NY, USA to Kanger, Greenland
The morning began with a groan, waking up at 4:30am to catch the military bus to the New York Air National Guard base aka 139th Air Support – NYANG. We were provided with coffee and a muffin at the hotel and then we were off to the base at 5am sharp! The ride on the bus reminded me of my military days as a young soldier in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard going off to basic training, but I have a feeling this ride would result in a much cooler experience.
Bus ride to NY Air National Guard
Once we arrived at the base (15 minutes later) we were dropped off in one of the hangers where all of our bags and equipment were placed on cargo pallets and wrapped in cargo netting.
We then checked in with our passports, were given a number (mine was lucky #13) and then sat around waiting for the safety video. The departure to Greenland was scheduled for 08:30. That gave us approximately 2 hours to “hang-out”. Nico and I went outside to view one of the decommissioned C-130 aircraft. We got an up-close look at the landing gear and jet packs used to take off on the snow.
C-130 with skis
Once everything was loaded on the two HC-130 aircraft we were loaded back on the bus, returned our numbered tags and made our way to the aircraft. Our plane was named the “Pride of Scotia”. Scotia is the town where Stratton Air Force Base is located.
Loading the C-130
The HC-130 looks much larger up close. It was cool to see the ski gear that we would eventually use to land on the skiway at Summit. We boarded the plane and chose our seat carefully. I tried to wait and get a seat near the front, with a window view. Success! I not only got the front seat, but I was right next to the “bathroom”, water supply and cockpit. The seats were made of webbing, and there were no amenities like you would find on a commercial airliner. The guts of the plane were exposed and the sound of the four engines was overwhelming. Earplugs were a necessity. (7-8 hours of this!)
Seating and cargo area.
Once we got to a cruising altitude, I ventured to use the bathroom. The “bathroom” consisted of an oval shaped, stainless steel canister, strapped to the wall, with a lid that you flipped up when in use. Privacy was thrown out the window in these planes. All you had between you and the rest of the passengers was a curtain that you pulled around you when in use.
C-130 bathroom with door
Next, I asked for permission to go inside the cockpit. There were six Air National Guard troops in the cockpit. Three of them were seated in what looked like pilots chairs facing forward, one soldier was sitting at what looked like a control center and another seated next to him. The sixth soldier was sleeping above the others on a bunk, I guess getting rest for his shift of flying.
View of C-130 cockpit
After about 3.5 hours of flying, we landed in Goosebay, Newfoundland, to refuel. Rumor has it that the folks at Goosebay treat travelers with ice cream as a kind gesture for visiting their airport. Unfortunately, there was no ice cream presented at this time. Maybe on the way back.Once we were back in the air, it took about 4 more hours to get to Greenland. The sight of the edge of Greenland was fantastic. It was as rugged and exotic as I imagined. The ice carved topography was impressive!
Greenland terrain with glacier
Seeing glaciers from above was unlike any picture I’d seen before. You could clearly see the debris scraped off the sides of the valley in the ice. It leaves long trails of dark material in the ice.
Once we touched down in Kanger, we were immediately bused to the KISS facility. KISS stands for Kangerlussuaq International Science Support. In this building you could find all the necessities for going to the field. Offices, support supplies, dorm rooms and bathrooms. Once we were briefed and checked in we loaded the van and went back to the airport to eat dinner. This was officially my first European meal, chicken and potatoes (probably imported!). Cost = 150 Danish Kroner.
Kangerlussuaq airport food - 150 Kroner
Next, I made my way to the warehouse to pick up my cold weather sleep kit and cold weather gear. The sleep kit consisted of a -40 degree sleeping bag, bag liner, two pads and two water bottles (one to fill with hot water to help keep you warm at night in the bag and one to help keep you from going out to the outhouse in the middle of the night!). The cold weather gear consisted of Goretex jacket, pants and hat, Carhart work pants, North Face down jacket, three pairs of gloves, Sorel boots with extra liners, more water bottles (stay hydrated), hand warmers, glove liners, fleece jacket and pants, and a few other extreme cold weather necessities.
Getting cold weather gear at the science warehouse
The last task of the day was to pack our research gear. We were the last crew to pack our stuff. Nico and I had to search a large red shipping container for all the needed gear. Nico had a list with Koni Steffens notes of what was in each container. It was like playing “deal or no deal”. Some of the items we needed were easy to find, other we had to open 5 or 6 boxes to find what we needed. Completed the task by midnight. Wake up at 6am. Off to Summit Station tomorrow!