Antartica Day 4, Part 2: Camping on Ice :D
- Feb 22, 2016
- 1 min read
Weather: -20 degrees Celsius, Dark (like REALLY dark), not a lick of wind.
So yeah - camping on Antarctica is a thing. We lucked out yet again - no wind, and really not all that cold out! So we all opted to go without tents. We had sleeping pads, uber floofy sleeping bags, and we all brought our really warm pajamas and toques, just in case.
It's pretty simple. Find a spot (I picked a nice snowy spot, it was squishy and cozy), set up, then wander around and take pictures.
We had a pretty sweet camping spot, right next to a giant ice sheet. Let's just say I didn't sleep a peep. I spent the evening staring at the stars - it get SO dark, and the ship moored around the corner form where we were so her lights wouldn't disturb us. It was amazing to see constellations we're not used to seeing in the Northern Hemisphere, everything was so alien, and so beautiful. The ice sheet kept calving in the night, the sounds of the ice breaking and splashing into the water below was so thunderous, and a sound I would love to hear again.
To top it off, a chinstrap penguin decided to park itself next to the portable toilet that the guide brought for the group. He may or may not have squawked at anyone who came by. I'm convinced the guide paid him off: not a single person used that toilet that night.
It was the coziest, most incredible night of not sleeping I have ever had.
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