Little America
Little America
Even though we had suffered damage to the ship by being crushed in the ice, we made the long trip to Little America 2. I was very excited to see it because I had read a lot about Admiral Byrd's original expeditions and this seemed to me to be the real Antarctica.
At Little America we tied up to the icebreaker Edisto which was tied up to the ice shelf. The shelf here was much higher than the ship so we had to first navigate a narrow gangplank to get to the Eastwind. There was a safety net below the gangplank, but it wasn't much comfort to me.
From there, you had to climb up a couple of ladders to reach the level area of the ice shelf. This was very different from McMurdo where we had to go down to the ice shelf.
Some of us volunteered to take a trip into Little America 2, the base where many people would spend the winter in Antarctica. To do this we had to get on a sled pulled by a bulldozer and make about a half-hour trip. Even with our special cold-weather clothes it was a cold trip.
We were told that there were crevasses along the way and to be ready to jump. Indeed we saw one and some of the scientists ventured down into the hole in the ice.
Finally, we arrived at Little America which turned out to be a surprise to all of us. Instead of neat rows of huts, we found what seemed like a large dump.Supplies, including machinery were stacked outside. We were to learn that some of those mountains of supplies included beer--the cans were only partially filled to allow for freezing. I asked if we could try a sample, but I was told it was being saved for the winter.
Returning to the ship we were to experience the aftermath of a storm at sea. Huge swells came in and we damaged the sides of the icebreaker as both ships moved up and down. I was standing on the fantail getting a picture of the unusual colors below the ice shelf when the unexpected happened.
The wave action caused the shelf to break off and come tumbling down onto the fantail. Luckily I got out of the way, but it was scary.
