The Practical Antarctic Checklist
This week is almost one year to the day since I arrived in Hobart for the start of my Antarctic adventure. The next six weeks were a rush of training, meeting new faces and enjoying the last few snippets of humanity before setting off on a journey to the southernmost part of the world. Now the incoming season of expeditioners are preparing to do the same.
When you sign up as an expeditioner, the Division gives you a checklist giving you a few ideas of what to pack when you’re venturing south of 60 degrees. It covers the basics but there are a few more things you’ll want to pop in your UPE to survive the year and maintain a healthy mind.
This is the practical Antarctic checklist.
- Colour
There’s a whole lot of white down here (and brown rocks if you’re lucky enough to score a season at Davis). Having a splash of colour in your wardrobe can brighten even the darkest winter solstice. The buildings might be coloured like Lego blocks, but once you step foot indoors (which you might do on a semi regular basis once it hits about 20 below zero) dull tones seem to be the colour palette of choice. How to combat? Pack colourful, bright clothing, and a good mix of casual and semi-casual. Maintaining a Friday night nice dress helps keep your brain properly programmed in an environment where standards can easily slip.
- Bedding
Yes, this is absolutely provided but I couldn’t recommend more the payoff of spending a bit of extra dosh on bedding. Flannelette sheets, a quality mattress protector, your own quilt, quilt cover, and pillows. Anything to make your sleep that little bit more comfortable. In the middle of winter when your brain doesn’t know if its 4pm or 2am, having a comfortable sleep is everything. You are here for the year (or at least a few months of it) so it’s worth the expense.
- Lights, lights, lights
On par with the bougie bedroom set up, LED lights on WiFi or Bluetooth are incredibly handy to deck out your room. Setting a timer to gradually light up your room when the sun’s on vaccay will benefit your sleep and your ability to wake up. Lights which are compatible with the wall mounted fittings is even better. I’d suggest reaching out to outgoing expeditioners to find out what fitting you need, best money you’ll spend coming down. Motion activated lights for your bathroom are also cool!
- Oodie
My Vegemite Oodie has become my signature look for movie nights. Cozy, big pocket for snacks, hood for mid movie nap. Perfection! Will you lose respect from your fellow expeditioners? Yes! Will you be unbelievably comfortable and happy at all times wearing it? Absolutely yes! Leave dignity up north and convert.
- Pre-Ground Coffee
Antarctic coffee blend gets you by, but a home brew is nice every now and again. My sister convinced me to bring vanilla syrup so I’m especially bougie. Recommended more so if you like the occasional decaf.
- Hair ties
Apparently not as obvious to me as this should have been. You can never have enough. As winter hair styles progressively become… untamed... you might be lending a few out.
- Arc’teryx
The Division provides your survival gear, but having your own set of layers is so nice. Colourful beanies, shells, and bright colour buffs to make your recreational weekends more comfortable and feel less like work. A couple layers which you can wear over one another is great and something I wish I’d invested a bit more into.
- Photography and Videography Gear
This was a given for me seeing as I love photography, but some of the team have regretted coming down without spending a bit extra on camera or video gear. Wildlife in summer and auroras in winter – there will be no shortage of things to capture. One ultra-wide prime and one telephoto lens will have you covered for most things. For the hiking season, a Hyperlite camera pod or a peak designs camera clip make accessing your camera a breeze, leaving more space in your pack for food and survival gear.
- Hiking products
On the topic of hiking in Antarctica – we follow a very strict leave no trace policy and everything you take in field must be hiked out. This includes your 1s and 2s which are collected in urine bottles or a WAG bag (biodegradable toilet kit) and hung from the back of your pack. In negative temperatures it’s not as bad as it seems because things freeze quickly… if you get the jist. For any person, urinating into a bottle in negative temp’s is an art. Working around two survival layers and Gortex yellows. Tough. A reuseable toilet wipe, like a Kula cloth, and a urinary device suited to your body type make the process a bit more comfortable.
- Spares
Spares of everything. Unless you’d not accident prone. Phones, hard drives, headphones, glasses, sunglasses. At Davis we get mail once in the year and this will be your only opportunity to replace anything for Winter.
- Passwords and Voicemail
Two factor authentication is a bummer when you can’t receive a text message on your phone. Set up a voicemail listing alternate contact details in case the outside world can’t get through.
Lastly, once you’ve hit your 250kg limit you’ll want to pack one more thing. This one doesn’t weigh all that much but it’s the key to your survival in the Antarctic. Resilience.
Learning to bounce back from challenges, adapt to the unexpected, and survive 37 odd days without sun… Antarctica will test you in ways you can’t imagine. Resilience allows you to adapt and doing this quick means you can take more onboard. After a few weeks at -20C, -10C starts to feel warm. Suddenly it’s -30C and you’re debating whether it really is worth going all the way up and down two flights of stairs to retrieve your Baffin’s (which you left in a different cold porch...) or risk the mad dash outside in socks. Hint: it’s the latter. Like everything in life, we learn to adjust. Having extra resilience at your fingertips means that you will learn that little bit quicker.
It’s a journey, and it’s tough, but it’s worth every single second.
Lauren Manser - ESS
