June 10, 2005

A pic from the pirate party. This was early. It got weirder.

Me jumping in the ocean

Cheers,
Andy

May 22, 2005

Almost back at Palmer Station now. The Drake tried to get uppity with us
right at the end, but we ducked behind the islands on the inside passage
and didn't get smacked around too bad. We have one day of cargo ops, then
out again to catch more fish.

May 10, 2005

We'll be back in PA on Thursday. Not much left of the Drake now, but it's
getting rougher all the time so it's best we were out of here. PA is just a
fast cargo turnaround and then we head south again to do the second part of
the fishing cruise.

May 8, 2005

Well we finished the first leg of the fishing cruise. Many days going out
and trawling all night, followed by deploying and recovering fish traps. We
got a whole lot of critters for the scientists to play with. But we also
got to spend several nights at Palmer Station. Last night was the "Cross
Town" dinner where everyone on the ship is invited to eat on shore. Fred
and I were the bartenders, and we made Kahlua milkshakes and hot Chai tea
with rum and Bailey's. For the dinner the captain made 3 platters of sushi,
and we actually cooked up some of the fish we'd caught.

Now it's back into the Drake and heading towards PA. We do a quick cargo
pickup, maybe 4 days, and then head back down to do it all over again.

Cheers,
Andy

April 20, 2005

We're outa here at 1800 tonight supposedly. PA is incredibly wet and windy
this time of year. Last trip they took a 50 degree roll among other things.
Actually they don't know how far it rolled because the inclinometer pegged
out at 50. They figure you don't need to know if you roll more than that
because you ain't rolling back. All the acid spilled out of the batteries
in the emergency generator room. Anyhow, we're off. More later. All is well.

Andy

April 6, 2005

Andy's recommended reading
about ships in the Arctic and Antarctic

"The Endurance : Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition"
by CAROLINE ALEXANDER

Andy says: "Simply the best book about Shackleton with the best of Hurley's pictures."

"North to the Night : A Spiritual Odyssey in the Arctic" by ALVAH SIMON

Andy says: "A modern day story of being trapped in the Arctic Ice. Now subtitled a
" spiritual odyssey" when it's really about stupidity, hubris, and madness which
is often mistaken for spirituality."

"2182 kHz"
by DAVID MASIEL

Andy says: "Excellent fiction about working on ships in the Arctic and Alaskan waters. David Masiel takes unstable characters, traps them on small ships for months
at a time while subjecting them to lethal weather and ice while working under
the sensible and benevolent corporate policies of the modern world." (Note:
2182 kHz is the radio band for distress calls)

Cheers,
Andy