Departure Day (Arrrgh!)

I must admit that I am feeling a little queasy to say the least! After sitting in a room for the morning really not taking anything in. That was after the added stress of having weight limits close to the maximum allowed also in the back of the mind (30kg on the boat, 10 of which are in a pelican case and laptop)!

Anyway it is off to a good greasy BBQ before setting sail. Just the type of food to settle the stomach!

Last Days in Hobart

This was a project for today! Putting up a tent that resembles a hot house which is huge as you can see. It has a door that does not come attached so we had to cut through the end of the tent to attach it today. Very stressfull when it is a 5 figure ($) tent!

This afternoon I spent my last evening on Australia eating some fish and chips and watching as the Aurora was getting loaded. It really is a big boat! It is all coming to a start now and tomorrow is the departure day. No turning back now!

The Cat is Out of the Bag so to Speak!

As you can see most of the family managed to get together over the weekend and had a number of great meals over many days. "The Cat" as it were is that George and I are going to be parents! The baby of unknown sex is due shortly after my return to Australia around early May. This is very exciting and perhaps bigger news than heading to Antarctica.

Week 6 Pre Departure Training

This week of training has been busy as always with the trade off of a public holiday (Hobart Show Day) in there to boot. I have been involved in running training sessions for many of the expeditioners that will be going south this Summer. The areas that have been covered with them are, Radios, stoves, clothing, survival, fire, medical and how to get on the boat.

The photos of the rather sad looking Haggland are as a result of a fire last year after the vehicle was run constantly for a number of weeks to stop it freezing up! Some fuel in a spill tray was able to ignite after it reached a rather hot temperature. Anyway a good enough reason to learn how to use fire extinguishers effectively!

Must apoplgise for the lack of photos in this week but the camera was never in the right place at the right time.

Gnome and Andie in Hobart

Well it wasn't long before the girls got into Hobart that the festivities commenced.
Staying at the exclusive studio apartments at the Henry Jones they lived the high life in Hobart for a couple of days. Fine food and wine on the cards we were also able to give Gnome and Andie a feel for things down south. Brief encounter with penguin spotting and it appears strangling as there were no clubs available!


A trip to Hasting Caves. Which were mapped by by my farther's mother's sister's husband old Uncle Roy Skinner. Enough of the family history lesson. It was great to see them while they did there whirlwind Tassie tour and many good times were shared.