There and Back Again Part 1: The Long Expected Journey

The Mount Whitney Quest

My sister and I were named after mountains. Ever since we were little, we talked of climbing our namesake mountains together. The stars must have aligned because we got the chance to climb Mt Whitney on my sister's birthday. With the years of expectation behind this lofty goal, it is no surprise that it was difficult and full of emotion. I've been struggling with a small knee injury from Antarctica ever since my return in February. With it sometimes hurting on trips to get groceries in Edinburgh, I didn't have high hopes of a real summit attempt and I hoped to just be able to make it to the base camp - although I was going to try for the summit I got the chance! Here's my best attempt to walk you through our quest for the summit.

Learning to Breathe 
We started in Edinburgh at an elevation of 240 ft above sea level (73 m). After arriving in San Francisco, we spent a night with my mom and Grandma in Berkeley (390 ft/120 m) and then a night at Lake Tahoe (6000 ft/1829 m). The next day was a longer day of driving (with a stopover at Mono Lake to see tufa where I was subjected to such horrible puns as 'Such a great deal - we get tufa one!' from my mom and 'It's not a tufa!' in Nico's best Schwarzenegger impersonation).

Mono Lake - Nico and Ruth giving the tufa monuments some scale. Very cool to see them and walk around inside the clusters. Next time, we're going swimming in the very salty water :)

 We ended at Onion Valley Campground, at an oxygen-deprived elevation of 9200 ft (2804 m). We stayed at Onion Valley for 4 nights in order to get used to the elevation and do some higher practice hikes. We needed to spend a few nights to let our bodies 'learn how to breathe' at higher elevations.

14 July 2014
Our first practice hike was to Robinson Lake. Based on the limited map we had, we picked this 'short' hike. It's amazing how short a hike can look when it goes straight up a mountain...
It was good practice, got us up to a beautiful lake at higher elevation, and definitely left us with a few new sore muscles.

Elevation at Robinson Lake: 10500 ft / 3200 m

Here's the view of where we went for Robinson Lake - the trail goes up near the waterfall barely visible in the middle of the picture. There's another ridge up to the right and the lake is nestled behind that. A lot more up than it looked on the map because it didn't have many switchbacks! (Photo by Rod)

Ruth, Shasta, and Nico on the hike taking a quick break in a rare flat spot on the trail. (Photo by Whitney)

We had a pair of birds (Clark's nutcrackers) that we saw a couple of times on the hike and they posed quite nicely for us to get some photos. I love my 'new' camera :)

15 July 2014
Potholes (on the path to Kearsarge Pass). Not a long hike, but Rod assures us it is more representative of the Mt. Whitney trail - we can only hope he's right! We all found this trail much easier :)

Elevation at Potholes: 10,050 ft/ 3063 m

Found a nice rock for a break :)

Not as spectacular as many of the other places we saw, but a cute little hike nonetheless. The clouds over the mountain peaks in the background were beautiful.

Allllllvvvvvvviiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnn!!!!!!
(Whitney informs me this is actually a Golden-Mantled Ground Squirrel)

We had a variety of wildflowers along the trail.

The trail following the side of the valley back down to the campground (photo by Nico). 

16 July 2014
Rest day! But the group couldn't help themselves and went to scope out a waterfall nearby anyway. I wandered around camp and took artsy pictures of things.

Artsy flower pictures in the campground.

Waterfall on the trail to Golden Trout Lake (Photo by Nico)

Elevation: 10000 ft/ 3048 m

We all enjoyed quite a bit of camp time in addition to the little hikes each day. I can't remember the last time I got to spend more than a day with my family in one place. We prepared our backpacks for the long trip, packed food, and Rod handed out our permits and maps. It was nice and relaxing (physically), although we were also preparing mentally for the huge hike yet to come!

Whitney & Gavin bumming around at camp.

We celebrated two birthdays in camp.

Nico's birthday: July 15.

Whitney's birthday: July 18 (celebrated repeatedly!)

Playing 'Poo' - a card game about monkeys flinging poo at each other
(a present from us when she earned her PhD after working with monkeys)

Sunrise from camp

The last night was full of trepidation and excitement for the upcoming adventure. Little did we know how big of an adventure it would be!

Castles, castles, and more castles!

5 July 2014
There is a distinct lack of castles in the United States whereas Scotland seems to have plenty of castles to explore. You can't throw a rock without hitting a castle (and chances are good that rock would have came from a castle!). With our brand new Historic Scotland Pass (we get in to all the castles and other historic areas for free now), we have started exploring the castles that are close to Edinburgh. We haven't had to venture out very far and we still haven't exhausted the castles within a day trip from our place! And this list doesn't include the really famous one we walk past every day on our 'commute' to work...

Tantallon, North Berwick (~30 minutes by train)

My first castle here - a fun ruin to explore. There was a nice walk along the top with a beautiful view of the coast and the beautiful, green rolling hills the opposite direction.

The view of the castle as we first approached it.

 A view of the ruins with Bass Rock in the background, which is known for its gannet population. Close to the sea bird center - puffins! I got to add several new birds, including puffins, to my life list :) Puffins are smaller and cuter than I thought and they are now one of my favorite birds.

Craigmillar, 4 miles from our flat (45 minutes by bus or a little more than an hour walking)

Cute castle ruins that are on the outskirts of town. We took a bus and then walked through some forest and fields to get to the castle.

The inside was beautiful and peaceful (the sun helped!). Our picnic was great and we had the castle to ourselves in most places.

There were two amazingly beautiful trees just inside the main doors that gave the courtyard a very ancient feeling.

The view from the top was nice, but this weird guy photobombed my panoramic :)

Linlithgow (~15 minutes by train)

Very cool castle, but we were there when it was crowded so I think we'll have to go back on a non-festival day to enjoy it properly. Jousting was fun to see, but we've really enjoyed exploring on our own at the other castles. At least it's close enough to easily go back!

View from the entrance gate:

The individual rooms and details are amazing - the fountain is spectacular and the Great Hall was the most spectacular one we've seen at any of the castles.

The fountain ran with red wine when one of the kings visited in the castle's prime!

The Great Room was enormous!

The view from the back of the castle as you walk around the loch.

I can't explain why, but I love anything with buttressing :) This was the gun defence added on after other parts had already been built, and they used the buttressing to support a weaker portion of the wall.

 A view out a window in the Queen's Bower.

The view from the very top of the tower with the loch to one side, a small part of the jousting field in the middle, and the peel (the outside park area) on the right.

The jousting event was lots of fun, but too much to add in a regular post on castles. It will have to wait!

Planes in Antarctica: Looking at the bottom of the world from above

2 March 2014

Flying in Antarctica is a unique experience. Forget everything you know about airport security, runways, and flying coach. The ride in the Dash from Punta Arenas to Rothera (with a pit stop in the Falkland Islands to pick up some important gear) felt similar to a commercial plane. However, there were a few differences: the meals and drinks were self-service (nicer than having to wait for flight attendants to deliver meals!) and the luggage was loaded in the front part of the plane.

Dash on the way from South America to Rothera. Note hanging monkey on the right side of the plane :)

View of the Twin Otters and the Dash in the hangar at Rothera.

The first view of Antarctic mountains out the plane window caused a stir of excitement – all of the newbies hopped up and ran to windows while the old-timers simply smiled at us (but they were quite indulgent – they remember what it was like!). To be fair, everyone there seems to realize how lucky they are to be in such an amazing place.

The Base Commander met us at the plane and welcomed us to Rothera. I had trouble not smiling for the first few hours, despite the busy schedule of briefings, getting settled, and meals.  

Welcome to Antarctica! All smiles :)

Flying on the Twin Otter, the plane they used to fly us out in the field, was yet another completely different experience. The Twin Otters have skis and wheels, so they can land on paved runways, blue ice, or snow in the field. We had some unique problems with runway obstruction – seals and penguins that needed to move before we could start the plane and takeoff! There were regular seats, but they were small and cramped, even for my short legs, so it was usually much nicer to find other sleeping arrangements on top of the gear. 

On our way to the field! 

A VERY large runway obstruction :)

John taking advantage of the relatively small and comfy pile of gear on our way out to the field.

With the Twin Otters, you’re not just a passenger – we get to help load/unload the plane and ride as copilots! Watching six guys maneuver a skidoo onto or off of a small plane is quite impressive.

Hauling our stuff (using skidoos and sledges) to get ready for the plane.

Loading the plane at Sky-Blu. Time for a workout for us while the pilots play tetris with the gear!

The base was essentially a working airport. We could use the runway or apron (the area in front of the hangar) for activities like running or playing football (soccer), as long as the siren wasn’t going and we checked with the tower first. The other “airports” we used were mostly just for refueling/reloading. We flew from Rothera to Fossil Bluff (first ski landing!) and then on to Sky-Blu (blue-ice runway).

Refueling at Fossil Bluff - note the skis :)

Plane landing at Sky-Blu.

Melon hut at Sky-Blu. Our first stop on our way back to "civilization" from the field. 

Flying was smoother than I ever thought – hardly any motion sickness, no turbulence, and smoother landings than any of my recent commercial flights, even on snow J The pilots are some of the best in the world. Although the forecasters do their best to keep the pilots out of bad weather, they have to be ready to deal with unpredictable weather in remote locations. We had some amazing flying days with beautiful views down below. It's a pretty amazing experience that we were lucky enough to have as part of our field work.

I was trying to get a photo of the iceberg as we flew by, but it was too close for a good photo! Amazing experience flying at iceberg level, watching seals jump off icebergs below.

Clouds and their shadows on the ice and mountains.

Beautiful blue meltwater near Fossil Bluff. 

It's Time to Leave Already?

5 February 2014
Although we've been working hard to dry, organize, and pack up our science kit so it can be transported home on the ship, we have been taking advantage of the area to have fun. Others have been out skiing or snowboarding. If the weather improves, there will probably be the opportunity for a bit more hiking and climbing on a nearby ridge. We took a short field trip to a crevasse on the hill above base. This crevasse is more like a show cave in slow-moving ice. It changes a bit each year, but they keep opening it up and setting up ropes so people can see it each year, so it's pretty stable and relatively safe. We geared up with some waterproof outer wear, mountaineering boots and crampons (little, sharp pieces of metal attached to your boot so you can walk on ice), harness and ropes so we could get into the crevasse and attach ourselves to the ropes inside, and helmets to protect us from falling icicles and other miscellaneous bonks on the head.

It was absolutely stunning inside the cave! The blue color inside made it feel even more like a dream. It felt very much like a cave as we were lowered down a steep incline through a relatively small opening at the top. Inside, it had various ice formations inside with full-length icicles that reached from floor to ceiling, rows of skinny icicles, and areas where new crystals were growing in beautiful shapes on the outside of icicles. It is impossible to capture in photos, but I tried my best!

We're out of time, but we've all got more plans of things we'd like to do before we leave. I guess those will have to wait until next trip... unless our flight gets delayed. Nothing is final here until it happens and plans are only guaranteed to change. Being ready to take advantage of opportunities as they arise is the best way to enjoy life here. Although it also provides the possibility of creating your own opportunity if there's something you really want to do - everyone is flexible and there are always people willing to try new things.

Saying goodbye to Rothera will be hard. I think I will miss the little things the most. We were on gash (cleaning duty in the communal areas like bathrooms and kitchen) and washing dishes while we watched icebergs move past the window. I walked 10 minutes down the point and took a panoramic picture that contained at least 15 seals (three different kinds!) and 5 penguins with a background of rocky outcrops, mountains, and ice. Although it's started getting darker at night here, I've enjoyed ~20 hours of sun each day (although the temperature is also dropping on base, so not quite tanning weather!). Not to mention the daily penguin hazard: almost tripping over penguins that like to hang out near the living areas :) We head out tomorrow - backto the 'real' world, ready or not!

Back on Base (Rothera)

28 January 2014
We didn't end up getting out on Jan 26 after all. We spent all morning packing up as much of camp as possible without packing up our personal things that we use each night and then the weather turned and the first plane didn't end up coming at all. We had just over 10,000 pounds of gear and people, which works out to 5 Twin Otter plane loads that needed to come out of the field. The logistics for all of this are amazingly complex, but well managed.

Black and white photo of some of the clouds forming over Marble Hills

When we woke up on Jan 27, we were told that the first plane would be there in a little under 2 hours - birthday present for me! It's very cool to see the plane land on skis on the snow runway. These pilots are some of the best in the world and it is so amazing to see them practice their trade. We also get to be copilots for some of the legs of the trip, which means we get to sit up front and help the pilot. How many people get to fly an airplane in Antarctica?

Leaving the field was more emotional than I expected and I was sad to leave, but there are some advantages to being back in civilization so I tried to focus on the positive things (like water that comes out of a faucet instead of having to melt it myself!). All the scientists (sometimes affectionately referred to as 'Beakers' by the other people on base) were uplifted in the first plane and we flew back to Sky-Blu (~3 hours). We helped unload the plane and then were given a wonderful lunch of bacon sandwiches and tea. Another two planes came in with more gear later, but other than that we had a bit of free time to chat with the people who were working at Sky-Blu or enjoy the warm, sunny day. I took the opportunity to take some fun photos with my new camera in weather so warm (comparatively speaking) that I was almost too hot in my field clothes! It was still -8 degrees Celsius, but with sun and no wind it felt very warm.

We spent the night at Sky-Blu in a tent (they are used to visiting guests and have room for 8 people extra to spend the night). We got up in the morning and got on a Twin Otter headed back to Rothera via Fossil Bluff around midday. We got back on base early enough to have a quick shower before tea (the big meal at the end of the day, also referred to as dinner or supper in the States). We were told that we wouldn't be allowed in the dining room until after the shower, so it's a good thing we arrived at a reasonable hour!

View out one of the windows on the Twin Otter as we headed home from Fossil Bluff - very lucky to fly on a mostly sunny day!

The shower was amazing and eating non-dehydrated food was good, but the field season was relatively short compared to others and we hadn't started having cravings yet. It's nice to have a bit of luxury - going into the bedroom using a door instead of a small tent hole, heated towel racks, flush toilet instead of a toilet tent, clean clothes, not re-hydrated vegetables, electricity at all hours of the day, and warm water that comes out of the tap. However, I also miss the field. Everyday life sometimes feels more difficult in the field because I had to think about so many new things every day - just staying warm was hard, let alone drinking and eating enough, not being sunburned, wearing the right clothing, and trying to stay focused and organized enough to also get the science completed.  But life in the field is also simpler in some ways: get up, stay alive, do science, prepare for tomorrow, sleep. Life in the real world takes a back seat to these everyday tasks. Other things seem distant, both physically and figuratively, and you are able to achieve complete focus on the immediate scientific tasks on hand.

It will take some time to get acclimatized to being back on base, but I hope to keep some of the focus that I found in the field and use it to keep working on my projects as I slowly return to 'real life'. A part of me will miss being in the field, but I'm looking forward to other aspects of the project and seeing where the journey takes us.

Celebration in the Field

26 January 2014
I was very happy to hear that I would be in the field for my birthday - who could ask for a better present? It happened to coincide with our uplift date (the date we start trying to leave the field), so we moved our celebration earlier to Jan 25, which conveniently coincides with a Scottish holiday called Burns Night. We also hadn't used all our special food (stuff that isn't dehydrated) and there's no point in hauling that back. Our special food included a bit of alcohol as well. All of these things combined to create an absolutely amazing night of celebration.

Out in the Patriot Hills playing with boulders and building up an appetite with Scott, one of our Field Assistants

We started the meal off with a creative chicken dish. Phil (a field assistant) used the relatively mundane ingredients in the cooking box to create a delicious tomato-based sauce for chicken breasts (mainly tomato paste, honey, chili powder, and lime juice). Then we had a baked Camembert with a glass of red wine. The meal continued with a fantastic walnut and date bread (they call it cake here, but it's essentially a dense bread in American terminology). At this point, they broke out improvised candles and sang 'Happy Birthday'. Andy even brought presents all the way from Edinburgh!

Presents from Andy and Kate with a card from the whole field party. Andy gave me a book: The locals' guide to Edinburgh. We used it in place of Robert Burns' poetry on Burns Night - I learned some new Scottish words. It will probably require its own post later. So much new vocabulary on this trip!

Typically, Burns Night is celebrated in Scotland by reading Robert Burns' poetry (typically 'Ode to Haggis' at the very least) and then stabbing the haggis. We didn't have haggis (Kate is from Scotland and might have tried, but she didn't think that would have made it through Chilean customs on the way down!). Instead, Kate shared her homemade tablet (this is a Scottish dish - kind of similar to fudge, but a bit harder and it can be difficult to perfect, but it was delicious). We opened a bottle of Scottish whisky (Balvenie, 12 years for anyone who's interested) and hung out talking until we headed to bed late. It feels like we saved a lot up for one evening, but we had an amazing time in the field, successfully completing all our scientific goals for the trip, and we definitely deserved a bit of a celebration! I can't think of a better end to the trip...trying to start uplift today so we'll just have to see how it goes!