A walk in the hills

Well, the Leadership on the Edge program started proper today. We met early, 7.30, and had a presentation from our team leaders. At 8 am, Robert Swan appeared on the screen live from Antarctica and spoke for about 10 minutes to introduce the program and to talk about what he has been doing down there in the south.

Following on from that, we embarked on our first challenge. It was a 4 hour hike to see a glacier. And it was a challenge! Firstly, we were dropped off a the start point with no map, and only the sketchiest of instructions. From there we had to walk about 2 1/2 kilometers to the bottom of the glacier. The first 3 quarters of the walk were fairly straight forward, but then followed a section that was really quite challenging. It was a really steep slope, up loose stones that were wet, and therefore very slippy. The group became very strung out as everyone has different levels of fitness. But, we got there, and it was totally worth it. The views were spectacular, and it was amazing to look up at the glacier. We stayed at the foot of the glacier for around half an hour or so taking photos and chatting, before we headed back down to the hotel.

Once we'd had lunch, we continued with the Leadership on the Edge program which had us talking about teams and how they function. We then had to make an assessment of how we thought we'd worked as a team. The discussion was really illuminating and shows that different people can have significant different experiences of the same event.

The journey continues

This morning we got up at a truly unreasonable hour to travel down to Ushuaia. I couldn't believe it when the alarm went off at 5am! But I managed to drag myself out of bed to get ready for the early flight. We'd arranged a minibus for 6am to take the 12 of us (and a significant amount of luggage!) across to the airport. Almost everyone else seemed to be feeling the effects of the early morning and it was luckily a very quiet journey to the airport. Once there, it was like being on autopilot - check in, leave luggage, coffee, security, wait at gate, bus to aircraft, seatbelt, safety demonstration - then back to sleep!!! There were lots of other people from the expedition who were also taking the same flight down to Ushuaia. This resulted in lots of introductions, but I decided that in order to retain a certain amount of sanity I would save the introductions until we arrived. So, I sat and pretended to read a magazine. It was comical really, as my eyes could hardly focus, but it seemed to do the trick and I was spared having to join in conversations!! There's plenty of time to make up for it!

I missed most of the flight, apart from when they brought the food around, and then woke up properly as we were decending over the mountains and in to land. The scenery was incredibly - snow topped mountains, rivers, forests set off by an amazing coastline! When we landed we were met by a group of people from 2041 who ferried us up to the hotel. It's a hotel quite high out of the city and the views are incredible!

We were allocated rooms and had our gear checked to make sure we had the right kind of cold weather clothes, then we were left to our own devices for the rest of the day. I spent some quiet time writing in my journal and taking in the views from the hotel. I'm now writing this sat in front of a huge open log fire, and keeping an eye on the sunset, which is just spectacular!

The team reunited

Another great day in Buenos Aires! This morning we travelled to the airport to meet some of the team arriving on the early flights. It was so good to see them come through to the arrivals hall as it was the start of our team getting together again for the first time since January. James, Eric and John arrived this morning so we had the rest of the afternoon together having lunch and getting to know each other again. Then this afternoon Delando arrived and amused us all with stories of his exploits getting through customs. This evening we went out for dinner, but made sure we were back to meet the rest of the team who were all arriving together on a late flight from Europe. Once we were all together again we had an hour or so just chatting about our travels and what the next 2 weeks hold for us.

It's been a good start to the expedition and I look forward to spending time with this group of people and getting to know everyone better.

Now, though, it's time to turn in for the night. We have an early start tomorrow - we have to be checked out by 6am in order to get to the airport for our early flight!!

A wander in the city

My first day in Buenos Aires has been just fab!! After all the trauma of yesterday’s flight problems it was nice to finally land in Argentina. I was met by my colleague Alan from the US which was great as it meant we could travel to the hotel together. Once at the hotel we decided on a quick turnaround before we were to go out to explore the city. And what a great time we have had! First off we went for some lunch and just got our bearings. Then we wandered down to the marina and had a walk along the waterfront before sitting down on a bench and just letting the world past by. It has been a really relaxing day. The perfect antidote to the hectic few weeks I’ve just had. Then we got a cab to another part of the city and wandered around for a little while before finding a little bar for some refreshments.

We had time to really chat about the expedition and talk about our expectations and fears for the next couple of weeks ahead of us. It’s a great shame that none of the other members of our team managed to get out here a little earlier to share in our experience today. It really has been perfect!

As I landed this morning, I received a message from a colleague who I worked with a number of years ago. It was such a lovely surprise. The message said that everyone I used to work with in Industrial Coatings in Darwen, Lancashire would be following the events of the next few weeks. So I would like to say hello to Lynda, June, and everyone else in Industrial!!

Best laid plans....

Not a great start to my journey. Due to high winds in the south of England my British Airways flight to Heathrow has been cancelled. I had a few options, but time was not on my side, so a train journey or a car journey down to London were not really feasible! So, I set off to Newcastle airport to see what they could do. The staff on the customer service desk were really struggling because of all the cancellations, and were really of very little help. However, the girls in the office had already checked out alternatives for me so I knew there was a Jet2 flight down to Gatwick at 5pm. I decided that this was the only realistic option if I was to stand any chance of making my connection at 9.25 pm. However, I'm now sat in the departure lounge and it has just been annouced that the flight is delayed by half an hour!! Oh joy! That reduces the amount of time that I have in London to get from one airport to the other! Oh well, life is just one big adventure, isn't it!!!

Everything else today apart from that went quite smoothly. I've packed ok, and although it was a bit of a squeeze, everything I wanted to take went in. I don't think I've forgotten anything, but time will tell on that one.

I hope that next time I write my blog I'm in Buenos Aires!!

Life in the Freezer

One more sleep to go and I'm off on my travels! It's been a busy day of ironing, sorting and packing ready for setting off tomorrow. I also managed to find time to watch David Attenborough's "Life in the Freezer" which is a documentary series about Antarctica. I feel as though I'm ready to go now!

In an unprecedented moment of organisation I made list of things that I need to do tomorrow. I didn't add that I also need to pack as I thought I'd get around to doing it this evening! However, I opened a celebratory bottle of champagne earlier this evening, then went out for something to eat, and now I know that it isn't going to happen tonight!

From a practical perspective communications may change over the next few days. My blog is now being updated also on www.missionantarctica.com so if you find that I haven't made an entry on this site, then please check that on. Also, if that one isn't updated then check out http://expedition.2041.com/

Only 2 more sleeps!!!!!!!!!

Today I've been running around trying to get the last minute things that I haven't managed to get yet. I wanted to try and get everything sorted today so that I can relax tomorrow. I'm going out with some friends tonight so it's possible that I might be a little delicate in the morning! I've been worried that I haven't got enough warm "stuff" to take with me, so I've been out and bought another couple of merino wool jumpers just in case!

The only things that I haven't managed to get yet are camera batteries. Apparently camera batteries lose their power really quickly in cold environments and we were advised to take a few spare ones with us. However, up until now I'd forgotten about them, so today whilst I was running around I thought I'd better go and get some. But, the 2 stores that I went into didn't stock the ones that I needed. I guess that means that I'll have to spend some time tomorrow on the internet to find a local store that stocks the ones that I need.

Once I'd stopped running around, it was nice to have an evening with friends just chatting and having a few drinks. We went out to a local Italian for pizza and a couple of glasses of wine, then back to my house to end the evening with a nightcap!

Only 2 more sleeps!!!!!