Colder Than Ice (8 page)

She
chuckled as she formed a mental image of a short woman in horn-rimmed glasses
and sensible skirt calling the roll at Christchurch.
The things I get myself
into,
she thought, before returning to her work.

New
Zealand—2009

MICHELA
SMILED AT the furiously waving figure standing off to one side of the helipad
at Mount Cook. The blades had barely stopped rotating when the person made
their way to the craft’s side. The door opened and Michela was exposed to the
crisp mountain air.

“Michela,
I’m Sarah Knight. Finally we meet.”

Michela
smiled at Sarah’s broad Australian accent. Sarah’s well-tanned features belied
a twelve-month stint on the Antarctic continent. She managed to break her stare
from Sarah’s sparkling green eyes. “The feeling’s mutual. Sorry about the
delay. There was a storm over Los Angeles that temporarily grounded all
flights. I was lucky to get out when I did.”

“Luckier
than you think. The weather’s closing in here too.”

“Then
I’m glad I managed to get here while it’s still fine. The scenery here’s
breathtaking. The turquoise color of the lakes here is amazing.”

Sarah
pointed to the snow-capped mountains around them. “That’s caused by the
glacial run off from those beauties. The flat glacial valleys are created in
much the same way. Let’s get your bags and get inside before it gets too
cold.”

Sarah
walked to where Michela’s bags had been stored and Michela followed her.

Michela
hefted her bag strap over her shoulder and pulled on a pair of gloves.
“When did you all get here?”

“We
flew in late yesterday afternoon in two helos. It’s an interesting group.
You’ll see what I mean shortly. From what Allison said last night, she intends
to focus their work on the main building, once its structure’s been
identified.” Sarah opened the door to the building’s enclosed porch.
“You’ll hear more about the dig this afternoon at our first team meeting
with the training staff. The sleeping arrangements are fairly Spartan and not
very private but I think that’s all part of preparing people for what to expect
down south.”

Michela
followed Sarah down the hallway and into a room that wasn’t terribly bigger
than the one she’d had during her first year at university. She silently
chuckled as Sarah grabbed a pile of clothes off one of the beds and moved it to
the one that was obviously her own.

“You’ll
be bunking with me. I hope you don’t mind.”

Michela
placed her bag on the bed. “No, not at all. So where and when is this
meeting being held?”

“Four
doors down the hallway on the right, in the common room.” Sarah looked at
her watch. “We’ve probably got enough time to grab a quick brew before it
starts.”

Sarah
led the way to the kitchen, where they prepared their hot beverage of choice,
and then made their way to the common room.

Sarah
opened the door and stepped aside, allowing Michela to enter first. “Look
who I found out at the helipad. It’s the long lost Dr. DeGrasse.”

With
all eyes on her, Michela drew on her years of training and managed a calm
welcoming smile in return. Before she could say a word she caught movement in
her peripheral vision. She turned and looked into the most amazing deep blue
eyes she’d seen in years. Sparkling with energy, they suited the somewhat
unruly brown locks of the woman before her. As if to validate her thoughts, the
woman unconsciously ran her fingers through her hair before extending her hand
to Michela.

“I’m
Dr. Allison Shaunessy. It’s good to see you could make it.”

Michela
returned the firm handshake. Was
that a comment about my lateness or is this
a continuation of your last e-mail Just what I need, a woman who thinks the
world revolves around her. I thought I just left one of those behind me. And
what’s this insistence on Doctor? Surely she knows I’m aware of who she is.
Maybe it’s about time you came back down to earth, Dr. Shaunessy.

“Allison,
it’s nice to meet you at last.” Michela gave herself a personal high five.
The slight twitch around Allison eyes confirmed the power game Allison was
attempting to engage in. Michela elected not to apologize for a delay she’d no
control over. “At least, I’m here now.”

Before
Allison could reply, the door opened, allowing what was obviously the training
group leader and his team to enter.

“Ladies
and gentlemen. Welcome to what will be your training camp for the next couple
of weeks. I’m John Bryson and my team and I will be preparing you for your expedition
to Antarctica. Now I won’t bore you with my credentials. Just be aware that my
team and I have been doing this for eight years now.

“During
your stay here, you’re going to be very busy. We’ll cover a number of areas,
including survival techniques, search and rescue, communication, plus living
and traveling on the ice. My team and I will observe you in terms of
suitability to actually spend time on the continent.”

Dianne
held up her hand. “You make it sound like if we don’t pass the test, then
we don’t get to go.”

John
nodded. “You’ve about got it in one. The camp serves the two purposes of
training and observing how you interact as a team. If I feel that one of you is
a potentially destabilizing influence on the rest of the group then I won’t
endorse your travel down south.”

“So
what’s to stop us from going anyway or going somewhere else to get an
endorsement?” Rick asked.

“There’s
a list of people’s names and their signatures held by the customs people in
Hobart, which is where you sail from. If one of those signatures isn’t on your
documentation then you won’t get on the ship, let alone get to Antarctica.
Think of it as an in-country visa if you will.”

Michela
watched the group uncomfortably shift in their seats.

John
held up his hand. “I think you’re getting ahead of yourselves. From your
paperwork, two of you have had previous experience on the continent as well as
one who spent a little time there. You’re a group of professionals and I’ve no
doubt you’ll conduct yourself in that manner.”

The
group breathed a little easier.

“So
let’s get on with it shall we? I think we’ll start with introductions before I
give you a broad overview of the continent. Tonight we’ll have a welcoming
dinner and tomorrow we’ll start our training with a short walk to the snow
line, so I can gauge the fitness of each of you.” John’s gaze tracked
around expectant faces in the room. “So who’d like to start?”

Michela
slipped easily into her role of observer rather than active participant. She
wasn’t surprised when Allison was the first to stand up.

“As
you know, I’m Dr. Allison Shaunessy, Allison or Alli will do. I’m an
archaeologist who currently works with the Flinders Museum of Australasian
Exploration. Apart from the obvious archaeological interest I have, I’m also
interested in the man himself. My doctoral thesis was based on Finlayson.”

Hmm,
Michela thought.
Nothing like
establishing credibility through academic snobbery.

Michela
watched as the man beside Allison stood and casually patted her on the backside
and then self-assuredly folded his arms. “I’m Rick Winston and like Alli,
I’m also an archaeologist with the Flinders Museum. There’s a lot more to me
than that. I’ve no doubt you’ll get to know more about me throughout the
week.” He resumed his seat.

Michela
inwardly sighed.
Very sure of ourselves, aren’t we? There has to be at least
one Alpha male in every group. As for the way he patted Allison’s butt, you’d
think she was his property or something.
Michela schooled her features and
smiled as the woman on the other side of Rick stood.

“I’m
Dianne Peterson and like Rick and Alli, I also work at the Flinders Museum. As
well as having a degree in archaeology, I also have one in geology.”
Dianne gracefully flicked her blonde locks and smiled. “I guess I couldn’t
make up my mind which discipline I liked the best.”

Michela
silently laughed as Dianne wove her spell.
And at least one Alpha female as
well.

Sarah
literally bounced out of her chair. “G’day. I’m Sarah Knight and I’m a
glaciologist and a physician, with a side-interest in forensics. So I suppose
if any of you get ill down there, I’ll be the person you’ll be seeing.”
She started to sit down and then stood again. “Oh yeah. It was me and that
big buffoon in the corner who made the discovery of the site.”

Michela
sipped her coffee.
What you see is what you get. She may well be the glue
that binds this group. Despite her qualifications, she still seems to have a
good rapport with those she works with. I wonder if she can give lessons to the
first three?

The
man Sarah had alluded to now stood and poked his tongue out at Sarah. “Big
buffoon is it? We’ll see who’s the big buffoon next time you want to get
something off the top shelf, shortie.” The man looked well over six feet
and Michela doubted he’d ever get lost in a crowd. The group laughed. “I’m
Rob Shearing and like Sarah, I’ve finished my second stint down south. I’m an
engineer by trade, but I’m also a driller, specializing in ice drilling. Oh,
I’m also a carpenter—a jack of all trades you might say.” Rob folded his
lanky form back into his seat and the man beside him stood.

“I’m
Michael Gribbin and the cook, so when we get there if you’ve any complaints
about the cooking then come and see me. I won’t change the way I cook, but if
it makes you feel better to complain, then fill your boots. I’m also a jack of
all trades, having worked as a jackaroo for a few years.”

“What’s
a jackaroo?” Michela asked.

“I
think you know them as farm hands or cowboys. It’s about the same thing.”
Michael sat down.

“G’day.
I’m Ewan McMillan and I’m a mechanic and electrician. Like Rob and Mike, I’m
also a bit of a jack of all trades, so when we get there, I’m willing to help
in any way I can.”

“Thanks,
Ewan, that’s great,” Allison said as Ewan sat down.

Michela
stood. “I’m Michela DeGrasse and I’m a psychologist, working with the
International Space Research Institute in Houston, Texas. I’m involved with the
current Mars program and am studying how teams operate in extreme and isolated
environments.”

“Great,
a shrink!” Rob called out. He suggestively wiggled his eyebrows.
“Just show me your couch and I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Sarah
snorted. “You’re a pig, Shearing. You know that, don’t you?”

Rob
grabbed at his chest in mock embarrassment. “Stop it, you’re making me
blush.”

Michela
chuckled. “Rob, I’ll remember your offer, but I don’t think they make
couches that big.”

John
Bryson stood and briskly rubbed his hands together. “Right then, let’s get
underway. I’ll start by telling you a bit about Antarctica. Some of you may
believe you’ve been cold before, but you haven’t been cold until you’ve been
down south. Antarctica is the coldest continent on the earth. While it’s gotten
down to as low as minus one hundred and twenty eight point six degrees
Fahrenheit, where you’ll be working, the daily temperatures, wind chill
included, will be between nineteen degrees and minus two degrees Fahrenheit.
So, you’ll need to ensure you’re wearing the appropriate clothing at all times.
Hypothermia and frostbite are a real threat in Antarctica, especially if you’re
not prepared. We’ll cover layering and what you need to wear over the next few
days.

“It’s
not only the temperature that’ll cause you to freeze. There are Katabatic winds
and they whip down from the inland, bombarding the coastal regions. The speeds
have been registered as high as one hundred and ten miles per hour, but they
normally blow at a constant nine miles an hour, with wind gusts greater than
that.

“You’ll
be exposed to infrequent blizzards or white outs but hopefully not many during
the time you’ll be there. All the same, you need to be prepared for them as
they can hit with very little notice and then rage for hours, even days. Once
you’ve set up your base camp you’ll need to ensure you establish blizzard ropes
or guidelines around the camp. In a blizzard if you haven’t done this, you can
be within six paces of a building and not be able to see it.

“You’ll
sleep in small fiberglass huts, known as googies and apples, depending upon
their size. They’re comfortable enough to house two to three people and their
belongings. Having said that, the living arrangements will be tighter than what
you’re used to. During the trip from Wills Station to your base camp, you’ll be
living in tents, so we’ll also spend time teaching you how to erect those.

“Spread
over the continent are long term field huts and remote refuges. They’re plotted
on all maps and should you find yourself stranded, they’re fully equipped to
cater for emergency accommodations. In an emergency the huts can be located
using GPS.

“Some
people think Antarctica is no more than a big block of sea ice. Wrong. The ice
is actually fresh water and under the ice are mountains, valleys and lakes.
It’s an amazing place and, once you’ve been there, you’ll never forget it. It’s
the largest repository of fresh water in the world and yet it’s the driest
continent on earth.” John took a drink from a steaming mug. “Are
there any questions at this stage?”