The First Post...Last

November 3, 2007

Hello Everyone,
Welcome to the South Pole! Yes, It's cold. After five flights and about 24 hours of flying I set foot on the continent of Antarctica Oct. 30 at McMurdo Station. But more importantly I made it to the South Pole on Wednesday Oct. 31. The temperature when we walked of the C-130 military plane was about negative 45 with a wind chill of around negative 75. So cold is cold. It's a bit like Kansas, it's always windy. The weather has been bad around here because we were on only one of three flights that have made it into the South Pole in the last two weeks. I guess you would call that lucky? I am living in a Jamesway located grid south from the new South Pole Station. Grid North is considered to be towards England and East, South, West follows as it normally would. I don't know the details, and you are not allowed to quote me, but I'm assuming the Navy built these Jamesways in the 60's or 70's. I have a room to myself, which I would consider a luxury, although it is only about 6' x 8' with a curved ceiling. The new station is so modern that it is easy to forget you are in Antarctica, until you go outside. My room barely stays at 60 degrees, but I stay warm at night and Megan is sending me a blanket and flannel sheets in the mail, something to look forward to. Last night I left my bottle of water on the floor, and it was nice and chilly this morning like taking it out of the fridge. God has truly crated a magnificent place beyond anything we could ever imagine. I'm thankful to be here
There is a group of about 14 carpenters for this particular project. We started working on the siding on Friday. There is no doubt in my mind that everything takes at least three to four times long than it would in normal conditions. The new station is built elevated about one full story off the ground. The reason for this is to allow the snow to blow past the building instead of drifting up against the building. The South Pole is on a huge plateau of ice at approx. 9,500 ft. in elevation. So there is nothing to stop the snow except our man-made buildings. The bottom corners of the building are angled and designed similar to how an airplane works. The reason is to accelerate the wind carrying the snow beyond the building. Well I tell you this because we are currently working in the zone where the wind accelerates…. It makes for a chilly work environment. Our crew seems to be a great bunch. I live right next to a few of them and we get along real well. They have some good stories to trade and always make me laugh.
With all that said, I'm very glad to be here! I feel very lucky and blessed to have and opportunity like this and travel to places that I'm not real sure God intended people to live. So far I regularly wear six on the top, five layers on the bottom, two or three head/face coverings and some massive "moonboots" designed for extreme cold weather. Today was the first day that we haven't had basically whiteout conditions and all you see is white snow for miles and miles. It is one of the most magnificent things I've ever seen in my life.
Sorry for the delay in the update, but it's the South Pole. We have limited communications to begin with, but one satellite is down somewhere in the world, so that limits us even more. Besides the time I can get online is usually during work time anyway. I've been able to call my folks and megan and let everyone know I've made it, but not much more. Please pray for me to trust the Lord, get enough rest , to avoid getting too cold and frostbite, and to maximize my experience. I'm sure I've missed details and fun things, but those are the basics. You are welcome to email me with questions or answers. Thanks for listening….

Oh, and by the way…….. the sun NEVER goes down, it just goes in a perfect circle around the sky.

AnDrew