16 October 2003
A busy day (finally!)

Stacy writing...

With our acquisition yesterday of the PolarHaven, we know we can dive today even if the weather is just okay. But it has been 2 days since the holes were drilled, with lots of wind and snow in between, so the first order of business was clearing the dive holes. Except for me; pulling rank to avoid shoveling, I was again diving with the surface supply rig in the contaminated area in Winter Quarters Bay. We use surface supply, which includes a full face mask, for diving in areas where we do not want any part of our skin to contact the water. The mask provides communication between the diver and the surface, so I can have Rob record data on the surface, rather than having to write with my big clunky gloves, and more importantly, have him sing me songs and tell me jokes. Katelyn, our volunteer dive tender for the morning, was very quiet but did a great job of hauling me around in my bulky dive gear.

	Rob Robbins helps me suit up in the surface supply gear.

	Fully encumbered, I slip into the water like a graceful seal - NOT!

Meanwhile the "kids" were struggling with shovels and dipnets to clear the other 5 holes.

Dan demonstrating a proper supervisorial stance, while exorting his team members to work faster.

I completed the suite of sampling, including catching a fish by hand, in about 40 minutes. Then we trundled back to the station, and handed off the video camera to the next dive team, Craig and Dan. Fresh batteries and away they went with Jennifer, and Sarah and Teri (volunteers) to work at site "Transition." They got everything done except for the video, because of an issue with the "freaking lasers" that we use to tell the sizes of animals - there was a bit of mud crammed into the lens. Meanwhile, Jonna, Jim and I worked in the lab to process the morning's samples for later analyses.

	Dan tries to figure out why the lasers are not working, while Craig tests the new housing for his digital camera.

The mid-day dive group returned, and a desperately quick turnaround ensued, because I got a page during lunch from the drill crew that they would meet us at Cinder Cones, about 5 miles away, to drill our dive holes there. Craig sat in the back of the Pisten Bully trying to cram a sandwich into his mouth while I drove like a maniac (at 15 miles per hour, the Pisten Bullys top speed) to catch up with Steve, Thom, and Tim. Steve operates the drill rig, Thom is learning, and Tim drives a Challenger towing our dive hut. All are incredibly helpful, fun, and very hard working.

The complete setup for drilling dive holes (from right to left): a D8 Cat, ReedDrill, Pisten Bully, Challenger and dive hut #8.

Because our sites were close to shore, we had to cross a network of tidal cracks where the stiff ice surface has broken to accommodate the tidal rise and fall of the ocean beneath it. This requires drilling holes to determine how thick the ice is, to see if it can support the weight we need to drive across it. The thinnest place in the ice was 3 ft. thick, enough to support our Pisten Bully, and fortunately less than 5 ft across, so the heavy equipment could cross it as well.

With Steve in the lead carrying the Echo drill with a 6 ft bit, we prepare to profile one of the cracks we need to cross.

Safely to the site, the crew quickly sets up to drill, and in short order, punches 3 dive holes in the ice, with us wielding shovels and dipnets to assist. We have one main hole, and two safety holes in case there is some reason (like a fat seal) that we cannot get back out the main dive hole. There is a great story about divers returning once to a hut on fire - another reason to have safety holes!

	The drill in action. The 4 ft bit takes only minutes to go through 15 feet of sea ice. We scientists are allowed to handle "D1" tractors - also known as shovels.

Finally, they set our hut over our main dive hole, centering it under a hole in the floorboards. Craig, in a fit of pique over being the only one without a piece of heavy equipment to operate, drove the Pisten Bully back and forth to make a nice porch in front of the hut. The hard work finished, they left us arranging the stove and food, and lighting the Preway heater to make it all cozy for diving.

	As the last thing, I set up the chimney over the heater that will keep us warm amid the ice.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Jennifer and Jim went diving, with Dan and volunteer Anna to tend. They did the sampling at the "Road" site - except for the video, because they forgot the lights! On their return to the lab, they processed all the samples from the midday and afternoon dives. Whew! When we get going, we really fly!

Because we were so jazzed with the good weather, and the fact that 2 planes finally came in (after a week of cancellations because the weather has been so bad), we decided to do a bit more work after dinner. Dan and Jennifer went and dug out our snowmobiles and got them started – the storms had torn the cover on one to shreds and filled it with snow. Craig and I went to do a test deployment of the S4 current meter, which has been the bane of Craig's existence due to poorly written instructions. Then we all got together for a short walk down to Hut Point, where we went into the historic hut built by Robert Falcon Scott more than 10 years ago. For a short history of the Discovery Hut, CLICK HERE.

	Rations left over from 1902.

Amid the stacks of seal blubber and digestive biscuits that served for their food for months and even years, we thought about how hard surviving in the Antarctic was then, and how easy it is now. But then we got cold and came back to our warm lab to enjoy the sun dipping behind Mt. Discovery in comfort.

The "I really do know how to use the self timer" sequence. Dan is looking down, wondering why Jen isn't in the picture.	"Does it go off after 5 or 10 seconds?"

FINALLY! Our intreped team (sans Jonna the Crip) before Scott's Discovery Hut, with McMurdo Station in the background. A contrast of 100 years - progress?