Kayaking the Antarctic
If you have not been following Jon Bowermaster's trip by kayak into the Antarctic--you must (it's almost over!). The images of ice, penguins and seals are simply extraordinary and he describes the day to day of this five-week adventure in terrific detail, capturing in words and audio tapes the beauty of being in a kayak in such a place. Don't miss his audio in week 4 (Jan 22) when he talks about the sounds in the Antarctic. He says that sounds are what linger from the Antarctic. I'd agree with this. The silence (of course) but also wind, the movement of ice, the clang of penguins (you can hear the sounds of penguins in the video on the Hazards of Penguin Life--which is also very funny).
Being in a kayak in Antarctic waters--this is something I can not imagine (a slice of fiberglass separating you from water that hovers just above freezing...). If you watch the video clips you can see how careful they are in the boats; watch the video of paddling through pack ice.
In between the daily posts, Elizabeth K. Andre offers helpful information on ice, or climate change or katabatic winds. The albino penguin pictured here was seen on January 25--one of my favorite posts (week 4).
(Jon has a thrilling story in Antarctica: Life on the Ice about flying onto the continent with Adventure Network International.)
If you have not been following Jon Bowermaster's trip by kayak into the Antarctic--you must (it's almost over!). The images of ice, penguins and seals are simply extraordinary and he describes the day to day of this five-week adventure in terrific detail, capturing in words and audio tapes the beauty of being in a kayak in such a place. Don't miss his audio in week 4 (Jan 22) when he talks about the sounds in the Antarctic. He says that sounds are what linger from the Antarctic. I'd agree with this. The silence (of course) but also wind, the movement of ice, the clang of penguins (you can hear the sounds of penguins in the video on the Hazards of Penguin Life--which is also very funny).
Being in a kayak in Antarctic waters--this is something I can not imagine (a slice of fiberglass separating you from water that hovers just above freezing...). If you watch the video clips you can see how careful they are in the boats; watch the video of paddling through pack ice.
In between the daily posts, Elizabeth K. Andre offers helpful information on ice, or climate change or katabatic winds. The albino penguin pictured here was seen on January 25--one of my favorite posts (week 4).
(Jon has a thrilling story in Antarctica: Life on the Ice about flying onto the continent with Adventure Network International.)
India in the Antarctic
Sudhir Khandelwal, a psychologist from Delhi, India has been blogging from the Indian base, Maitri this 2008 season. According to the News Post India his is the first-ever blog from an Indian from Antarctica. It's a great blog--at the moment focusing on the skuas he has named Shiv and Uma and their chicks. The photos of the views of Lake Priyandiarshini, seen from their base, are simply beautiful.
I realize, in writing this post how American-based focused I am (for obvious reasons). But 30 countries operate bases--either permanent or summer only--on the continent. I'd love to visit some of them.
Sudhir Khandelwal, a psychologist from Delhi, India has been blogging from the Indian base, Maitri this 2008 season. According to the News Post India his is the first-ever blog from an Indian from Antarctica. It's a great blog--at the moment focusing on the skuas he has named Shiv and Uma and their chicks. The photos of the views of Lake Priyandiarshini, seen from their base, are simply beautiful.
I realize, in writing this post how American-based focused I am (for obvious reasons). But 30 countries operate bases--either permanent or summer only--on the continent. I'd love to visit some of them.
In December 1959, twelve nations signed the Antarctic Treaty: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, the French Republic, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, the Union of South Africa, The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America. In May 2000, sixteen more countries joined, including India (there are now a total of 46 member nations). They built a base called Dakshin Gangotri (Dakshin means glacier and Gangotri is a glacier that flows into the Ganges) in 1983 that was buried by snow and ice and abandoned in 1991. In 1988 Maitri opened in East Antarctica in the Schirmacher Region. Here's a map:
Christmas at the South Pole
Somehow Glenn Grant ("Shrink Rap" in Antarctica: Life on the Ice) has ended up at the South Pole after months of being off the map. He has been working on an ice breaker and has traveled to both sides--and the middle--of the continent. More to come on his adventures--I hope. Meanwhile, this photo shows that the inventiveness of Polies can not be beat.
Glenn's hilarious essay in the anthology is about the dreaded psych test, which all who winter-over have to take.
Somehow Glenn Grant ("Shrink Rap" in Antarctica: Life on the Ice) has ended up at the South Pole after months of being off the map. He has been working on an ice breaker and has traveled to both sides--and the middle--of the continent. More to come on his adventures--I hope. Meanwhile, this photo shows that the inventiveness of Polies can not be beat.
Glenn's hilarious essay in the anthology is about the dreaded psych test, which all who winter-over have to take.
Book Passage Reading on TV
On December 7, Lucy Jane Bledsoe, Bill Fox, Kristan Hutchison, and Joe Mastroianni read (brilliantly) from Antarctica: Life on the Ice at Book Passage, the "Bay Area's Liveliest Bookstore." And it is a wonderful place, with a string of amazing readings and a terrific audience. The reading was filmed by ForaTV and you can watch it here.
The next day I swam outside (heated pool!) then visited with my high school friend Neil Wright (then known as Munch) and we relived the summer of 1979 spent climbing in Eldorado Canyon, Colorado. There were a few epics--Rosy Crucifixion--that we both remembered vividly. From time to time I still have nightmares about that climb... Neil practices acupuncture in Santa Cruz, is married and has two children he clearly adores.
On December 7, Lucy Jane Bledsoe, Bill Fox, Kristan Hutchison, and Joe Mastroianni read (brilliantly) from Antarctica: Life on the Ice at Book Passage, the "Bay Area's Liveliest Bookstore." And it is a wonderful place, with a string of amazing readings and a terrific audience. The reading was filmed by ForaTV and you can watch it here.
The next day I swam outside (heated pool!) then visited with my high school friend Neil Wright (then known as Munch) and we relived the summer of 1979 spent climbing in Eldorado Canyon, Colorado. There were a few epics--Rosy Crucifixion--that we both remembered vividly. From time to time I still have nightmares about that climb... Neil practices acupuncture in Santa Cruz, is married and has two children he clearly adores.
Saturday night I wandered back into Book Passage and one of my heroes, Helen Thayer, was presenting from her most recent book, Walking the Gobi: 1,600 Miles Across a Desert of Hope and Despair.
At age 63, Helen walked across the Gobi desert with her husband and two
camels (Tom and Jerry). I'm a few chapters into the book but it has
Helen's wonderful cheer and energy and determination. Remember, she's
the one who traveled solo to the North Pole with her dog when she was
50. I'm waiting to see what she does when she turns 70.