Garaged in the ice, the wind howled all night. I looked out on a grey landscape, with the details obscured. I couldn’t tell at the time what was obscuring the view. When Shane awakened us at 5:30 AM, he explained that we would not be flying to the rookery today, we were in the middle of a white out situation.
The wind was blowing nearly 40 knots per hour. The good news was that breakfast hours were extended. So my cabin mate and I, without discussing it, executed exactly the same maneuvre – we drew the pillows over our heads and tried to go back to sleep.
The weather worsened, while the education program heated up. Doug Allan and Sue Flood gave us a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of Planet Earth, a BBC documentary. That was at 8:30 AM. The auditorium was full and the applause resounding when the session concluded.
I managed to slip in a Scrabble game with a fellow traveler before Professor Lasca gave his talk on ice – not the cocktail variety. The big take away - ice is a rock. Who knew?
Lunch time rolled around. All the intellectual effort worked up an appetite. The chilli option was popular. I stuck with the beouf bourginon. And the brownie!!!!!
Shane lowered the gangplank and we walked on the ice with the snow blowing and the wind howling. Properly kitted up it was comfortable. I can’t imagine how Scott and Shackleton survived without an official Quark parka.
At 3, the less stout hearted like me returned to the auditorium to watch the Frozen Seas episode of Planet Earth. Doug shot most of it, and was in the auditorium to answer questions. What a treat!
The big surprise came at tea time. There was adorn-it-yourself sundaes in the bar, with a shop sale. Discount shopping and ice cream. There was a frenzy of activity. My wardrobe has expanded.
We’ve been watching the weather all day. No one wants to talk about it, because Shane has told us that tomorrow is our last chance to reach the rookery. Needless to say – Emperors are on everybody’s mind.
