The Oden Has Landed

For the past several days we have been watching the icebreaker Oden make it's way from the sea ice edge to McMurdo station. It is a Swedish icebreaker that breaks through the ice so the fuel tanker Paul Buck and the re-supply vessel The American Tern can dock and be off-loaded of their fuel and supplies. The Coast Guard used to be in charge of the icebreaker operations. The following sequence of pictures is in reverse order (sorry, loading problems). At first it was a speck on the horizon and each day got closer and closer as it broke through the ice. It is pretty wild to compare this picture with those of the expolorers who docked their ships in the exact same spot.

We are seeing the sea ice break up for the first time revealing the frigid polar waters underneath. Adelie penguins have been quite active and it has been a treat to watch them play in and out of the water.

Here is the Oden about 4 days before it got to us. It goes out each day to break the ice making huge passes churning the ice as it goes. I watched it make circle after circle one day. The re-supply vessel that follows it in will be here in about 2 weeks. It is the only re-supply vessel and comes once per year. So items arriving here soon were ordered a year ago.

This shows the icebreaker as it first came into sight one night as I was watching penguins. It's way out there on the horizon. All the vehicles have different license plates here in Antarctica. Of course I had to take a picture of this one.

This is the season for the big rugby match between the New Zealanders (Scott Base) and the Americans. It has never been won by the Americans. We played tough this year but couldn't stop the Kiwis. Before the game they performed the traditional Maori warrior dance -- the Haka. It was very impressive.

The game was played on a beatuiful sunny Antarctic summer day and was quite the competition. As the physical therapist I had to look the other way a few times. But what would a rugby game be without a little post-game limping.

Here is Sandi. She is my equivalent on the New Zealand base. We get along great although she had to rub it in a little.

Here is our cheer squad. We definitely had spirit. Which was entertaining. There are a few Seattle folks standing on that Piston Bully.

Mt. Erebus, Mt. Terra Nova and Mt. Terror loomed in the background. I guess I had my eyes on the scrum though.

We've been having a lot of fun with indoor soccer, ultimate frisbee and basketball leagues. They all have been competitive and a good way to counter the long hours and meet some folks I otherwise wouldn't work with. The soccer can only be 3 v. 3 with the limited space.

We even got some eye-catching socks to show our team spirit. Mine are red. Our team is Real Vostok. A lot like Real Madrid. Only difference is we are inside.

Seth the Swede sporting his blue ones. He rocks them a little more than me.

And my all-time favorite is of course, basketball. There is actually some serious talent. Here are my minions and I after a game-winning shot by yours truly.

David Attenborough, Chadden Hunter and the rest of the BBC gang are here filming their new series Frozen Planet. It's neat to meet some of the distinguished visitors (DVs) when they are here. I have one more trip to the South Pole station and then it's time to start getting ready for the end of the season. My winter replacement will be coming in and the 24-hr daylight will eventually return to 24-hr darkness. Yep, still glad I'm not wintering over.