We had a productive day on base yesterday starting with a long boating trip followed by a short boating trip followed by a Burns Night dinner.

After base meeting we loaded camping gear and rat boxes onto a jet boat and RIB. Just as we started out it started snowing with big large flakes and the visbility went down. We also got a call from Katie that there was a banded seal outside the dining room so we tied the boat back up. As we were in our boatsuits we waded in to the water to stop the seal escaping to sea and corralled it to against Everson House. Needless to say the seal was quite uphappy. It was a piece of rope this time and it was not in the skin but was very tight.

So back to the boats we stopped first at Poa Beach Maiviken and the guys set 10 rat traps along the tussock line in the bait boxes we had made. They also picked up some emergency food stashed in a sealers cave. Next stop was Curlew Cove where there is another very large sealers cave which had a lot of food. None of us had been their before so the RIB went in close along the shoreline looking for the cave.

We continued along the coast to Harpon and went over the submerged morraine which got to 2.5m deep and inspected Harpon Hut. Again we removed food that wasn’t in a metal container measured the hut for a new door and figured out it needs a good paint! By then it was 1pm and the RIB party was getting cold so Sam transferred into the jet boat cab which had the heating going full blast.

Last stop before returning home was Carlita to drop off Kieron and Ruth for a four day holiday. The hut there is beautiful and new but we aren’t allowed to stay on that Peninsula as BAS personnell.

When we got back to base it was so flat calm we decided it was ideal weather for going to the Greene with another 10 rat boxes.

Photo by Matt K
The water in the cove was slushy as it was covered in snow and there was 2 inches on the jet boat that had been left at base. It really looked beautiful which got Alastair started on Christmas tunes!

As the rat boxes were half constructed Alastair and I banged in a few more nails and got 10 sorted before heading out again at 3:15. We got to the Greene pretty quickly so we split into two groups Alastair and Sam setting rat traps with myself and Mr Boat collecting bits that had broken away from the wrecks on the morraine – a lot of plastic pieces, electrical, polestyrene and we loaded the RIBs up. I also went to inspect the hut which needs a good lick of paint and some small jobs doing on it. We have to check the rat traps every 2 days so when the weather is good we will put some paint on the hut while we are over there and continue with the beach clean up.

By the time we got home put the boats away clean up all the beach clean up rubbish and the food it was 6:30pm and time to get dressed in tarten for Burns Night. The light was absolutely stunning in the evening.

We had the traditional meal with Pat acting as MC with a paint brush sporon and Rob playing his fiddle while the two walked around the table carrying the steaming haggis.

I was on lates but couldn’t hack it as I was very tired after the last few days so I swapped with the Dr who took my lates and I have hers on Saturday night. However, I did get a picture of the sunset before heading to bed.

Today (wednesday) was a day off so everyone is doing laundry getting up late and of course the weather is awful however, Alastair and I are going over to Maiviken to see if the seal is in with it’s GPS tag and maybe we will do a thing or two in the hut!