Stop, drop, and Helo ( Now w/ new and improved PICTURES!!)

12 Nov 10'
First flight on a helicopter.

Bored to death...

I am astounded by the smoothness of lift. As I am slowly picked up by the pressure differential and alleviated of my groundation and brought to new heights.

"Ob" Hill from the air

We cross the sea ice and finally glimpse a full spectrum of the island I have called my home for three weeks. As all day is sunny and weekends mean nothing, it is somewhat implausible for me to actually estimate the time spent on that volcanic strata emerging from its icy encapsulation.

McMurdo and Mt. Erebus

Mt. Erebus and the sea ice

Ocean eroding the sea ice

I am thus shaken by the rotors as I came to from a serotonin stupor. To the north lies ocean begging at the ice shelf slowly biting away at the edge with each lap of its wet tongue.

Ancient glaciers turned to icebergs frozen in time

Edge of the Antarctic continent

We are headed to the dry valleys. Where ice sublimates, the sun rises and sets but once a year, and ice is a hot commodity for everyday life. As the salt caravan of Timbuktu, ice provides all necessities from drinking to cooking, as well as unnecessary but practical goals including showers and ATV travel.

Commonwealth glacier and the down valley edge of my adventures

Upon landing I noted a sense of urgency to leave the Aura of wind generated by the rotors. I am slowly acquainted with the group of 7 or 8 which is soon to be 15, then suddenly fluctuated back to 3 or 4.

The mountains of surreal quartz veins scaring the granite facade absorb my mind while I try to balance over out of peripheral rocks and mummified penguin corpses.

Commonwealth glacier and lake fryxell looking North

My tunnel vision has transfixed all but my wandering imagination at what lies atop every rock building upon each other to create these lifeless titans. If this landscape touches my soul with a bite of gasping amazement I can only wonder at how the first parties felt over a hundred years ago. This is truly the last frontier or was before satellites. For when some conquer nature and explore undocumented lands, that is all they are. Undocumented. People have inhabited them for a long time and setting foot upon that land gives you as much right to name it as fence demands you property. Antarctica however is not only void of people, it has never housed people to begin. Although some far distanced culture may have centered their bodies in the penguin circles protecting from the elements all the while harvesting a few penguins now and then to promote healthy living.

Canada Glacier emptying in to Lake Fryxell

Canada Glacier flowing down the valley

The rocks here have never been touched, the mummies have never fully decomposed, and the mystery of the energy in these mountains will hopefully never be solved.

Our camp Lake Hoare and Canada glacier