June 2, 2008 – Welcome to Greenland…
Flying today was an experience! We were herded onto a C-130 cargo plane as pieces of "Live Cargo”, at Stratton Air Force Base early this morning. Our gear was piled into large pallets and was carefully loaded into the back. We were all issued ear plugs and a nice cargo net seat!
It was sometimes cold, sometimes warm, and always loud. We were able to get up and crawl through the cargo to look out a few small windows as we watched the terrain morph from rolling hills, to water laced tundra to ocean and finally Greenland appeared; rising out of the ocean as solid rock and ice, towering into jagged peaks. It was BREATHTAKING! Pictures don’t do it justice!
Tonight I will sleep at the K.I.S.S. (Kangerlussuaq International Science Station) facility which is a collection of office rooms and sleeping quarters. The rest of the crew is staying at a hotel due to overcrowding at the KISS. We will eat dinner at the dining quarters (a Danish meal that I have been assured is quite odd! I will fill you in with more about it tomorrow!). After dinner I will head to the warehouse to get my ECW (Extreme Cold Weather) gear.
Tomorrow: Leave at 9:00am Greenland time for the 2 ½ hour flight aboard a C-130 ski plane to Summit Camp!
Stay Warm!!
The coast of Greenland is littered with rock and ice.