Post the Sixteenth

A day off!

Time to see if I can't head out and photographically ensnare some things for you that aren't rocks or blurs.  Or blurry rocks. 



After all, I have been here for some time already.  You'd think I'd have been able to capture something interesting by now, right?  Right?!

Pffff.

Let's see, shall we?

So, the last time I headed out on a trek through the Antarctic wilderness I headed north.  Given that 'north' signally failed to provide any images of note, I threw my lot in with 'south' this time.  And since I am, after all, 'Jeff of the South' it seemed the appropriate thing to do.

The very first thing I encountered as I strode purposefully from the station was this signpost.

Informative

A very useful tool should you happen to be lost, and want to know which way to go to get to any of these places.  A bit limited in its usefulness, I suppose, since you actually have to be lost at Davis in order for it to be of any use. 

A little way into the walk and it occurred to me it might be useful to take a few photos of Swim-Swim and me for the headshot for the top of the post.  So I did that.  Even though I have used one above, I thought I might include one here that also shows the surrounding environment.

Just to show just how hardy and intrepid Swim-Swim and I are.

Not Laurel and Hardy.  Intrepid and Hardy.

Please note my beautiful headwear.  The Jeff of the South fashion special has clearly affected me, and now I must dress glamorously all of the time.  In fact, the Frillneck is an excellent bit of kit, particularly when you take into account the dramatic absence of ozone over the Antarctic.

Here, the sun just wants to kill you, and it is a very foolhardy person that does not do all they can to protect themselves.  Sunscreen and headwear like this are essential.  And necessary.  And also very important.   (It's worse on the ice, where the UV rays bounce back up from below you.  The underside of your neck and your nostrils (yes, your nostrils!) are at risk then).  But here at Davis the only direction the RAYS OF DEATH come from are the sun.  And you can see that.

It's just a shame that I was issued a hi-vis fluoro orange one.   Still, should I ever need rescuing, that will be the colour to wear.

And let's face it.  I do need rescuing from time to time.  But that's another story.


So after our little photographic pause, we pressed on.  It quickly became evident, as I gazed out over the ice looking for wildlife (or even Weddell seals!) to photograph, that the sea ice which has been hugging the shore since our arrival is beginning to break up.  It won't be too much longer before all of it is gone, but for now it's the edges that are starting to go.

Here is a photo of that.  Because I'm all about gripping photography.

Action

This photo is unmistakeably of sea ice breaking off, right?  Right?  Trust me.  It is.  But do you see those little black specks in the centre of the picture near the water's edge?  Could it be?  Could it really be?


Penguini!

A convent of penguins

Specifically Adelies.  Yes, they are distant and indistinct, but still!  I photographed some wildlife, in the wild!  On the ice!  Photographed!


But wait!  Do NOT ring now, and do NOT send any money.  There's more!  While I was gazing out at the penuini, I noticed this:

Not a rock

Yes, it's indistinct, and yes, it is hiding behind some ice, and yes, it is lying so that you can't see its face, but...  it's a Weddell seal! (!)

So frightfully excited, dahlings!  Penguini and a Weddell seal (!) on the one outing.  Truly they were all in the distance, and therefore horrible photographic subjects (which you do expect by now on this blog, right?), but I had scored!

BUT WAIT!  Still don't send any money, and still don't ring yet, because there is more!

Not a few hundred metres further on was this:

Work it, baby.  Work it.

A skua!  A South Polar Skua, to be specific.  It just sat on that rock, and casually watched me as I passed, paused, photographed it, and moved on.  Entirely unperturbed.  When you bear the nickname of 'vulture of the Antarctic', why would you be bothered?  (Do I look bovvered?)

Wildlife-a-palooza!  About bloody time and all.


What with all of this biology present itself, I realised I was neglecting the rocks, and I know how much you all love photographs of rocks.  Well who wouldn't?  So when I saw these dykes, I knew I just had to have them:

Stripey

Those are some big dykes on the other side of the bay there.  Just like roads going over the hill.  And because I know we all love photos of big dykes, here is a closer look:

I lykes dykes

Impressive, are they not?  They would have to be the coolest dykes I have ever seen.



Moving further around the bay, I came across one of the more remote scientific installations at Davis - the MST array.

SCIENCE!

I'm not entirely certain of its purpose, other than it is used to detecting stuff in the sky.  (If that's too technical for you, let me know and I'll try and put that in layperson's terms).  There is a related piece of equipment next to this, the Meteor Ablation Array, which is used to detect the ablated remains of meteors as they streak across the sky.  Cool, huh?

You betcha bum it is.


Moving further around the bay I was presented with Davis's backside.  So here it is - a view of Davis from behind.

Taken from behind

I know - you're not familiar enough with the layout of the place to care.  But Swim-Swim did remark that he did feel safer at this distance from the ANARESAT dome..  Then he muttered something about behemoths and penguins and something.

Reaching the other side of the bay I discovered that the stocks of living stuff had run out, so I was reduced to photographing the ground again.

Here is a rock with racing stripes.

Vroom vroom!

I have no idea what kind of rock it is.  Some kind of metamorphic dooberry, I reckon.  If you're a geologist, leave a comment below and then we'll all know.


Then there was this.  I think this may be a fossilised outboard motor...

Fred and Barney's?

And finally, because I love them so much and I just can't help myself, here is a close-up of part of one of those dykes.

And quite an upstanding dyke too, I think you'd agree!

Can't get enough of those dykes!

Aaaand I think that'll do.  There's only so much sub-par wildlife photography and rock that anyone can take, and I think that limit may have been reached.

Possibly even exceeded.

A couple of reminders - if they're needed - that clicking on the photos will link you to a larger version of same (for greater clarity in the event that there is greater clarity to be had), and that you can register for emailed notifications of these posts by putting your email address in the 'Follow by Email' field and following the subsequent instructions.

Thanks for trudging through this drivel with me!  Luv yaz all.