Last day

Tonight is the last day on the ice. Tomorrow it's Christchurch and the beginning of traveling. My time here has been one of the best four months in my life. I'm sitting here trying to put into words what this place, the experiences I've had, and the friendships I've made all means to me. It is extremely hard to describe. It has been so much.



Some updates on things that have happened over the last month.



Shortly after my last post I ran in the half marathon here on base. The race day could not have been a more perfect day to run an Antarctic race. The temperature was just under freezing and there was no wind to start the race. For the flags that mark the road we run on to be completely sagging is a very rate sight. There is almost always a wind in Antarctica. I started off on the run very strong. There were about 30 runners doing the half and 30 runners doing the full marathon. I was in the top 10 of the half runners from the beginning. Around 4 miles in though I started to have a problem. Leading up to it I had felt pretty confident in my training for it. Unfortunately the two to three weeks before it my training I fell off a bit. The weather leading up to the race was horrible and that kept me away from running outside. As a result my body and specifically my knees were not conditioned for the run on snow. It was like running on the beach. Every step I'd sink into the snow and my knee would slightly turn on me. After four miles of it the pain in the left knee was on every stride. I tried a bunch of different things to compensate for it. I changed my running style and constantly moved to different parts of the road to try and get a harder area to run in. Ultimately the pain was a bit too much and there were periods during the race that I needed to walk. I'm a little disapointed about that but I did finish the race. It was my highest time (2 hours 16 minutes) in the 4 half marathon's I've now done. Despite the pain there were some amazing moments in the race. I kept reminding myself to look around and just take in the scenery of this place. Not many people get to come down here and for me to be running a half marathon in this place on an ice shelf over the ocean with these amazing mountains in the background was just astonishing to me. It reminds me of how fortunate I am in life to be doing this and how amazing and wonderful this world is.



During the half marathon weekend I also transitioned back to days. Finally!! So the half marathon actually started in the late evening for me and finished at what would have been about midnight for me. It was really esciting for me to get back on days. I felt like I had just arrived and was starting the new job again. A lot of the other shuttle drivers were really excited that I was coming back to days. Being back on days allowed me to see a lot of people I hadn't seen in a long time. It was fantastic to hang out with the other shuttle drivers. It seems really that this last month has been really about those friends I've made who I work with. We try to hang out at least every other day. We've also got some plans to travel in New Zealand. I've had an extermely great time hanging out with this group. We've gone to the parties together, drank together, had movie nights, and just other quiet nights having a lot of fun. I'm really going to miss this group of people.



So I didn't quite finish this post last night which I thought was going to be my last night here. There was word a storm was coming in and it started blowing in at about 1 in the morning. The plane picking us up never took off from Christchurch and as a result we have got at least one more night here at McMurdo. This storm has the potential to shut down flights for a few days. We may get out tomorrow or may not get out until Monday. I'm really hoping for tomorrow. I had been looking forward to eating and hanging out in Christchurh. While it is not a big deal to have to wait a few days to be there, it has been a disapointment since it is unlikely that those that left on the 15th or the 17th will still be in Christchurch when we get there.

Over the past month there have been great parties down here. At McMurdo, life here is generally about work, friendships, personal projects and growth, and the parties. Of the parties the Waste Barn party and the Shuttles parties have easily been the best of the season. The wastees host they're party at the barn and two cover bands supply the music for the night. As has been the case over the past few months the Shuttles and friends group took over the front row. A lot of us dressed up for the party in some funky outfits. It couldn't have been a better time. Some of the girls found some graphite pants and a great 70's like shirt for me to dress in. Shuttles also had another Hut 10 party this last weekend to celebrate the season one last time. The best thing about the Shuttles party is that it is amongst only the closest friends I have here on the ice. It makes the entire eveing a fun filled adventure. This party got a bit crazy throughout the night and will be one of the most memorable nights because it was with all the people I care about the most here.

So when I do get off the ice I can't wait to travel. If you've read the blog from the beginning you'll know that it has been a long time in planning for me to get out and see the world. And now it is here and it is going to be fantastic. I plan on traveling with some friends from the ice for about a week and a half. I'm really hoping that the weather doesn't affect the plans I've made. For it to all work out we are going to have to leave tomorrow. So I'm crossing my fingers. Six of us are supposed to do a quick trip up to some hot springs and do some camping. After that I'm going with half of the six and am headed up to the Northern part of the South Island to do a 5 day kayaking trip. I'm also excited that my mom and dad will be coming down for a few weeks and we will be hiking and touring around with them. I think they will love New Zealand and it will be awesome to share a little bit of the travels with them. After all that I'll probabably have about a little longer than a month to wonder the South Island by myself. I haven't really planned anything out. I know which general areas I want to be at and that is enough for me. I want to get lost and if I find I like a place I can spend some extra time there. I've got no reason to hurry around the island and feel like I'm rushed. I definitely ready to take the next step of this adventure and really do some traveling.

That's all for now... I may be writing more if I get delayed for a few days.