I was recently lucky enough to be involved in recovering two of our snow groomers from Woop Woop, a summer skiway up on the plateau.
Because it is winter the sea ice has formed, so we decided to take our chances and bring the groomers back to station to help prepare the runway at Davis. However, before we could make our way up, we would have to prove a route for us to follow on the sea, through iceberg alley, on our way back with the groomers.
Once the route had been proven and all the logistical parts had been decided we were all set and on our way.
Once at Woop Woop, it was clear that bringing back these machines was no easy task. Digging the ice and snow away from the groomers in freezing condition was one thing, then to get them started after hibernating for months in blizzards and sub-zero conditions was another. After a full day of digging and warming the groomers up with portable heaters, we managed to drive them out of their icy graves, where they once laid.
The next challenge we faced was to drive them back to station and bring them back in one piece. It was decided that we would call it a day and come back in the morning to set off. The next day consisted of eating chocolate, chips, drinking cans of coke and sitting in a Hägglunds for hours-on-end, dodging and weaving our way through icebergs, eventually making it back to station all in one piece.
MVPs for the trip
- Tim Coloquhoun - The bobcat whiz
- Codey Simpson - The whisperer of groomers.
- Coach's award goes to Lee Mason.
Scott Plummer
