El Nino. - - - Crossed international dateline and entered "the future" - - - 530am - Arrive in Aucklund after 12 hour flight. One bag missing. (U...

The time is upon me to prepare for another trip to the ice. My life is wrapped in lists... work lists: write programs (for aspirated fan, TDR, conductivity), backup data, calibrate probes, compile GPS points; and personal lists... cancel phone, remove car insurance, $ chapstick and sunglasses, pay remaining bills, catch up with family and friends before leaving. Oh, I haven't forgotten coffee. About 3 weeks ago, I sent a package to myself on the ice with coffee (4lbs) and chipotle. Two things that improve life... anywhere. Current packing consists of a big pile of clothes in my room and a large number of sensors and coils of wires at work. Soon it will coalesce into two large cases for a 9042 mile adventure. Just one week to go.