The Icebreaker and Cruise Ships

Well, it is that time of year. The icebreaker is making its way to McMurdo. Right now (at least last week) the ice edge was about 80 miles from our station. The icebreaker is a Russian boat, the Krasin, and it will make a channel for the resupply and fuel vessels that will bring supplies in sometime in the next month or so.

This is the icebreaker, the Krasin, in McMurdo Sound.

How does the icebreaker break ice? It is so cool! The boat will actually pick up its bow (the front) and crash down onto the ice. The boat can break through about 13-14 feet of ice.

We also signed up as volunteer tour guides for the 7 cruise ships that will start arriving in early January. Some of the ships helicopter their passengers to our base and some of them bring them over the ice on ATV's or on Zodiacs.

We had a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to Icestock (a huge outdoor concert) and the chili cookoff on New Year's day.