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<\/a><\/p>\n***<\/p>\n
Kevin\u2019s Log \u2013 Supplemental \u2013 7:08 AM<\/p>\n
They\u2019ve just announced the wakeup with weather conditions.\u00a0 It\u2019s snowing!\u00a0 I tried to grab a few shots of this last night but it went\u2026 poorly.<\/p>\n
This morning, the outer decks are apparently covered in white snow and quite slippery.\u00a0 The winds are 11 knots from the south, the outside temperature is -3.5 degrees Celsius (MINUS 3.5!) and the water temperature is 1 degree.<\/p>\n Today is my first day on a Zodiac.\u00a0 We\u2019re off to Penguin Island.\u00a0 Yesterday we saw our first iceberg; we also got a glimpse of land, King George\u2019s Island, the place where we\u2019ll be running our marathon tomorrow.\u00a0 The Vavilov is there today.\u00a0 I wish them good times and better experiences.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Kevin\u2019s Log \u2013 Supplemental \u2013 12:32 PM<\/p>\n I have set foot on Antarctica!\u00a0 This morning we visited Penguin Island.\u00a0 They announced at breakfast that the kayak trips were cancelled for today due to swells but things seemed calm as we kitted up for my first Zodiac ride.\u00a0 The crew warned us that the deck\u2019s were very slippery due to the snow overnight and they weren\u2019t kidding \u2013 even in my running shoes, I had zero traction on the deck and was slip sliding like I was on an ice rink.\u00a0 This seems like a poor design for a deck on an ice cutting research vessel but what do I know?\u00a0 I can say there have been more than a few instances where I\u2019ve questioned the safety guidelines and manufacturing choices on this ship.<\/p>\n Meg and I grabbed a couple of quick pictures on the deck, in between our sliding, to capture the first close encounters with icebergs from the Ioffe.\u00a0 We also wanted to see if we had enough layers for our first excursion.<\/p>\n As for our first Zodiac ride, Cody took us out and while it was crazy climbing down the gangway and stepping into the rubber boat, there was a real thrill to the experience.\u00a0 The sea seemed calm to me and I wasn\u2019t entirely sure why the kayak trips were cancelled; I felt bad for those that were signed up for today as due to the large numbers of us wanting to kayak, if you miss your slot, you miss your slot.\u00a0 We\u2019ll see how March 15th<\/sup> afternoon treats Meg and me.\u00a0 We had promised each other not to go in a double kayak for fear of forever destroying our friendship\u2026 and we\u2019re booked for a two-person kayak anyway.<\/p>\n But back to the excursion to Penguin Island.\u00a0 Cody gave us a mandatory Man Over Board (MOB) briefing.\u00a0 If someone goes over, the front passengers duck and cover, the last two are spotters for the driver, and the driver makes for them as best he can.\u00a0 Thanks to the wet skins and various other advice, a person should be fine for 5-10 minutes to be rescued despite the frigid arctic waters.\u00a0 Given the rising sun and the relatively calm seas, it seemed imminently safe\u2026 oh, how na\u00efve we can be!<\/p>\n Once ashore, we were hustled past a large colony of fur seals.\u00a0 These fur seals can be aggressive and we were warned to make a lot of noise to scare them off if they start charging.\u00a0 Meg described them as adorable but apparently jerks due to their aggressive nature.\u00a0 We opted to turn left and follow Antje the penguin expert out to a large colony of chinstrap penguins.\u00a0 It was penguins as far as the eye could see and really something to behold.<\/p>\n To be honest, it reminded me of my experiences in Alaska in that every 10 feet was something I could easily describe as the most beautiful thing I\u2019d ever seen.\u00a0 Antarctica\u2019s Penguin Island has some of the most beautiful natural moments I\u2019ve encountered in my travels.\u00a0 And this is only our first excursion.<\/p>\n After we all had spent some time with the penguins and seals, we trudged back to the fork in the trail and proceeded up to Deacon Peak.\u00a0 Amidst the switchbacks and inclines, the dirt and snow made for a slippery 170m ascent and Meg was gracious enough to let me use the walking stick.\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t have made it up and I definitely wouldn\u2019t have made it down without it.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know how she did it\u2026 especially what happened when we got to the top.<\/p>\n At Deacon Peak, we snapped some photos looking down on the Ioffe and looking back along the ridge line.\u00a0 It was beautiful but the natural views farther down were perhaps just as spectacular.\u00a0 Did we need to hike up this ridge the day before a marathon?\u00a0 Ultimately the answer was yes.<\/p>\n On the way back down, along what I\u2019d consider a goal trail along the ridgeline, the sky darkened and the winds suddenly kicked up.\u00a0 What followed were gusts of wind that nearly blew me off the mountaintop.\u00a0 Without the walking stick, I wouldn\u2019t have been able to keep upright, let alone descend.\u00a0 As it was, the rubber boots provided zero traction and I very nearly wiped out every few meters.\u00a0 How Meg was able to do it without a stabilizing walking stick I\u2019m not sure.\u00a0 I was too focused on trying to save myself rather than her.<\/p>\n But the wind gusts and resulting blowing snow, the near white-out conditions that were seemingly conjured by malevolent forces, this was how I had imagined Antarctica.\u00a0 Prior to this moment, as we walked and hiked Penguin Island, I was actually a little warm in my many layers, pulling back my hood and hat, taking off my gloves, wondering why I thought a parka underneath the red One Ocean wet skin was a good idea.\u00a0 My arrogance and disrespect for the fluid conditions on the last continent were answered in kind tenfold by Antarctica.\u00a0 Slowly we descended to the zodiacs for the ride back to the Ioffe.\u00a0 Expedition guides were waving us down, turning back those souls who hadn\u2019t yet made it to the top.\u00a0 And just as quickly, the winds seemed to die down and vanish.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know if they reopened the peak as both Meg and I were ready to head back to the ship to ensure the 100 tourist limit on Antarctica was protected and anyone not yet on the shore could come ashore.<\/p>\n Our Zodiac ride back was a lot choppier than the ride out.\u00a0 We were given a reminder, refresher MOB talk and this time it seemed far more relevant as we cut through waves and avoided chunks of ice.\u00a0 Dana zipped us back and forth through the seas and suddenly the cancellation of the kayak excursion made perfect sense.<\/p>\n As we neared the Ioffe, the swells and wind only seemed to increase yet again.\u00a0 The gangway was tossed against the Ioffe, metal clanging on metal, and the sailor assisting passengers back on board was flung through the air like a trapeze artist.\u00a0 He held on\u2026 albeit as Dana lashed our zodiac to the rickety free stairs of the gangway, an errant wave struck and the sailor fell into our boat, banging his head on the metal railing of the stairs, his blood dribbling down his chin.\u00a0 He recovered, with some help from Dana and another passenger but he looked dazed and winded, like a prize fighter struck by an underdog\u2019s unexpectedly powerful uppercut.\u00a0 Slowly the zodiac passengers scooted around the pontoon base and were helped onboard via the three-steps process: Shoulder assist from Zodiac driver while standing and one step on a wooden stool, sailor\u2019s grip with the now profusely bleeding sailor and second step onto the rubber zodiac pontoon, and the third step onto the moving target of a free floating gangway.\u00a0 A lot of us skipped the second step and took a lunge onto the walkway, yells of \u201cthree steps!\u201d not registering as the waves lashed the ship and zodiac and stairs, sending three points in various directions, not all of them favorable to those in motion or stationary.\u00a0 It was a hairy, precarious process that got more intimidating as passengers before you exited.\u00a0 Somehow or other, first I and then Meg made it onto the gangway and stumbled our way up the gangway stairs.<\/p>\n Later, just before lunch, a lot of us were talking about the odd design and safety precautions.\u00a0 The sailor had no life vest, wasn\u2019t hooked onto the ship, and was just being pummeled by the waves and the moving gangway.\u00a0 We wondered why the stairs weren\u2019t welded onto the Ioffe at least to provide one less variable of motion and why the sailor didn\u2019t have a tether.\u00a0 The crewmember told us you wanted the stairs to be moving relative to the zodiac and that the sailor couldn\u2019t be tethered for safety reasons in case he had to run up the gangway.\u00a0 I suppose the tether length necessary to do this could cause him to get caught, strangled, or crushed if an errant wave hit but it still felt unsafe the way they were currently doing it.\u00a0 To the sailor\u2019s credit, he carried on but he wasn\u2019t looking so good, blood drops hitting the water, his eyes a bit clouded.\u00a0 I couldn\u2019t remember if Orcas smelled blood in the water but I did check the horizon as we entered the mud room to doff our boots and wet skin gear.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Kevin\u2019s Log Supplemental \u2013 3:44 PM<\/p>\n Two quick notes on the pasta buffet lunch:<\/p>\n They delayed lunch to 1 PM to allow the zodiacs to return.\u00a0 We were the second boat to get back and apparently the swells only got worse as time went by.\u00a0 Sitting in the lobby, I noticed as passengers returned ever increasing degrees of soaking wetness to those returning passengers that would pass by on their way to their cabins.<\/p>\n Second, and more importantly, the dessert was a giant bowl of chocolate mousse that was, as most desserts crafted by the pastry chef onboard, delicious.\u00a0 It was so delicious that I snapped this photo on the way out of the dining room \u2013 desperate runners trying to get the very last ounce of confectionary from the huge bowl.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Runner\u2019s Log \u2013 Supplemental \u2013 3:46 PM<\/p>\n I\u2019ve gotten my bib for tomorrow\u2019s race!<\/p>\n They were also having a water bottle decoration party as we are all self-sufficient once ashore.\u00a0 Any hydration or sustenance we take ashore is all we\u2019ll have \u2013 Marathon Tours does not provide water or aid stations per se.\u00a0 So 100+ runners\u2019 water bottles are all going to be in one spot and for ease of recognition, they brought out a large box of ribbon, tape, and markers to decorate your bottles for easy identification.\u00a0 I\u2019m not quite sure how this will work but I\u2019m willing to roll with it.\u00a0 Disappointingly there were no bedazzlers, glitter, or hot glue guns to use.<\/p>\n I half-heartedly taped a K on my three water bottles until I realized that grouped together it created an unfortunate message.\u00a0 I redid them to be KHs and tied an orange ribbon around each.\u00a0 I have a bad feeling about this.\u00a0 But I\u2019m sure it will all work out.\u00a0 What could possibly go wrong?<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Runner\u2019s Log \u2013 Supplemental \u2013 8:24 PM<\/p>\n At the final briefing tonight just before dinner, Thom Gilligan zodiac\u2019d over from the Vavilov to give us a tantalizing summation of the day\u2019s race and what we can expect for tomorrow.<\/p>\n If forecasts hold, we should be looking at just above freezing temperatures, very light winds (4 knots at the start) that die out as the day progresses, but a strong possibility of light rain.\u00a0 To sum up, Thom advised, \u201cRainy, cold, or windy\u2026 it\u2019ll be at least one of those.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n