Return to Christchurch

By 3 P.M. today, we'd been transported to Willy Field by "Ivan the Terra Bus." I was officially en route back home. No Antarctic blog is complete without mention of Ivan. That's partly because of his irresistibly photogenic monster tires, but also because he's the official passenger shuttle between McMurdo and the airfield. He's slow, but he'll make his destination regardless of weather and terrain. When Ivan's unavailable, a Delta 2 bus of lesser steroids takes his place. I was excited about flying a C-17 Globemaster III for a change. It's more spacious than the LC-130 Hercs I'd been taking till now, and faster as well. The jet-driven C-17 makes the McMurdo-Christchurch flight in about 5.5 hours versus the propellor-driven Herc's 7.5 hours. But as long as this landscape lasts, I'm in no hurry.