Just a quick update. I finally found the "Snow Mode" setting on my camera and hopefully it will improve the grey pics I've been taking. Gonna go take it on a test run right now.....
-john
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Leaving McMurdo & a NEW EMAIL ADDRESS
Well I got an official flight and date to leave for WAIS: Tuesday, Dec 9th
This actually works out perfect since I've just about done all the fun things there are to do in this town, and I'm itching to move on. I spent the day today hiking the "Castle Rock Loop". It is a 9 mile hike all over a glacier. It was pretty incredible. I took a lot of pictures, but my camera seems to be having a lot of trouble down here. All of the snow and ice is making my camera think it's too bright. This results dark pictures, where I come out as basically a black shadow. If I adjust the settings so that I come out clear, than the rest of the pic becomes washed out. It's tricky.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Once I leave McMurdo, I will no longer have internet access. This means no blog updates. I will, however, have limited access to a single email address for txt only emails. If you want to get in touch or get updates from me while at WAIS, the email is:
fegyvejo@wais.usap.gov
This actually works out perfect since I've just about done all the fun things there are to do in this town, and I'm itching to move on. I spent the day today hiking the "Castle Rock Loop". It is a 9 mile hike all over a glacier. It was pretty incredible. I took a lot of pictures, but my camera seems to be having a lot of trouble down here. All of the snow and ice is making my camera think it's too bright. This results dark pictures, where I come out as basically a black shadow. If I adjust the settings so that I come out clear, than the rest of the pic becomes washed out. It's tricky.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Once I leave McMurdo, I will no longer have internet access. This means no blog updates. I will, however, have limited access to a single email address for txt only emails. If you want to get in touch or get updates from me while at WAIS, the email is:
fegyvejo@wais.usap.gov
Mt Erebus (Background) and Castle Rock (Right) as seen
from the Castle Rock Loop Hiking Trail
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Antarctica Update and Low-Res Photos!
Well...I'm still here in McMurdo and waiting to deploy to WAIS Divide. I've finished all of the mandatory training classes (including snowmobile -which was awesome) and shipped all of my science equipment out ahead of me. Several other scientists, core handlers and drillers have already made there way out there, but there's still a large bulk of people here also waiting to leave. There have been a lot of canceled flights due to weather.
So far I haven't had much free time until this afternoon. I've been so busy running from one building to another trying to get all of my cargo boxed up and sent correctly all while squeezing in multiple training sessions. But...thankfully, it looks like all that is done. I am going to attend an Outdoor Safetly Lecture tomorrow so that I can hike and x-country ski on some of the trails down here. (they won't let you until you attend the course). I was allowed to climb up observation hill, however. It's the one trail that is open to everyone. it's actually a pretty steep and rocky climb...but the views are amazing.
Here are some pics (very dumbed down for upload)
"Ivan" the "Terra Bus" bus picking us up at the airstrip
Mt. Erebus off in the distance (southernmost active volcano)
New Zealand Owned Scott Base
Heading off to "Happy Camper" Snow School
building a Quinzee snow hut at snow school
Scott Tents set up at snow school 
McMurdo Sign
McMurdo seen from Obseravation Hill
Mt. Erebus (constantly erupting)
Kiwi Scott Base
So far I haven't had much free time until this afternoon. I've been so busy running from one building to another trying to get all of my cargo boxed up and sent correctly all while squeezing in multiple training sessions. But...thankfully, it looks like all that is done. I am going to attend an Outdoor Safetly Lecture tomorrow so that I can hike and x-country ski on some of the trails down here. (they won't let you until you attend the course). I was allowed to climb up observation hill, however. It's the one trail that is open to everyone. it's actually a pretty steep and rocky climb...but the views are amazing.
Here are some pics (very dumbed down for upload)
Glacier seen from the window of the C17 flying over Antarctica
"Ivan" the "Terra Bus" bus picking us up at the airstrip
Mt. Erebus off in the distance (southernmost active volcano)
New Zealand Owned Scott BaseHeading off to "Happy Camper" Snow School
building a Quinzee snow hut at snow school
Scott Tents set up at snow school 
McMurdo Sign
McMurdo seen from Obseravation Hill
Mt. Erebus (constantly erupting)
Kiwi Scott Base More to come....
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
McMurdo Update
McMurdo Update...
I made it to McMurdo Antarctica on Monday afternoon and have been doing ok since. I had to take a mandatory 2 day "snow school" where I learned all the basics of surviving in extreme temps (ie radio coms, emergency shelters, etc.). I spend the next couple of days taking a bunch of classes for snowmobiles and environmental issues and then get my gear and supplies ready to ship off to WAIS. Tentatively, I'm scheduled to head out Monday or Tuesday. This gives me 4 days to pack up gear and get all my science equipment ready. I'm gonna try to upload some pics, but the internet here is extremely limited, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to.
some things I've learned while down here:
1. The hole in the ozone must be extreme, because even when snowy, you burn in about 10 minutes.
2. 20 degrees is considered a really nice warm day.
3. There's actually times when the white outs are so bad here, they have to tie ropes between buildings for people to find their way.
4. Sleeping in a snow cave is "fun"
5. a C17 is a huge friggin plane
6. people like to drink a lot in antarctica
7. The main dorm room feels (and sounds) like a typical college freshman dorm
I made it to McMurdo Antarctica on Monday afternoon and have been doing ok since. I had to take a mandatory 2 day "snow school" where I learned all the basics of surviving in extreme temps (ie radio coms, emergency shelters, etc.). I spend the next couple of days taking a bunch of classes for snowmobiles and environmental issues and then get my gear and supplies ready to ship off to WAIS. Tentatively, I'm scheduled to head out Monday or Tuesday. This gives me 4 days to pack up gear and get all my science equipment ready. I'm gonna try to upload some pics, but the internet here is extremely limited, so I'm not sure if I'll be able to.
some things I've learned while down here:
1. The hole in the ozone must be extreme, because even when snowy, you burn in about 10 minutes.
2. 20 degrees is considered a really nice warm day.
3. There's actually times when the white outs are so bad here, they have to tie ropes between buildings for people to find their way.
4. Sleeping in a snow cave is "fun"
5. a C17 is a huge friggin plane
6. people like to drink a lot in antarctica
7. The main dorm room feels (and sounds) like a typical college freshman dorm
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Official Project Update (11-27-08)
From the official WAIS Divide Website:
NOVEMBER 27, 2008
Hello WAIS Divide Participants,
Work is progressing at WAIS Divide, however major storms and mechanical problems with the Tucker snowcat and Caterpillar tracked fork lift has slowed progress. Settling of the arch and internal walls has also added to the effort required to get the arch structure ready for drilling. The attached photo shows how much the arch drifted over, the end that is almost covered is 17 feet tall. Geoff Hargreaves, Jay Johnson, and myself are in McMurdo. The rest of the science crew and most of the drillers are in Christchurch and are heading this way. Overall we are running about a week behind schedule.
NOVEMBER 27, 2008
Update provided by Dr. Kendrick Taylor
Hello WAIS Divide Participants,
Work is progressing at WAIS Divide, however major storms and mechanical problems with the Tucker snowcat and Caterpillar tracked fork lift has slowed progress. Settling of the arch and internal walls has also added to the effort required to get the arch structure ready for drilling. The attached photo shows how much the arch drifted over, the end that is almost covered is 17 feet tall. Geoff Hargreaves, Jay Johnson, and myself are in McMurdo. The rest of the science crew and most of the drillers are in Christchurch and are heading this way. Overall we are running about a week behind schedule.
To get an idea of just how bad the drifting was this last off season....
Friday, November 28, 2008
Christchurch, New Zealand
(My life for almost 30 hrs....planes and airports)
"Well...I went for a nice 5 mile run today around the park, in sunny 75 degree weather."
-The problem with that sentence is that the run was in a park in Christchurch New Zealand, where it is 75 degrees and humid out on November 29th. It's not ~45 degrees north latitude like PA...but 45 degrees south :-)
So far things have gone pretty smoothly. For those of you wondering, I now know the future, but can't tell you or it will open some paradox vortex or something. That's right, it's already Saturday here. Do you want to know the lottery numbers for Saturday? :-)
This is pretty much the first time zone in the world. I am the first to welcome each new hour as it comes. (except for maybe some small island in the pacific just to the east of NZ.)
Anyhoo...Quick recap:
Started Thanksgiving day by heading to the airport at 10:00 am. Checked in and waited over 2 hrs to leave. The flight to Chicago went smoothly and quickly. Took about 2 hours, but we passed one time zone, so if we are keeping a tally:
Time on planes: 2 hrs
Time in airports: 2 hrs
Total Time: 4 hrs
Got to chicago at about 1 local time and waited 2 hours to head out on my LA flight that left about 3. This flight was just under 4 hours long. I had empty seats next to me which was nice, however I had to endure 2 hours of torture as they played the film "Mama Mia". For those of you that don't know....it is a basically ABBA music turned into a film/musical....yeah it's that bad.
Time on planes: 6 hrs
Time in airports: 4 hrs
Total Time: 10 hrs
I got into LA at 5 pm local pacific time and had to wait another 3 hours for my Qantas flight to leave. This wait was tough. The flight finally left at 8 pm and I was in the air for the next 12 hours. This was a great flight believe it or not. I got two full meals, several snacks, 3 great movies, friendly crew members, 4 seats to myself to stretch out and sleep on, and met some great people. by the time I arrived in Auckland, I had entirely skipped Friday by flying over the International Dateline.
Time on planes: 18 hrs
Time in airports: 7 hrs
Total Time: 25 hrs
It took about 2 more hours in Auckland to pass through all the bio and security checkpoints (as well as customs), and board my last flight to Christchurch. This last flight was amazing. It was only an hour and a half and I flew from the tip of the northern island (Auckland) to the middle of the southern island (Christchuch). The whole time, I could see the awesome mountain ranges popping up. I was literally flying over the set of Middle Earth. I could see Mt. Cook (home to Franz Joseph Glacier) in the distance as well as the Fiordland area. I can't wait to see those places on my way back.
Time on planes: 19.5 hrs
Time in airports: 9 hrs
Total time 28.5 hrs
I still have a 12 hr flight to McMurdo and a 4+ hour flight to WAIS. YAY! *sigh*
I did manage to get a few pics though:
Here's a shot of the snow covered mountains in New Zealand as seen from my plane window. You can almost imagine Frodo and Sam running along the ridgeline.
Quick pic of main street in Christchurch. It is a pretty cool little town from what little I've seen of it so far. I can't wait to check out the Antarctica Museum. I was told by some locals that if you are a first timer to the ice, you are supposed to rub the nose of the Amundsen Statue at the museum for good luck.
This is just a quick shot of my hostel room. Raytheon and the USAP put a bunch of us up at the Windsor B & B. It reminds me a lot of a hostel on the Colorado Trail. I probalby won't be able to upload pics once I leave here, so I'm doing the best I can with what I have now. I am only supposed to use this computer for 10 minutes though, and I've already been on it for 30. so I will check in later everyone!
-john
"Well...I went for a nice 5 mile run today around the park, in sunny 75 degree weather."-The problem with that sentence is that the run was in a park in Christchurch New Zealand, where it is 75 degrees and humid out on November 29th. It's not ~45 degrees north latitude like PA...but 45 degrees south :-)
So far things have gone pretty smoothly. For those of you wondering, I now know the future, but can't tell you or it will open some paradox vortex or something. That's right, it's already Saturday here. Do you want to know the lottery numbers for Saturday? :-)
This is pretty much the first time zone in the world. I am the first to welcome each new hour as it comes. (except for maybe some small island in the pacific just to the east of NZ.)
Anyhoo...Quick recap:
Started Thanksgiving day by heading to the airport at 10:00 am. Checked in and waited over 2 hrs to leave. The flight to Chicago went smoothly and quickly. Took about 2 hours, but we passed one time zone, so if we are keeping a tally:
Time on planes: 2 hrs
Time in airports: 2 hrs
Total Time: 4 hrs
Got to chicago at about 1 local time and waited 2 hours to head out on my LA flight that left about 3. This flight was just under 4 hours long. I had empty seats next to me which was nice, however I had to endure 2 hours of torture as they played the film "Mama Mia". For those of you that don't know....it is a basically ABBA music turned into a film/musical....yeah it's that bad.
Time on planes: 6 hrs
Time in airports: 4 hrs
Total Time: 10 hrs
I got into LA at 5 pm local pacific time and had to wait another 3 hours for my Qantas flight to leave. This wait was tough. The flight finally left at 8 pm and I was in the air for the next 12 hours. This was a great flight believe it or not. I got two full meals, several snacks, 3 great movies, friendly crew members, 4 seats to myself to stretch out and sleep on, and met some great people. by the time I arrived in Auckland, I had entirely skipped Friday by flying over the International Dateline.
Time on planes: 18 hrs
Time in airports: 7 hrs
Total Time: 25 hrs
It took about 2 more hours in Auckland to pass through all the bio and security checkpoints (as well as customs), and board my last flight to Christchurch. This last flight was amazing. It was only an hour and a half and I flew from the tip of the northern island (Auckland) to the middle of the southern island (Christchuch). The whole time, I could see the awesome mountain ranges popping up. I was literally flying over the set of Middle Earth. I could see Mt. Cook (home to Franz Joseph Glacier) in the distance as well as the Fiordland area. I can't wait to see those places on my way back.
Time on planes: 19.5 hrs
Time in airports: 9 hrs
Total time 28.5 hrs
I still have a 12 hr flight to McMurdo and a 4+ hour flight to WAIS. YAY! *sigh*
I did manage to get a few pics though:
Here's a shot of the snow covered mountains in New Zealand as seen from my plane window. You can almost imagine Frodo and Sam running along the ridgeline.
Quick pic of main street in Christchurch. It is a pretty cool little town from what little I've seen of it so far. I can't wait to check out the Antarctica Museum. I was told by some locals that if you are a first timer to the ice, you are supposed to rub the nose of the Amundsen Statue at the museum for good luck.
This is just a quick shot of my hostel room. Raytheon and the USAP put a bunch of us up at the Windsor B & B. It reminds me a lot of a hostel on the Colorado Trail. I probalby won't be able to upload pics once I leave here, so I'm doing the best I can with what I have now. I am only supposed to use this computer for 10 minutes though, and I've already been on it for 30. so I will check in later everyone!-john
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving! ...and here I go....
Well, mom dropped me off at the airport this morning and there is
literally no one here. The joy of flying on thanksgiving! I walked
right up to check in and had my passes in 2 minutes. It took me about
5 to get through security. So now I'm sitting at my gate with 90
minutes to kill. Guess it's a good thing I bought a logic puzzle
book. Today is going to be a very long day. I'll be on planes and in
airports for over 20 hours. I'm even jumping a day by flying over the
dateline. I won't get a Friday :-(. Have a great thanksgiving
everyone!!!!!
literally no one here. The joy of flying on thanksgiving! I walked
right up to check in and had my passes in 2 minutes. It took me about
5 to get through security. So now I'm sitting at my gate with 90
minutes to kill. Guess it's a good thing I bought a logic puzzle
book. Today is going to be a very long day. I'll be on planes and in
airports for over 20 hours. I'm even jumping a day by flying over the
dateline. I won't get a Friday :-(. Have a great thanksgiving
everyone!!!!!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
The Winning Picture!!! (2010 AT Calendar Cover Photo)
The 2010 AT Calendar Cover and August Photo!
Got some awesome news finalized today! I found out a few weeks ago that one of my Appalachian Trail photos was selected as a finalist for the 2010 AT Calendar. Today I received the official paperwork. I signed it and mailed it in. Woo hoo! Not only will the above picture be the photo for August, but it will also be the Cover Photo.
There's even a link on Amazon to pre-order already!
....It's also pretty cool that I get a nice $250.00 check too! Double Bonus!
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