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Travel Antarctica

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Has anyone here been lucky enough to go there?

As a place I find it fascinating, and would love to get there one day.

Yet, I don't think I know anyone personally who has actually managed to get down there. Obviously the logistical challenges and cost would preclude many from considering it.



Please share your experiences and any advice if you have been!
 
Awesome advice.

I was hoping to be dressed in boardies and a wifebeater.
 

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Yeah, there certainly are. Working there would be interesting, but it's probably not something I'm in a position to do right at this point, as it does require a decent commitment of time. As would working anywhere overseas, mind you.

Most of the tours which go there seem to be via sea voyage from either Hobart, or Ushuaia at the bottom of Argentina. Which would be kind of cool, but getting there would also be something of an ordeal in itself; the Southern Ocean is generally considered to be the roughest, most violent stretch of water in the world!
 
Doss said:
Yeah, there certainly are. Working there would be interesting, but it's probably not something I'm in a position to do right at this point, as it does require a decent commitment of time. As would working anywhere overseas, mind you.

Most of the tours which go there seem to be via sea voyage from either Hobart, or Ushuaia at the bottom of Argentina. Which would be kind of cool, but getting there would also be something of an ordeal in itself; the Southern Ocean is generally considered to be the roughest, most violent stretch of water in the world!
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I have no idea how this would work vis-a-vis charter, but Skytraders fly an A319 "Snowbird 1" down there regularly over summer to transport the workers. A 5-6 hour flight sure beats a long boat trip.

Today/Sunrise sent someone down there a while ago so maybe if you got a group they would allow you on one of the flights. I really don't know though.
 
Most of the tours that leave from Ushuaia cost around 7k-8k mark, are typically 10-14 days, and really only visit some of the outlying islands and the Antarctic Peninsula, which makes sense geographically.

That 7-8k does not include the price of getting to Ushuaia in the first place, mind you.

It's a pretty expensive enterprise. Don't imagine flights there would be cheap either. It's pretty easy to find information on sightseeing flights there, but not so much for flights that actually land there.
 
I was at a work function last week and one of the guest speakers was a lady by the name of Rachael Robertson, who answered a ad in The Age looking for people willing to spend a 9-10 months working in Antarctica as part of a overall $20mill science program. At the time she applied for the role she was a team leader in a call centre so it was a drastic career change. She had some amazing tales especially as the last boat leaves for the winter in early march and doesn't come back until october. There is no way a plane or boat can get to you for that period, so if someone is dying or needs specialised medical attention then they are big trouble. Her website is below. http://www.rachaelrobertson.com.au
 
Got the chance to go there when I went to the Falklands years ago, but the cost was pretty prohibitive- $9000 for a 12 day cruise that only visited some of the outlying islands. The furthest south I managed to make it was a former whaling colony called South Georgia, it was a great (but very cold!) place.

Antarctica is definitely on my bucket list, know people who have been there and who highly recommend it.
 
A mate from work got down there for a trip about a year ago, the photos that came back from that were amazing. He went on a boat from South America, not sure on the cost but he had a great time. Will try to find out some more info!
 

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Doss said:
Has anyone here been lucky enough to go there?

As a place I find it fascinating, and would love to get there one day.

Yet, I don't think I know anyone personally who has actually managed to get down there. Obviously the logistical challenges and cost would preclude many from considering it.



Please share your experiences and any advice if you have been!
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I worked there in the mid 90s whilst in the military.

I was detached to a joint defence CSIRO group called hodsu.

It was cold but spectacular. I did a heap of diving which was amazing due to the brilliant blues shining through the ice.
 
Plugger35 said:
Never been and I can't say it's at the top of my ideal travel destinations list.

I like this song though.

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I vote for that to be Antarctica's national anthem :thumbsu:.
 
Power Raid said:
I worked there in the mid 90s whilst in the military.

I was detached to a joint defence CSIRO group called hodsu.

It was cold but spectacular. I did a heap of diving which was amazing due to the brilliant blues shining through the ice.
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Fascinating stuff.

Were you on the Antarctic Peninsula or elsewhere? I've heard it can get to a barmy high of six degrees in summer on the peninsula. Still considerably warmer than elsewhere, mind you.

Think I remember stumbling across something once which alluded to the most extreme of extreme surfers actually trying to surf a few of the beaches at the extreme north end of the peninsula and some of the nearby islands, like the South Shetlands. From memory, if you can brave the cold the waves are enormous because that region lies right in the path of the 'screaming sixties'.

The water would be just a little nippy though!
 
Don't know why half this board would want to go there considering there is very little mongering to do there. Or do Wilkes Land have Lady-Boys?
 

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The closest i have come to Antarctica is probably Te Anau in NZ.
But seriously, the Antarctic Centre in Christchurch is pretty sweet. You can ride in one of the Rovers they use. Although you are going over a dirt track, it is pretty cool to feel what scientists feel. They also have the room where you enter Antarctic temperatures.
 
If for whatever reason you feel an overwhelming, unquenchable desire to visit all 7 continents before you die, then you should still put Antarctica more at the bottom of your list.

Go there at a time in your life when a holiday seems more interesting to meet penguins than girls, when you'd rather chill in a heavily insulated corrugated building with a view of snow while drinking a heavily rationed beer rather than sitting in a bar chair overlooking a pool area crawling with bikini-clad girls and when you think so little of your own balls that you don't mind freezing them off.
 
It's been at the top of my destinations list for a while, and working with the Australian Antarctic Division as a Mandarin interpreter with the Chinese down there would be one of my handful of dream jobs. I dont think I would be medically fit enough to apply for such a job at the moment though, need access to specialist medication.

A work friend went down there for work reasons a few years ago, she enjoyed it.

Also, I remember Qantas doing 2-3 flights there and back each summer. There is even a NYE flight from memory, just a 12 hour flight there and back, not too expensive.

If planning to go in 2-3 years, start reading some books like South and The Worst Place in the World. Excellent books, and they will add to the mythology of your future adventure.
 
Roobs321 said:
It's been at the top of my destinations list for a while, and working with the Australian Antarctic Division as a Mandarin interpreter with the Chinese down there would be one of my handful of dream jobs. I dont think I would be medically fit enough to apply for such a job at the moment though, need access to specialist medication.

A work friend went down there for work reasons a few years ago, she enjoyed it.

Also, I remember Qantas doing 2-3 flights there and back each summer. There is even a NYE flight from memory, just a 12 hour flight there and back, not too expensive.

If planning to go in 2-3 years, start reading some books like South and The Worst Place in the World. Excellent books, and they will add to the mythology of your future adventure.
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The QF flights don't land.
 

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