Rothera Life

Hello all!!!!
I am a bit delayed in letting you know that I have safely made it here to Rothera, but better late than never!

Twin otter in flight

After a long day of flying from Europe to Punta Arenas, we got laid up there for a few days before the weather cleared up enough for us to catch our flight to Rothera. Even then we actually only made it half way on our first attempt, having to turn around and head back to Chile due to a thick fog that was going to beat us to our destination.

ROTHERA!!!!

Needless to say, we were all ecstatic when we finally got to see Adelie Island and Rothera's distinctive green buildings out of the window as we flew over the stunning landscape that is now home.

But I'm not sure stunning quite cuts it as a descriptor.

Once we arrived and were promptly fed (something that happens every two hours around here), we had to sit around for a few training sessions and some orientation around base. After that we were able to wander "around the point" and meet some of our fellow mammalian friends - the elephant seals that very much liter the station (and are slowly encroaching more and more up to the buildings).

Leopard seal napping on an ice-flow

Otherwise we have a few other furry friends around, the Weddell seals, Crabeatears and even the elegant Leopard seal (which every time they are spotted we are on hold for diving operations). And we have spotted a few little groups of Adélie penguins waddling about base as well as the occasional Emperor.

Within our first week on base, most of our days were occupied with different bits of training, including some refreshers on the rope training we did a few months ago.
This time however the practice actually involved jumping off a snowy cliff instead of just lying on the grass pretending. It was also followed by an overnight in tents and some decently windy conditions, where we got to set up camp at the base of our local ski run, and eat old military ration packs.

My saviours!

Field training

After all that training and initial excitement, the most exciting part began for me when I got to finally get in the water for a dive! I had been a bit sniffly for the first few days at work, so was content sitting on the boat and helping with the surface side of diving operations here up until then.
But wow was it worth the wait, even on the "boring" dive near the wharf, I was reminded how great the visibility is underwater here and just how colorful everything really is.

As seen from the boat, 6m above the divers

Last photo by my camera.... :(

Sadly that dive also got the best of my new camera, so I will be doing my best to get that replaced quickly!

Now if you remember, I'm a bit of an avid skiier aswell, and have sadly not really gotten the chance to do much downhill skiing in the past few years.

Being towed up behind a snowmobile is great fun

Back on skis!!! At Vals

At Rothera we have the ability to just grab some skis and head out across the runway to ski down "the ramp", where we take turns towing each-other up the hill behind a snowmobile, or go a little further to Vals for a bit more skiing. And those are just the runs easily accessible on our own! With a bit more training and time I should be able to get out to some other areas in the company of a field guide and get some more skiing in!

Needless to say, this is my sort of heaven on earth. Getting to dive, and ski and have great company while looking out the window at some of the most stunningly rugged mountain landscapes and wild animals is truly exceptional.

I'll be back with some more technical updates in a bit, but for now I hope you enjoy this first set of photos and stories, and are staying happy and warm in this approaching holiday season!

After work drink on a "dingle" day!

Oh, and if you hadn't noticed, I chopped off all my hair on arrival to Rothera. The idea behind this was that men often grow their beards out during their Antarctic stay, and for lack of sufficient facial hair, I figured I would allow my hair to grow out and be a bit of a descriptor for how long I have been down here.