Anthony Bourdain Visited Antarctica last Summer and South Pole Winter Games

Anthony Bourdain and his crew from "Parts Unknown" visited McMurdo Station on the coast and also the South Pole last summer. He posted several articles and videos on CNN. Here's what he had to say about Antarctica:

Bourdain’s Field Notes

There’s been some whiskey drinking. The blue-tinged ice cubes in our glasses—older, we are told, than the very idea of whiskey. It’s warm tonight by local standards, which can see temperatures drop to 50 below and beyond. So, as one does in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica, at the bottom of the world, I go to the beach and play Frisbee.

I pick my way across the ice-covered lake, unsteady on my crampons, and flop gratefully down on soft sand, staring up at a midnight sun that never sets. Behind me a few yards away, looming overhead, is the massive, 200-foot-high wall of a glacier. In the other direction, what looks very much like Mars.

Rarely, if ever, has an episode of “Parts Unknown” so descriptively lived up to its title. Antarctica is the last un-fucked-up place on Earth. Chances are you can’t go there. Certainly not the way we did.

We were extremely fortunate to have been invited by the National Science Foundation. Which meant that, along with incredible access and logistical support, there were rules and requirements.

All of us on the crew had to get rigorous medical exams, full labs, dental—the works. You break your hip at the South Pole, it’s going to be difficult and expensive to get you out. If your helicopter or your C-130 plane has to ditch, requiring an overnight stay on the ice, you better be physically up to it and fully briefed on procedure.

As unbelievably beautiful and unspoiled as Antarctica is, it’s no joke if things go wrong.

My daughter Jocelyn and I met Bourdain and chef Jose Andres in Washington D.C. November 2016 during the last leg of our around the world bicycle ride (fatherdaughtercyclingadventures.com). 

Anthony Bourdain standing at the ceremonial South Pole marker last summer.

I am training for the vertical tower sprint (upper left).

Inside the beer can (vertical tower) is very cold.

The beer can provides access from the station to the underground utilities, power plant, logistics and other facilities about 50 feet below the ice surface. 

Looking down from the top level of the beer can. The tower gives access to utilities, the power plant and logistics.

There is a double set of these doors for access to the main station.

I have been practicing for the beer can sprint, a race up 92 steps and 46 feet wearing full Extreme Cold Weather (ECW) gear (about 45 pounds). It is has been really difficult to run this every other day for two weeks. I run 10 cycles up and down. I'm not fast running the icy metal steps as I hold on to the railing the entire way. Don't want to slip on these steps. 

The "old guy" finished last at 42 seconds. I have never been fast. Plus most of the other competitors were less than half my age. 

Station second deck flooring is being replaced. 

Since my satellite schedule is moving backwards I am off at 1pm. I then volunteer to help the carpenters until 5pm. 

I drill and screw the new concrete decking. I like doing different things on station. 

Mid-Winter Greetings from around the Continent Part 2

Part 2 of mid-winter greetings shared around the continent.

United States

Germany

Germany

Chile

Russia

England

New Zealand

Greenland

Norway

Ukraine

China

Greetings on the galley wall.

Mid-Winter Greetings from around the Continent Part 1

There are thirty Antarctic and sub-Antarctic regions (islands north of the Antarctic circle) that are manned year round. There are also many other stations that are manned only in the summer. Every winter solstice mid-winter greetings are exchanged with all other stations.

President Trump

Uruguay

Russian

India

England

Australia

France-Italy

France

Australia

China

South Korea

France

England

Chile

South Korea

Australia

Antarctic Mid-Winter

Midwinter Greetings from the South Pole

Our South Pole mid-winter greeting that was sent to all Antarctic stations.

Our spaceship has reached the boundary of our solar system and we are now returning to earth. 

June 21st marked the Winter Solstice in the Antarctic. The sun has reached its most northern point at minus 23.5° and is back on its way south now. In a few months we will have light! It has been a long several months since I first arrived at the South Pole in February. I am doing fine and looking forward to the second half of this grand South Pole adventure. 

The following was written by Harry House, the station manager, during my McMurdo Winter 2012

McMurdo Mid-Winter Dinner 2012 

Mid-winter day is a time of great significance here in the Antarctic. Celestially, it is defined as the shortest ‘day’ of the year and the beginning of the Sun’s gradual return in August. Early explorers would mark the day with feasts and commemorative toasts to loved ones back home. For them, the day provided a much-needed morale boost after many months of isolation. It marked a ‘pivot point’ whereby they could start anticipating a call to action in the gathering dawn.

Much has changed since the Heroic Age of Antarctic exploration, both on the ice and back ‘in the world’. There are no Poles to discover any longer (although there are other things). Nations no longer wait breathlessly in anticipation of our safe return, carrying word of feats of endurance and discovery. We can converse with our loved ones back home in almost real time, so our feeling of isolation is much reduced from the days of yore. Certainly we now enjoy many of the comforts of home by comparison, although at times we all lose sight of that. It is easy and reasonable in many ways for us to feel our contributions pale in comparison to the legends of the past. It is understandable that many of us no longer feel any connection to those who came before us, or even to the legacy of the Continent of Antarctica.

While all of this may be true, it misses the point. Having the privilege of working here in the winter is still one of the most unique opportunities in the world. For that reason alone we are all now members of an exclusive group of individuals who share a common bond. This bond extends not only with each other, but across all the stations on the continent on this special day. It transcends time as well, as evidenced by the letters I read to you previously. Do you not think that if the early explorers were alive today, they would be just as interested in our sense of being here as theirs? They are indeed with us tonight in spirit, and they also would appreciate a place at the table. Please make room for them if you can.

And so, on this special evening, I propose a toast to all the Antarctic Heroes, past and present. 

From My Midwinter 2017 at the South Pole I would like to add:

I have the privilege and honor of working in one of the most isolated places on Earth. Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station closed in early February leaving 46 souls to work and live in isolation for 9 months. The station will reopen in early November for the short Antarctic summer when the population swells to 150. During this time, we have been subjected to periods of brutal temperatures down to -103 F with winds that easily drop the temperature to under -140. At these temperatures, the word ‘cold’ doesn’t mean anything. Even ‘extremely cold’ is not appropriate. There is no word to describe the feeling as you walk in the darkness and try to survive from one building to the next. If the weather conditions permit, you may see a faint red light where you are headed. The darkness along with the cold and wind can and will disorientate you in seconds; the large snow drifts will test your stamina, and frequent stumbling will make you think Now which way was I headed? as the last thing you want is to be lost.

 But when it is clear, the reward is simply stunning as the sky is filled with stars and varying shapes and colors of dazzling auroras that stretch from horizon to horizon. The South Pole winter sky is unmatched in beauty. They say that a successful Antarctic winter is when you return home with 10 fingers and 10 toes. This may sound funny, but believe me, it is so very true. So why am I here? It is probably one of the most unique opportunities on the planet to live an adventure, and it is a huge physical and mental challenge. This is only my third winter, and this “old Antarctic explorer” is enjoying the Antarctic experience.  Mike Rice 6-21-2017 

Part of the mid-winter celebration is that the station personnel design the next South Pole marker for 2018. The current marker will be removed and the new marker put in place January 1, 2018. The new marker design was voted at our mid-winter dinner and will be made by the station machinist. The final result will not be revealed to the world until January 1, 2018. We on station will see the new marker before we leave in November.

The current South Pole marker 2017. Since the two mile thick ice sheet moves the 2018 marker will be placed approximately 30 feet from the current position.

A station member designed this one with Wayne, our station manager. Wayne is an excellent manager and has been exploring the world his entire life. 

As part of the station weekly science lectures I have been presenting the space shuttle that I worked on for almost 30 years. 

Mid-winter dinner

Galley Crew

Volunteering in the dish pit before dinner.

Working with Wayne, our winter manager.

A bit chilly outside.

James, an Ice Cube scientist.

Beef tenderloin for the meat eaters.

Dessert.

A table for those who died at the South Pole.

Station friends.

My vegetarian meal. 

Our mid-winter photo. Some of us brought items that show our jobs. I'm standing to the right in blue shirt holding a satellite dish with my work partner Garon. Our actual work dishes are much larger and enclosed in domes 3/4 mile from the station.