A Sunday Afternoon walk to McMurdo Station and Hut Point

This afternoon we went for a walk over the hill to McMurdo Station and Hut Point (~3km each way). It was a really nice day, and a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

Still not too happy with the colours in some of my images.. Well, I was happy with them on one computer, but they're completely different on another one, so I'm not sure which is correct..


Glen near the top of the hill. Mt Terror in the background.


Snowcat! Broom Broom!!


A line of containers. Looking across McMurdo Sound to the Trans-Antarctic Mountains.


Glen taking some photos from near the Camp Area Datum origin. Observation Hill in the background.


Glen taking some more photos, this time with the trig, the containers and the mountains visible.

Ivan the Terra Bus! This is what we got into town on from the plane on our first day. It's huge!

Another large American vehicle. I don't know what it's used for, I just know its awesome! haha.

The Skua. This is a place where you can go and scavenge for stuff that people have left behind. So kinda like an op-shop I guess, but you don't pay anything..

Inside the Skua. It's named after a reasonably common bird down here which scavenges on whatever it can- often baby penguins.

A random piece of art in McMurdo. It's taller than I am.

Glen walking towards Discovery Hut at Hut Point.

Me- happy to finally be at the hut, after seeing so many photos, and reading about it in so many books.

This was Scott's first hut in the Antarctic, and is named after his ship, the Discovery. It was erected in 1902. It is the furthest south of the three historic huts on Ross Island, and was an Australian kitset design, more suited to the outback than the Antarctic (hence the big eaves).

Vince's Cross in the foreground, Discovery Hut to the left, Winter Quarters Bay in the medium-ground. McMurdo Station behind that, Crater Hill to the left, and Observation Hill to the right.

Winter Quarters Bay is where Discovery wintered over, and where the Americans bring their supply ships to unload, usually after a channel has been created by icebreakers.

Vince's Cross. Vince was on Scott's expedition, and died when he slid down a slope and into the water.

The road south. The early explorers would have aimed to the left of the hills on the horizon to go south.

Our Lady of the Snows Shrine. Dedicated to a construction driver from the US Navy- Richard T Williams, who died when his D-3 tractor broke through the sea-ice near Cape Royds on 'Operation Deepfreeze I' in 1956. The airfield that the ski-equipped planes fly to the south pole from is named after him- Willy's Field.

We then wandered back into town, and went to the McMurdo Shop, where I spent quite a bit on merchandise, although I did manage to finally get a copy of the USGS Ross Island and Vicinity 1:250,000 map.. After that we wandered back over the hill to SB, and dinner, yumyum.