Start of the Summer Season

We are now well into the summer season, with a few weeks having past since my last post. We certainly hit the ground running, with the start of the season not really what we were expecting and for me has been pretty full on.

A couple of posts back i told of the amount of work it took in clearing the runway and making good the paths and doorways around base in readiness for the first Dash of the season.

We were expecting the Dash 7, (lovingly known as ‘Daisy) to be bringing in 6 passengers on the first flight, these would include, Don the weather forecaster, Crispin the radio operator and Clem the air unit GA. These guys are vital at the start of a summer season and essential for all aircraft and ship operations at Rothera, The Dash would then have an overnight stay before leaving the next day to collect the next batch of personnel, which would include Lewis the chef.

Everything was going to plan, the Dash 7 was on it’s way from Calgary in Canada as were all 3 Twin Otters, we also had lots of foreign aircraft on route to Rothera, who would be using the base to refuel and check weather before flying on to various locations around Antarctica. This is something that happens at the start of every summer season, so it is important for the Dash to bring in reinforcements to get the correct professionals in place before it all kicks off.

This didn’t happen, as the Dash went Tech in Houston USA, which means it broke down and had to wait for the correct part to be flown from Canada. While the Dash was stuck in Houston, the Twin Otters were steadily making there way south, all our personnel where stacking up in Punta Arenas and the snow kept falling at Rothera, much to the annoyance of the vehicle mechs who had to keep clearing the runway.

The Dash finally got the part, but had to limp to Panama for the repair. The part was fitted and she made her way to Punta where she eventually took on the first of the passengers and some vital cargo before being given a perfect weather window to head to Rothera. By this time the 3 Twin Otters had left Punta each carrying a pilot, co-pilot and 60kg of freshies that i had ordered once i knew how much weight was available on each aircraft.

With all BAS aircraft in the air making their way to Rothera, I knew there would be an extra 15 people for dinner that evening, taking the total on base to 37 and no chef coming in on the first wave.

it wasn’t long before the first plane was seen on the horizon and as the Dash is a lot faster than the Twin Otters it was no surprise that it was indeed the Dash on final approach. It was a beautiful clear day and most of the 22 strong winter team had gathered to watch the landing and to greet the first ones to step onto base.

 Waiting in anticipation for the Dash 7 to come into view

SAR team in place waiting for that first glimpse

The Dash appears on it's final approach

Landing gear down and lining up the runway

A lovely sight as she eventually comes in to land

Stopping at a backdrop of sea cliffs and icebergs, thens turns

to taxi onto the hangar apron.

Once on the deck, passengers disembark and cargo is unloaded 

I had prepared a chili con carne with rice as this would be  quick and plentiful, as well as something that could hold if necessary. This enabled me the time to be outside and not miss out on the meet and greet, or miss the arrival of all 3 Twin Otters and just like a well oiled machine the timings were such that they were able to land one after the other making Rothera feel like Heathrow airport.

Right behind the Dash, came the Twin Otters

The first Otter on final approach with the second behind her 

in the distance

All three Otters eventually make it in

They taxi onto the apron to join the Dash7

It was a bit of a shock having 15 extra people on base with a lot more expected, but really good to see everyone and a real treat to receive the fresh fruit and veg, with the smell alone being a great moral boost, especially as i put out the fresh apples and oranges as a dessert that night, which went down a treat. I was quite excited at the thought of lunch the next day and being able to prepare fresh salads with flavoursome tomatoes, crisp lettuce, cucumber and spring onions all with a nice crunch to them. These sort of things are taken for granted back home but here on Antarctica, you really do appreciate a fresh orange, even a battered and bruised one. Nothing, but nothing is wasted down here.

Passengers bags are transported to the accomodation blocks

ready for them to unpack, once they have been allocated a room

The freshies are unloaded onto tractor and trailor and transported 

to the kitchen, where everyone helps to carry them in

Once inside they are lined up near the fridges waiting for me to 

put them away

The first fresh lettuce i've seen in 7 months

The fridge is starting to smell really good

Not much in the way of fresh ingredients, but it's a start and

very welcome 

These Oranges were such a treat and a delight to eat they tasted

 really good

As a treat we gave all the wintering team a bag of mixed fruit

with their name on to take to their rooms and enjoy as they 

wanted. Here Jen is making up the packs

The first lunch with fresh salad, don't mess with it, just eat it as it is

A sight for sore eyes

For the first lunch with new people, Left over chili con carne,

rice and fresh salad and fruit

We did not do too bad  with the fresh ingredients that i froze down at the end of last summer, as I managed to make them last for the entire winter, the only thing they lacked was the crunch and the aroma of naturally fresh produce. When that first fresh order came into Rothera, I was down to 4 trays of eggs, that were still in great condition after 7 months as we we turned them every 12 hours, I had 1 box of baking potatoes, half a bag of onions, half a tray of butternut squash and i used the last of the avocados i froze by making a guacamole to go with the chili con carne i made for the arrival of the first of the summer team. I was very pleased with myself as to how i had kept and used the ingredients we had on base, given the fact that in the 6 months of winter very rarely did i repeat a meal.

Just to show you when we received the eggs. 6th March 2017 

Nearly 8 months later I am down to my last 4 trays and still

using them. They are still good

I was using these for a bread and butter pudding, but they were

still good to use as fried eggs for sunday brunch, although the 

whites were getting weaker, and more than usual would break

This was my last box of baking potatoes and they were still firm

One or two had split with another potato growing inside,

not bad for nearly 8 months old.

So with the Dash having dropped off its first passengers at Rothera, it was now to return to Punta to pick up the next wave which included chef Lewis. The weather was good the next day, sandwiches had been made for the crew and off they went, hoping to fit in maybe a couple of rotations. I was keen to have Lewis on base, because it was getting busier and I had already worked my last 3 days off and was looking forward to a little support in the kitchen. This was not going to happen for a few more days as the Dash went Tech again and broke down in Punta, we now had to wait for another part to be flown in. So while Lewis and co had more days to spend in Punta, back at Rothera the foreign aircraft were coming in to refuel, fit skis and to wait for the right weather window. Of course as this is Antarctica and the weather does not fit in with your plans, so while it can stop planes coming in, it can also stop them taking off and we had some of our guests for over a week. At one point we had 4 foreign aircraft with 20 crew in total plus our Twin Otters going nowhere, this put our numbers on base up to nearly 60 with still no sign of Lewis coming in and no more food, which meant what i had to work with was now limited.

An American Basler lands at Rothera

Taxis on to the apron where there is another foreign Twin Otter

Fitted with skis ready for the onward journey to the south Pole

These planes are operated by Kenn Borek airlines in and out of 

Antarctica

They use Rothera as a pit stop to refuel and wait for good weather

for their onward journeys  

This is ALE (Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions) They just

arrived on their way through to Union Glacier. My friend Reet, 

their chef was on this flight and gave me a box of freshies which 

were very much appreciated

Another foreign aircraft stuck with us for a couple of days. This

one was NASA, It's amazing the people you get to talk to in the

bar at Rothera

Lewis eventually made it a week later along with 14 others, by which time most foreign aircraft had left. It was good to see him and even better to have him in the kitchen a couple of days later after he had completed his necessary training. With the Dash now fully functioning, it was a race against time to catch up with the backlog of passengers and cargo needed for the summer season. It did mean that i would lose 150kg of freshies as the Dash would not have that weight free, we did however gain a third chef and after two days of training and acclimatising, we welcomed Vicky to the team. We now have a full complement of chefs for the summer season, Lewis being the incoming winter chef, I am the outgoing winter chef and Vicky is the summer chef. This was much needed as our numbers at one point reached 90+

The flight that Lewis came in on brought a few newbies to

Rothera and before they are allowed to walk round the point,

they first have to go with someone who knows the route. Here

they are walking the route for the first time

While Lewis eventually gets into the kitchen and it is great to 

have him back.

Vicky has settled in very quickly, which is not surprising as she 

has already done a couple of summer seasons and a winter 

season at Halley. It's good to have Vicky with us

Vicky, Elena and phil getting ready for a Saturday night

We are now well into a routine, with the chefs rota kicking in giving us all equal time off. What is good for me is the fact that i can now enjoy my days off without having to worry about the kitchen, the meals or ingredients, it is also great having new faces on base to talk to and to see different activities taking place.

Once Lewis and Vicky were well into the swing of things, field parties had gone into the field and we were down to 50 something on base, Paul Samways our now summer station leader, asked me if i would like to get of base and offered me the chance to go to Fossil Bluff for a few days, to spend time helping Jake with operations at Bluebell cottage. I jumped at the chance and readily packed as i would be out within 2 days, so with my P-Bag all ready and warm cloths, i just had to wait for the first plane going to the Bluff. This i was really looking forward to, as the last time i was there was towards the end of last summer, where the cottage was surrounded by natural lakes of melt water that we had to walk round to get to the ski way. See my blog post from last season about Fossil Bluff, it will be interesting to see at the start of the season.

Watch this space.