The teachers have gone home
Published on 27.12.2007 - Fuchs Foundation Antarctic Expedition 2007
After the traditional wait for a plane at Patriot Hills, the team from the Fuchs Foundation was finally able to fly out to Punta on 18th December.
With the same eye for detail and a good story, Ian Richardson talks about the final days spent waiting at Patriot Hills. In particular, he points out the way that stress stealthily creeps in, hour after hour, day after day, for anyone who has completed their expedition (this was especially true for the mountaineers who had climbed Mount Vinson): some were in a good mood, while others had faces like wet weekends...
He also recounts how in the space of a few days, the men and women at the tourist base (ALE staff and expedition members combined) worked together to clear the runway used for the Ilyushins. In just a few days, abound 6000 tons of snow had covered the ice!
To round things off, Ian tells us that after finally being able to fly out on 18th December to reach Santiago, via Punta Arenas, their return to Britain does not mean that the expedition is over for the teachers. They still have to review their notes, analyse the results of the material they gathered on the glacier and then tell their students all about their experiences in the Antarctic. This means that the expedition website is not signing off just yet and that we will be able to monitor the results of their great adventure from afar.
