Hello from Christchurch, New Zealand!

We arrived in Christchurch, New Zealand yesterday afternoon after a quite pleasant 13-hour flight from Los Angeles. The US Antarctic Program (USAP) is a finely-tuned machine. Upon arrival in Christchurch, we were greeted in baggage claim by a shuttle operator who cheerily delivered us without incident to our respective bed and breakfasts. Michael and I are staying in the Windsor Hotel, which is a favorite of people going down to "the Ice." We checked in with about 10 other Ice folks, including two other members of our 6-person field group. The hoteliers are accustomed to the Ice routine, and were prepared with our schedule for the next day and a half.

We were all desperate for a shower and a full meal after nearly 24 hours of traveling. After washing up, we met at another Ice institution - the Dux de Lux, and spent the rest of the evening there and elsewhere catching up and savoring our pre-Ice time. It is summer here! We are soaking up the t-shirt and flip-flop weather while we can. Greg, Michael and I toured Christchurch's spectacular botanical gardens, before grabbing an evening drink on the square. In cool evening weather, we enjoyed the distant sounds of a huge Christmas concert (complete with fireworks!). The juxtaposition of 70-degree weather and holiday decorations seems odd to most of us from the Northern Hemisphere.

Today, we were whisked to the US Antarctic Program's Clothing Distribution Center (CDC) at the Christchurch Airport. Upon arrival we were briefed about our Extreme Cold Weather (ECW) gear, and sent to changing rooms to try on what they had issued us. After an hour of requesting new sizes, extra socks and other essentials, we had finished the clothing issue process. I'll post a picture later of what we scored - it's an impressive array of gear! We left our bags of gear there, separated into what we're required to wear on the plane and what we'll check with the rest of our gear. The CDC is in the midst of USAP's heart of operations in Christchurch; during our time there we also cleared our laptops for use on McMurdo Station's network, and showed proof of our our required flu immunization. After a shuttle back to Christchurch, we were ready for lunch:

Left to Right: Kat Huybers (UW), Chris Simmons (Mountaineer), Greg Balco (BGC), Seth Campbell (UM), Kristin Schild (UM - with another research group), and Michael Vermeulen (PLU Geosciences!!!). 

Here's Michael next to a statue of Robert F. Scott, famed but ill-fated Antarctic explorer. The inscription reads: I do not regret this journey which shows that Englishmen can endure hardships, help one another and meet death with as great fortitude as ever in the past, which is apparently a quote from his diary. We found it to be rather depressing.

Tomorrow, the truly exciting part of our journey begins. A shuttle will meet us at our hotel at 5:45 AM to transport us to the airport. We'll bring all of our gear into the CDC, tag any bags that will remain in Christchurch, and gather the remaining items for check in. These items include one carry-on bag, and all of our checked luggage. There's a 150-lb weight limit for checked gear. We're also allowed a "Boomerang Bag." This bag contains essential items we might need if our flight is returned to Christchurch ("boomeranged") due to weather conditions. The record for the number of times a group of Ice-bound passengers have been boomeranged is 7. We're hoping to get there on our first try! We are all relieved to learn that we will be traveling in a C-17, as opposed to a C-130. The C-17 will get us to McMurdo in only 5 hours; the C-130 takes about 8 hours to complete the trip. 

Much more to come on this blog! We're slow to start up, but we'll make up for it with lots of pictures and updates in the coming weeks. 

Thanks for checking in with us,

Claire