Part III: Antarctica and Academe - Scott Polar Research Institute

and Bahia Blanca, arriving at BA about 4 o’clock where we were met by Astrid
Blomqvist and checked in at the Tucuman, rather tired. We all went out for a steak
dinner at Hamburgo's and to bed about midnight.
I arranged to visit the British Embassy the following afternoon, so first did some
shopping and then we all entertained Astrid to lunch - steaks again and a full-bodied
Argentine red wine. I was late getting to the Embassy because the taxi driver didn't
know his way. I joined in the Embassy’s weekly meeting and we discussed the
Antarctic and Falklands matters for 40 minutes before I had to go back to the hotel to
change and pack. I had arranged to take a flight to New York, with Don, Ian and
Dick, that left at 8.30 pm and so we had to leave the hotel at 6 o’clock.
At Ezeiza Airport we met a BAS group coming south to join the ‘Bransfield’ at
Valparaiso and they came with us as far as Santiago; Professor Beynon (Physicist)
was with them. Dick and Doug had great difficulty getting their telemetry
equipment through customs because it all looked rather suspicious! Our flight was
to Miami where we had to go through customs again. Don, Dick and Ian left the
flight to go through to Minneapolis and Edmonton, as it was Thanksgiving Day and
they would be able to get home for dinner. We left Miami at 7.30 am and arrived at
New York at 10 o’clock, to find there was no London flight until 7 o’clock in the
evening; due to the late arrival I had just missed one. So ended one of the most
interesting months I have ever experienced.
The l978 - l979 season
This was to be a shorter than usual Antarctic journey of just over a month (38
days). On 6 February I left home at 4 o’clock to catch the 8.30 pm British Caledonian
flight to Santiago arriving there about 1 o’clock next day. Checking in at the Carrera
Sheraton, I walked through the streets and then drank ‘pisco sours’ in the bar before
dinner by the rooftop pool with Joe Farman (Physicist) and Alan Allanson (Chief
Engineer, Bransfield). We were up early next day for a Lan Chile flight at 7.45 am,
taking us to Puerto Montt and Punta Arenas. We saw superb views of the Andes as
we flew south, particularly the glaciers and mountains and lakes on the second half
of the trip. We flew close to Fitzroy and Cerro Paine and touched down at Punta
Arenas at 1.30 pm. A cab took us into town where the Bransfield was anchored
offshore; the port was closed due to the wind, so we went aboard by launch, but soon
afterwards the ship was able to go alongside. I was sharing the stateroom with Roy
Piggott (Head of Atmospheric Sciences). I had talks with John Cole (outgoing
Captain), Eric Salmon (Personnel) and Roy Piggott. Also with Stuart Lawrence
(Captain), when I learnt that the Chilean Navy wouldn't permit our planned passage
through the Murray Channel, so we would have to go out by the eastern route. John
Cole seemed very stressed and concerned about the tightness of the itinerary, so we
were late out to dinner at the Asturias consisting of Centolla followed by escalope of
veal, Chilean wine too of course. I got to bed at 1 o’clock in the morning.
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