Oct. 18

Today was the beginning of our field survival training (a.k.a. happy campers school), which is a ritual that all people have to go through who are going to spend any time out in the field. This is a two-day course that teaches you the basics of "snowcraft" and survival in the extreme Antarctic weather. They loaded us all into what is called a Nodwell, which is a giant tracked vehicle, and transported us out onto a glacier, to a place called Snow Mound City. It's called Snow Mound City because it is where the field training is always held for the U.S. program, and there are the remnants of a number of snow mounds left over from other groups. Off to the southwest you could just see Scott Base, which is the New Zealand Base, and to the west was a ridge with a large icefall on it, which even dwarfed Dan.

A long way to the south you could see White Island (so named because its covered with snow) and Black Island (which is mostly rock and so appears black). Black Island is interesting because there is a small group of seals that have been stuck there, far from where Weddell seals usually occur, for several generations and survived in a tidal crack in the glacier. It was a quite beautiful area.

We then started up with our training and learned how to pitch a Scott tent, which is a true Antarctic tent that has been used since some of the earliest Antarctic explorers raced to the South Pole. The Scott tent is the tall yellow pyramid. We also learned how to pitch more modern tents (Sierra Design Four Season tents) and to make structures out of blocks of snow, namely walls, which act as windbreaks. The snow was remarkably pliable; you just use a saw and cut out blocks of it. Of course there is a slight learning curve and it takes some practice to get the hang of it. But very soon you can start churning out blocks of snow at a good clip. We made a snow wall to protect the Four Season tents, and used the quarry as a kitchen area. It was actually quite cozy all things considered.

We also made a snow mound, which is essentially an igloo without blocks. We made a HUGE pile of snow and packed it down to harden it. We then dug a passageway that went down and curved up into the chamber, this helped to retain heat inside the center since heat, as we all know, rises. It was really neat inside and was dead quiet, but making it was pretty hard, and at one point I (Aaron) started to feel a tad bit tired and decided it was the perfect time for my very best imitation of the rare McMurdo Tortoise. I'm quite proud of it.

In addition we learned how to make survival trenches. You dig a trench and cover it with something (i.e. a sled, tarp, etc…), which you then cover with snow. Then you slip into it and cover up the opening behind you and wait out the storm in relative peace and quiet. All in all we made quite a lovely camp and spent the rest of the evening enjoying each others "rich camaraderie" as our instructor put it.

Our dinner consisted of dehydrated foods, which aren't the tastiest meals, but when you are hungry they'll do. We then retired to our respective tents, trenches, and snow mounds for the evening. We were issued wonderful down sleeping bags and fleece liners, which keep you quite warm. Only your face is exposed. All through the evening it seemed to be snowing on us inside the tents, which was a bit puzzling, until we realized it was our breath and condensation freezing and falling back onto us. It was an exhausting day and chilly night, but was quite an experience.