18 February 2018
The fog has cleared and we have a spectacular view of the continent of Antarctica today, from Cape McCormick to Cape Adare. The wind has been blowing over 40 knots, preventing us from deploying any of our sampling equipment. We are currently “dodging”, which means the officers are driving the ship very slowly into the weather to reduce the rocking and rolling of the vessel as much as possible. As soon as the wind drops we will be back into CTD mode later tonight.
The crew that keep us fed and watered, and make the ship a pleasant place to be are cooks Grant Wilkinson and Godfrey Hagedorn, and the Steward Yvonne O’Neil. They are constantly coming up with new options for the menu, making good use of leftovers, and always turning out an amazing array of options that cater to the different tastes and diets of those onboard. It must be very challenging cooking and cleaning up after 40 people while lurching about the galley and mess in heavy seas, but this team gets it done, and always with a smile. We appreciate them very much.
