As the Australian Antarctic Program readies itself for the 2024/25 season, there are many who have recently passed through the recruitment process and readying themselves for a ‘stint down south’. As they prepare for the big adventure. the question often asked by new expeditioners, their families and friends is: “What’s it like to live on an Antarctic station?”
The Red Shed at Casey Station is our primary communal building where our expeditioners spend most of their time eating, sleeping and partaking in various indoor recreation activities – especially when there’s 70knot blizzards blowing outside. The Red Shed’s main building can house 40-odd expeditioners, but in summer we use two additional (and attached) accommodation wings to expand the station’s limit to around 115-120 beds. This is because over summer, ‘Hotel Casey’ comes alive as it supports a myriad of science, deep field, infrastructure, aviation, and other projects or operations. That means a lot of people pass through station over a summer season.
During the winter period from March to October, we ‘winterise’ and shut down these annexes to conserve power, housing our 31 winterers in the central building over this time. The Red Shed has several communal areas that include the downstairs ‘wallow’ (named after areas where Antarctic seals congregate together to roll around in their own filth, rest and seek relief from moulting), lounge and living areas, library, fitness room, theatrette, bar, and messing/kitchen facilities. Here’s a little bit more on each:
Wallow and living areas. These are very comfortable over winter and allow people to find their own personal spaces to relax, read a book, chat with others or engage in the many table, board, puzzle and card games around station. We also have a few additional areas like our ‘quiet room’ should people want some additional privacy for a meeting, or while making a call back home. Our aim is to create an atmosphere where expeditioners can duplicate what they would experience back home, including lounging around and falling asleep on the couches. While not as possible over summer when station populations exceed 100 bodies, the winter allows us to adopt a more spacious and flexible approach, moving furniture around to make our settings that little bit more comfortable.
Kitchen and mess. Some would argue the central hub on station. Not only do expeditioners frequent the mess for nutrition but it's also a great place for gatherings around the table with coffee, tea, or snack in hand. The mess is often dressed up for special events like candle-lit dinners, and we are truly spoilt by the variety and quality of food available to us over both summer and wintering seasons. We also find that most expos are very comfortable working in the kitchen and have the option to prepare whatever food they desire 24/7 – as long as the chef’s provisions remain untouched! There are also many ‘grazing’ options available outside of traditional meal times, which makes achieving a balance between ‘eating vs burning’ calories an ongoing battle.
Theatrette and library. There’s a huge collection of movies, documentaries, TV series, books and magazines on station. Often expos will bring their own collections and share amongst the community. It’s usual that a week’s routine consists of night sittings to watch everything from various drama, sitcom or TV series – interspersed with documentaries and regular movies of all genres. The library not only remains the source of a diverse assortment of literature (including a comprehensive array of publications reflecting our rich Antarctic history) – but this room also houses computers for expeditioners to use to check emails, on-line shop (delivery not guaranteed!) and to partake in on-line courses.
Splinters Bar. The primary area for watching streamed sporting events, playing darts or pool and generally mingling in groups with drink in hand. We hold our ‘science on station’ presentations here in the summer, which are a great opportunity for visiting scientists to share their research outcomes with expeditioners. Splinters is often the place for various themed parties and other station celebrations. Some would say many of the world’s problems have been solved around Splinters Bar over the years!
Fitness Room. While we have very well-equipped gym facilities in other station buildings, it’s handy to have some light weights and cardio equipment available inside the Red Shed, especially when blizzards restrict outside movements for days at a time. Most people will walk past the fitness room as part of their daily movements indoors, which does serve as a visual reminder for all to burn off some energy, rather than heading down to the mess to stock up on energy reserves.
Personal Rooms. Probably of most interest: “What does an expeditioner’s room look like?” Generally small, compact, but functional and very comfortable. The walls around station are pretty thin however, so headphones are definitely a requirement if you like loud music or watching movies. Some are lucky to have a window with outside views, while others prefer complete darkness (especially in summer, where 24-hour sunlight confuses our bodily circadian rhythms). While some always need more space to store personal items, it’s very surprising just how much you can stow away in the various drawers and cupboards (especially if you’re good at playing Tetris).
So that’s a quick download on our Red Shed. While living on station will never replace what we have at home (including our family and friends) it certainly keeps us warm, comfortable and our well-being intact whilst at Casey.
Dave Buller, Station Leader
