One of the best things about working in Antarctica, for the New Zealand base, is the ability to get out and about off base. From organized days out, to simply the ‘freedom’ to roam about on-foot or skis, it was these varied experiences that really made my time there more amazing.. And the second weekend there, a small group of us set off to make the trip to Scotts hut at Cape Evans.
Cape Evans on the western side of Ross Island, was used as the headquarters for Scotts 2nd Antarctic Expedition in 1910-1913. The hut, built by the expedition team, still stands, with many of the items used by the expedition still inside, in the same state they were left in - including glassware, bunsen burners and an emperor penguin, awaiting dissection. Among the team were a number of scientists (mainly biologists and geologists) who carried out basic studies.
The hut's big - 15m long and 8m wide with stables attached for the 19 siberian ponies that were used to pull the sledges (like the explorers, the ponies didn't fare too well either).
Antarctica has it's own system for grading weather, from level 1 tolevel 3, with 1 being the worst. Im gutted I never experienced a 1 – so bad it comes with a ‘no one allowed outside’ policy. With a 2 you can be outside but only on base and a 3 is no worries. Visibility is the main issue, Antarctica is so dry the snow gets whipped up into a white blanket with strong wind. You could literally lose yourself within a foot or two from the white-out disorientation. The day we visited Scotts Hut the weather had deteriorated to a ‘condition 2’ while we were out, a perfect setting for visiting such a site.
Once we were inside the hut I was amazed at the ‘insulated’ feeling - both of warmth and lack of noise. The screaming wind was shut out once we shut the door, and though not hot inside, you could definitely imagine that the team staying there did manage to get the hut nice an warm. They insulated with seaweed, sewn into a quilt and then placed between double-planked inner and outer walls. The roof is a sandwich of three layers of plank, two layers of rubber ply with more quilted seaweed enclosed inside. With acetylene gas they had lighting and the heating came from the kitchen and a supplementary, coal fuelled stove.
I think the thing that struck me most was the lack of ‘age-ing’ - no cobwebs, dust, mould or decaying, except for slight rusting on the metals. Seal skins stacked up neatly between hut and stables, still with blood and lots of visible fat, not to mention the smell.. a box of eggs, never did find out from which bird, but looked far too big for chickens eggs, tools hanging on the wall, clean and ready to go - things left as they were found, as if the guys could walk back through the door again any time soon and pick up where they left off.
On a second visit to the site, in nicer weather, I was able to see more of the outside, including the panorama from the memorial cross standing on the hill just outside. Completely different concept and view, nice to get a sense of direction and placement.
Must also make a mention of the amazing work the team from Antarctic Heritage Trust are doing in their pledge to restore and record the Antarctic huts and their workings, a truly remarkable piece of history.
The huts are protected and kept locked – how lucky are those who get the chance to visit such a slice of history! And this day in age, we are visiting such places with things like GPS, ultra warm clothing of the latest technology, vehicles – especially built for the terrain, radios, thermos's of hot coffee, pizza made fresh at the base that day etc! I wonder how they'll be doing it in another hundred years!
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