Ob Tube (Observation Tube)

Robyn with our bikes and the dicovery hut, McMurdo and Ob Hill in the background.

Still trying to fly to BYRD deep field camp after a week of moostly weather delays, but I think that we may actually fly today.

Last friday Robyn C. (also known as Robyn with a "Y", as there are two Robyns/Robins in the Carp Shop who happen to be roommates) and I got a what would normally be an ordinary work order of fixing a window in a fish hut next to the Ob Tube.

It was a beautiful day. We took a shuttle as close as we could get to hut point and then walked down. We investigated the situation and then walked the fifteen minutes back to the Carp Shop. We did this twice and then went to lunch. After lunch Robyn had the idea to bike back to the hut which we did. Pretty nice day already, but it gets better. While we were there, the divers showed up and were preparing to dive and so we went down in the Ob Tube to watch them underwater. We photographed them , and they photographed us. Some days are better than others and this one was amazing. Well, I'm off to BYRD like a prom dress after a quick breakfast in the galley.

Waiting to go in the Ob Tube on a different day.

Robyn and her new seal friend in fish hut #6

The divers getting suited up in their dry suits

My pictures of the divers taken from the Ob Tube

Us inside the Ob Tube. It hangs about twenty feet below the ice. It really is just a big tube. Not thre best picture. You can see Robyn, my hat, but Val is obscured. The tube is not real big. Tight with two, so with three it is a wee bit cozy.

The diver's pictures.

Good work if you can get it!

Seals

I've been working for a few days in one of the fish huts on the sea ice. These huts have a dive hole where the scuba divers in dry suits can enter the water and study the underwater sea life. It becomes a convenient breathing hole where the seals can come up for air. A few came up to say hello while we were there. Some get scared and make a hasty exit when they see people, but some are not so shy. Damn cute those seals.

Views of Erebus and Other Things

Open water on the Ross sea. The ice edge is about 19 miles from McMurdo which is pretty close for this time of the year. Photo by Travis Moose

Nick Salava doing work high up. Photo by Travis Moose

Wrecked helocopter on the side of Mt. Erebus. The crash occured in 1971, and no one was hurt. Photo by Travis Moose

Nice photo of the Erebus Ice Tongue by Travis Moose

Erebus from the sea ice

The view of Erebus from Happy Camper

Big Razorback on the sea ice with Erebus in the background. The dot in front of the island is Big Razorback camp which is made up of about four fish huts. The researchers study seals there.

Cape Evans with the road leading to Cape Evans Hut. This was Shackleton's hut. There are two big icebergs protuding from the sea ice in the foreground.

Return to Mt. Erebus

This has been a great week. I got to go back to Mt. Erebus. Erebus is the most southern active volcano in the world. We were above 13,000 feet, but it wasn't as windy as the last trip.

The Lower Erebus Hut is only a few minutes walk from the fumeroles which are staem vents that create these crazy shapes. Photos by Travis Moose

Me, a fumerole and Erebus

The Lower Erebus Hut