Antarctic Reflections

Thanks for your patience with my break.  We are 5 miles from the wildfire in Conifer, CO.  After seeing pictures of floods in Punta Arenas and then the fires in my community,  I needed a break.  It feels strange to have recently been somewhere that is now distressed by flood.   I flew from Punta Arenas Chile to King George Island.  The video shows the area where I rushed to use the ATM machine I before I left for Antarctica.  The wildfires made national news.  Sadly, I discovered a video on 9 news from a family who's neighbors died in the fire.  This family drove through the fire to get out!.  The good news is we had snow and the fire is out. It was my first time seeing snow since I landed in Antarctica!

I also found more on the mystery of the  abandoned Czech Hut we visited. I wrote about in an earlier post.  The goal ( before it was abandoned) is to study human behavior in extreme environments and serve a ecological purpose by measuring and cleaning up rubbish found floating by the island.  How fascinating!  It's encouraging to see people, in all parts of the globe, finding ways to respect each other and enjoy our planet.

One of the highlights of my trip- Floating/Melting Ice!

Seeing floating ice and the glacier was one of my peak experiences in Antarctica. No doubt I will be back!  This glacier is Nelson Island.  I thought I was speaking loudly but you can't hear me, so listen to the water.  I say: we generally see 1/7th of an iceberg, and that the glacier we are looking at is 40 meters high (131ft.)   Taking a break to organize materials and the rest of the journey in Chile.  My first presentation, after I return mid March, is with one of the Denver Kiwanis clubs. Ciao for now!

A Hut in Antarctica

The sea surrounding Nelson Island is frozen in the winter.  We're lucky to have seen a hut left completely in tact, from an unknown time frame.  It's the hut of  a Czech explorer.  My expedition mates are Petr and Alenka are from the Czech Republic.  We feel the emotion of seeing this rare site on our first stop on our tour in the zodiac boat.