December 4, 2018
Day 9. Still Going South
I woke up to another windy, overcast and totally whiteout day. Surely, I must be mistaken, I thought to myself as I peered out the tent. There must be some sun poking through.
But as it turns out, my optimism was unfounded and it was exactly that... another whiteout.
Because of my neck issues a couple days ago, I have been positioning the compass bracket high on my chest so I can just glance slightly down instead of craning my neck at a 90 degree angle when I wear it on my waist. Needless to say, I've spent the better part of the past nine days staring at my compass and... nothing else. It doesn't matter if I look around or not, there's nothing to see - it's all white.
So with nothing to visually distract me, I have spent my time wandering the far recesses of my mind... the physical part of being out here is difficult for sure - especially this soft snow I've been dragging my sled through. But the mental aspect of managing my emotions in this huge space is equally as difficult.
I have taken to wandering through different moments of my life - haphazardly bouncing from one year to the next with no particular rhyme or reason. I like thinking of my kids and Maria too but those thoughts are a bit tricky. Sometimes they feel like this big giant arm pulling me away. It's hard to live in two worlds: Antarctica and my family. I haven't found any way to square my mind with these two opposing forces. So in the mean time, I keep skiing.
In a little over an hour this afternoon, the weather cleared and I was able to actually see. The wind picked up quickly and soon I was skiing into a 20 knot headwind. If it's not one thing it's another. This is after all, Antarctica, and there are no breaks out here.
I have often said that the weather is irrelevant in polar expeditions, you simply travel no matter what. And while that is still my operating procedure, I can help but feel chagrin at my bad luck. The daily snow, soft surface and near constant whiteouts are not the norm here.
I had to build a snow wall simply to set up the tent safely the gusts were so robust. Somehow, I enjoyed today even though my progress continues to be less than ideal due to the conditions.
But as it turns out, my optimism was unfounded and it was exactly that... another whiteout.
Because of my neck issues a couple days ago, I have been positioning the compass bracket high on my chest so I can just glance slightly down instead of craning my neck at a 90 degree angle when I wear it on my waist. Needless to say, I've spent the better part of the past nine days staring at my compass and... nothing else. It doesn't matter if I look around or not, there's nothing to see - it's all white.
So with nothing to visually distract me, I have spent my time wandering the far recesses of my mind... the physical part of being out here is difficult for sure - especially this soft snow I've been dragging my sled through. But the mental aspect of managing my emotions in this huge space is equally as difficult.
I have taken to wandering through different moments of my life - haphazardly bouncing from one year to the next with no particular rhyme or reason. I like thinking of my kids and Maria too but those thoughts are a bit tricky. Sometimes they feel like this big giant arm pulling me away. It's hard to live in two worlds: Antarctica and my family. I haven't found any way to square my mind with these two opposing forces. So in the mean time, I keep skiing.
In a little over an hour this afternoon, the weather cleared and I was able to actually see. The wind picked up quickly and soon I was skiing into a 20 knot headwind. If it's not one thing it's another. This is after all, Antarctica, and there are no breaks out here.
I have often said that the weather is irrelevant in polar expeditions, you simply travel no matter what. And while that is still my operating procedure, I can help but feel chagrin at my bad luck. The daily snow, soft surface and near constant whiteouts are not the norm here.
I had to build a snow wall simply to set up the tent safely the gusts were so robust. Somehow, I enjoyed today even though my progress continues to be less than ideal due to the conditions.