Sunday 4th December 2011.
Today the team reports incredible weather with conditions mild enough to wander about outside after dinner and enjoy the scenery. They made great progress covering 21.5 kilometers, ending at S 81.08.114, W81.13.367.
All Antarctic travel is very weather dependent and the team feels very lucky to have had such good conditions so far. They know that Antarctica’s weather is fickle at best and what they have experienced so far is above and beyond what they were expecting.
Sam from Illinois asked if there is much temperature variation between night and day. Thanks for the question Sam! With the sun above the horizon all the time there is little difference in temperature during a 24 hour period unless a different weather system comes through. When they reach the South Pole the sun circles overhead, not dipping at all. That said, weather can change quickly and the team keeps a look out for any indicators of deteriorating weather. You may remember Dennis noting that clouds were on the horizon a couple nights ago and they had “battened down the hatches” in camp. In fact they ensure that their camp is “bomb proof” every night before turning in.
The team will be skiing longer days and shooting for higher mileage as they near the end of their first ration. Your words of encouragement and support mean a lot to them! They thank you for following their progress and they look forward to sending more stories from the ice.
Don’t forget to listen to the audio report from Dennis and keep an eye out for more updates from the team.