Pier Jumping

The last northbound ship left us on the morning of June 26th and along with it went the last of those who came with me southbound what seems like ages ago. The ship also carried away a few friends that were here before me as well as the guests who were here only for the port call. The rest of us are in it for the long haul until September. Our official number is now 16 after a few last minute deployments and re-deployments, and it's a solid group. Glad to be a part of it.

As is customary we all jumped off the pier in honor of our departing friends. It's just as cold as it looks, but nothing a quick (or not-so-quick) dip in the hot tub can't fix.


(video courtesy of Will Brubaker)


Seeing our friends standing at the railing waiving as they cruised off made me think about how hard it's going to be to leave when my day finally comes. Everything happens so quickly. We've all been thrown together here and it seems like we'll be here together forever, but one day we'll all step onto the ship and watch the station grow small on the horizon as we're carried away, while all of our friends on the shore will be waiving and screaming as they jump in the water. They'll later sprint over to the hot tub and chat about their future at Palmer Station.

I picture myself on that day on deck looking out to sea wondering if I'll ever see this magical place again.

Midwinter's Dinner

Pigroast!

I'm a bit late on the blogging, but I thought you should all know that we had a fabulous pig roast on Midwinter's day here at Palmer. We all got dressed up and set the galley up for some fine dining.

From 20090618-MidwintersDinner

From 20090618-MidwintersDinner

A few of our handy crew were able to rig up a fancy pig turner out of some belts and a carpenter's drill so we could chill indoors and watch the pig turn through the window.

From 20090618-MidwintersDinner

Succulent!

From 20090618-MidwintersDinner

The menu consisted of :
- Smoked Salmon Mousse
- Krill Bisque
- Asparagus Rouille
- Pommes Anna
- Roast suckling pig
- Fresh vegetable salads
- Quinoa with green peas, lemon, and mint
- Fresh baked country breads

From 20090618-MidwintersDinner

It was truly one of the finest meals I can remember. Kudos to the chef who once again was able to make me eat far more than was necessary or intended.

Happy Midwinter's Everyone!

What's going on

Hi everyone,

The Antarctic Sun had some interesting articles about the science that was at Palmer recently along with some more details on the whole Oprah deal. Check it out for some light reading :

Antarctic Sun - Palmer Station

First day of the rest of our lives

The day after the Gould left I was signed up for watch. Whenever we have a day off, one person has to man the radio and occasionally walk over to the generator room and check the meters.

During one of my trips I had to stop and stare for a while. What an absolute beautiful sunrise!





Perhaps it won't be so bad living here for a bit longer...

Album : http://photos.jeff.braucher.net/20090608Sunrise

Goodbye Gould

The ship that brought me here in April finally left last weekend. They returned to Palmer station after their last science cruise on Friday morning and after two rather lengthy evenings of festivities it was time for them all to take the big trip back north. Sunday morning those of us that were staying gathered on the pier to wave them all goodbye. A friendly seal decided to come out and join us also.

At Palmer it's customary to jump off the pier whenever the boat leaves us behind. Many people here had done it before, but it doesn't get old - or any easier! About ten of us jumped and quickly fled to the hot tub to warm our freezing bodies. Do I need to say it was cold?

It was sad to see many of them go. I was the last winter-over to come down here and the only one who came with the science groups. All of the people that I met on my first day were on this ship and were all almost finished with their Antarctic experience.

Me and the others still have a long way to go. It's interesting to meet so many people in such a short time and then as quickly as you met them seeing them all leave. In a way though it's good to be down to just those of us that will be here for a while. We can all finally settle in and get ready for a long quiet winter.

Goodbye LMG. Nice to know all of you!

Humble Island & the Giant Petrels

A few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to go out and see Humble Island with the birders. Actually, the birders left Palmer Station a few months ago, but two of our staff have been permitted to go out and weigh the giant petrel chicks on behalf of the birders, and I got to go.


Basically, since the petrel eggs hatched on Humble Island, the birders have tagged a few of the chicks and kept track of their weights over the following months. Because of the science going on Palmer people aren't normally allowed to visit this island, so I was lucky to be invited for this trip.


My job was to stand by and record the results as my comrades gently coaxed a petrel chick into a bag so they could weigh it.


And of course, our seal friends made an appearance as well. Here's a great pic of a fur seal.


And here's another of a leopard seal laying around on the ice just off the pier at Palmer. Note: Leopard seals are mean! That smile is leopard seal for "I'm going to eat you!".

It was a good wildlife day. There's a few other pretty good shots on the album too.

Jeff

Album: http://photos.jeff.braucher.net/20090519HumbleIsland

Fishing

Last Sunday the LMG (a ship, the Lawrence. M Gould) left Palmer Station for its last fishing cruise before going back north to Puenta Arenas. One of the science groups currently working at Palmer is researching a special kind of "whiteblooded" icefish, and a few of us Palmer crew were lucky enough to go along for the ride. We fished 4 days and 3 nights and returned on the 27th.


We got a great view of the backside of Mt. Williams on the way out.


Most of the time we spent "trawling" for fish with big nets that are dragged along the sea floor.


The rest of the time we dropped "pots" to be retrieved later.





It was wonderful to get away from the station for a few days, and we saw some spectacular sites. It'll be sad to see the ship finally leave with our friends in a week.

Jeff

Full Album:
http://photos.jeff.braucher.net/20090529Fishing