A Sunny Sunday Afternoon

 A glimpse into the world that keeps drawing me back for more...

Ice and Sky

Cirrostratus delight over Reptile Ridge

Looking back at base

My Met Towers

Some Things Never Change

Here's a link to my account of the month of June here at Rothera, recently posted on the British Antarctic Survey Website:

http://www.antarctica.ac.uk/living_and_working/diaries/rothera/2011/06/index.php

Winter Team 2011

Take a look at the mad men and women I'm stranded with for the next dark months! Should be interesting...
Left to right, back, to front we are: Dave (Communications Manager), Rod (Base Commander),
Curly (Vehicle Mechanic), Nick (Plumber), Lorna (Chef), Vicki (Doctor), Malcolm (Field Assistant), Mike (Field Assistant), Cheese (Field Assistant), Tom (Field Assistant), Tamsin (that's me...Meteorologist), Terri (Marine Biologist), Frazer (Electrician), Dave (Dive Officer), Simmo (Marine Assistant), Tomo (Generator Mechanic), Ross (Electronics Engineer), Dave (Boatman), Gavin (Carpenter, Ian (Field Assistant).

Winter Trip

Admiring the view from the summit of imaginatively named peak N26

My humble abode

Another Antarctic summit, this time I descended in style, snowboarding

View across the bay. We travel around the island two by two, each driving a snowmobile and pulling a sledge carrying everything we need to survive, all tied together by thick ropes just in case we are unlucky enough to drive across a crevass.

ANTARCTIC HIGHLIGHTS

People are always asking me why I keep coming back to Antarctica. Well, as much as I love my job, it's the lifestyle that really has me hooked. The perks that these images hint towards are definitely a big part of the appeal.

Exploring the incredible shades of the ice, up close. That's me at the helm.
The glacier front of the Sheldon glacier, source of many of the icebergs in the bays around the base, as it retreats.

Tom roping up on the ramp above base ready for some survival skills training.

Tom enjoying one of the first rock climbs of the summer.

Rockhoppers

Yesterday I added a ninth species of penguin to my collection and they rate pretty highly on my coolest penguin leader board. The funky rockhoppers with their crazy hairdos and bright red eyes were a joy to watch as they bounced up the cliffs then danced about the colony until they found their nest. The only way to get to this remote spot on the deserted Falklands coastline was via landrover. We took what our guide called 'his local high street', zigzagging across peat bogs and craggy outcrops until we arrived in the middle of nowhere . It was worth the ride as not only the penguins but the scenery was stunning and it may be some of the last land I see that isn't hidden beneath a blanket of cold white lovliness. Mmmm, snow, powdery fresh snow, how I miss it. Can't wait to get even further south and it shouldn't be long now. Hopefully departing on the Dash 7 tomorrow morning at 4am! Bring it on...