Getting ready

Only one more week before we fly to Santiago. Yeah! DeDe is already organized for packing - Pop Pop isn't quite there yet.

Surprise of all surprises though - it's likely colder here than it will be in Antarctica when we get there. They do have minus 100 degrees in the winter, but it is now their summer, and we expect temperatures near 30 degrees (F).

This morning, I had to boil two pitchers of water to unfreeze the water to the mini-ponies' watering trough. When I came in, my fingers were really cold. I think the temperature was near 15 (F).

Southern hemisphere, here we come.

Waterproof boots

Last night we met a couple who had been to Antarctica about ten years ago. They said we'll love the trip. Then they said,"It's real important to have the high boots." I said, "I know, we'll be getting off into ice-cold water."

"Oh, no ... the boots are for the penguins!" Oops. Apparently, you can hear and smell the penguins before you can see them, if you are coming around an iceberg. So ... the boots are not just for the water, they are for getting through penguin poop.

Keith

Here's a poem of the day from our trip to Alaska, about our guide, Keith, who walked alone across the Brooks Range.

Keith

Catabatic wind
Wolf, bear, ice, frostbite threaten
In silence, knowledge.

Word of the day: catabatic

Antarctica is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent. In addition to global wind movements, Antarctica makes it's own wind. Some of the glaciers are nearly 7,000 feet deep (and high)! As cold air slides down from the glacial plateaus, there can be violent (hurricane force) and unexpected winds. These strong movements of cold air down slopes are called catabatic (or katabatic)winds.

Humpback whale - a poem

Here's a poem about a humpback whale:

Powerful drama
Dorsal flags, lobtails, arch, dive
Breach, twist, and explode.

Humpback whale

Yeah! Here's a sketch of a humpback whale. We're working with a new browser (whatever that is). Getting close to these largest of mammals is spectacular.

No pics continue!

Google, where are you?

In the meantime, a poem from the North - Alaska - that may be mirrored in the South -Antarctica:

Anenome globs
Flowering filaments flow
'Mid mussels, and tube worms.

Mini frustration

Sorry - we wanted to add a pic to the post today, but apparently the Blogger functionality for that has been out for several days.

We had a webinar from Linblad and Nat Geo recently, and the trip looks awesome. Of course, if we can't post pics - that will be a bummer for the blog.

Fingers crossed for a solution.

A Journey

On an earlier trip with Lindblad/Nat Geo, we went to Baja California. We were one day on the Sea of Cortez, looking at all the different life at sea. Here is a long poem about our day.


A Journey


Fifty fellow travelers
Escaping cold, grey days and nights
Expecting to be pampered
In a communion with nature:
Walks in the desert, and hopefully,
A chance to reach from the Zodiac
And pet a whale.


Remember this day -
The breeze mottles and darkens
The deep azure water.
Pacific describes the warm, glistening blue
Under a cloudless sky.


Remember this day -
Devil rays leaping with a full flip and twist
(Degree of difficulty 6.2)
Hammerheads swimming two feet below the surface,
Jelly fish floating by.


Remember this day -
Frigates playing with the ship's antennae
Sperm whales lolling, spouting askew,
And fan-tail diving,
Blue and humpback in the distance.


Remember this day -
Thirty dolphins running with the Sea Bird
Jumping, leaping, bow-surfing
Singly and in threes,
Fifty travelers leaning over the rails
To share the sight.


Expectations met and satisfaction, but more -

A dark line appears on the sea-side horizon -
Moving, shimmering, frothing, as it nears.
We leap to the Zodiacs to be part of the melee.
A thousand or more dolphins boil the surf -
It's Mardi Gras in the Sea of Cortez.


Expectations exceeded create
An internal bedlam of excitement -
Remember this day.


Sustain the sea -
Not just for the devil ray, dolphins,
Frigates, whales and me.


Sustain the sea -
So our grandsons' and granddaughters'
Grandchildren can, like we,
Sit by the bon-fire under Orion,
The Big Dipper, and the Pole Star
Singing songs and remembering
That dark line on the horizon:
Mardi Gras on Cortez's Sea.

Getting ready

So ... we've been getting ready on two fronts

• Clothes, gloves, hats, and boots (our jackets come from Lindblad/Nat Geo) - the themes are layers for warmth, and waterproof for dryness (we've been alerted that ice-cold water is not good for comfort - although De De just had foot surgery, and her doctor said if the foot hurts, just stick it in the water a few minutes). For the clothes and stuff, we've found a terrific place in Wayne, PA. called Out There Outfitters. They have selection, advice, and price - a good deal.
• Our blog capability - we can't get a "link" to poems, so we have a work-around. We'll try to post two blogs a day. The first will be the dairy - a note and a picture. The second will be the "Poem of the day." If you don't want the poetry, just blow through those posts. Hopefully, by labeling the poems, they will have their own archive.

Only a few more weeks to "go" and we're getting excited!

Pop Pop

Blog use

Oops! We're still learning, and can't figure out how to attach a document to the blog, without forcing everyone to read it.

Why Antarctica?

Many have asked us, "Why Antarctica?" We have two reasons:

• We like wildlife and wilderness places, and


• When we ask fellow travelers, "Where was your favorite vacation?" those who have been to Antarctica say, "Antarctica."

We've been with Lindblad Expeditions/Nat Geo to Alaska, Baja California, the Baltics, Egypt, the Galapagos Islands, Jordan, and Machu Picchu. They are really, really good.

Poetry in nature

When we are on trips, De De and I sometimes write poetry. I like Haiku, a short poem developed by the Japanese. De De likes to rhyme.

Here's a poem of mine from a trip to Alaska, where we saw thirteen whales "bubble feeding" through a school of herring.

Bubbled balls of bait

Humpback havoc heaves en masse,

Singing together.

Here's one from De De about a mountain man in Alaska.

A mountain man went walking

Heading for Brooks Range.

His spirit followed that of Muir's,

His life forever changed.

Through valleys, passes, rivers,

It was only dog and man

Until he met up with the wolves,

Who accepted him, than ran.

His hardship's proved a challenge

That would discourage all but him.

He built a raft, carved a pipe,

and snowshoes on a whim.

His journey proved successful

He knew what he had done

His mind and body were in sync

Man and nature became one.

If there are any older grandchildren reading this, we have two questions:

• Who was John Muir, and what was his connection to former U.S. President Teddy Roosevelt?


• Can you find the Brooks Range on a map (hint: it is very far from Antarctica).

It's cold in Antartica. But it is cold in PA too. Here's our barn and miniature ponies in the snow just before Christmas, plus PopPop and Madison.

Introduction

Hi! I am a grandfather, and my grandchildren call me Pop Pop. They call their grandmother De De. This will be the story of our next trip - to Antarctica.