Images of

ANTARCTICA

MOUNTAIN BIKING

Photos © 2002 Seth White

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So here it is, the TRUSTY SCHWINN! At the McMurdo Station sign overlooking the ice pier. I truly love this bike.

I had a dream a few nights ago where this bike was damaged - the frame was bent in several places. The problem was that I did it - either I ran it over with my truck or pitched it or whatever. I really don't remember exactly how it happened, but I know that I was responsible. I knew my bike was hurt, and I ran over to it, picked it up, and gave it a hug. Then I realized that the frame was seriously out of shape. Very distressing. Anyhow, I woke up and it took me a minute or two to realize that it was just a dream, and that my bike was fine. This was midnight, and since I had gone to bed at 7:00 PM, I couldn't go back to sleep. So I decided to put in some Word Jazz and clean my bike. And drink some of the new SIERRA NEVADA PALE ALE that had arrived on station courtesy of the American Tern. And impulsively, I decided to take a picture of my "bicycle therapy". So here it is. My bike really needed this...the volcanic soil here is very hard and abrasive, and I'm sure it does wonders for the bicycle mechanisms. It had been quite a while since my last cleaning/lubrication/adjustment exercise....

Me, at Hut Point, next to Vince's Cross. Photo by Rich Karstens.

I had been on the lookout for penguins all season. The Antarctic Experience would not have been complete without seeing some penguins in the wild. But, the iceberg situation made this pretty unlikely. Not as many of them near McMurdo as in years past. But I spread the word and asked people I knew to page me if there were penguins about. I found out from Susan Stalfort one day that indeed, there was a group of penguins not too far out on the ice from the transition. So I ran out to my bike and pedaled out along the Cape Armitage route. Not too bad, actually. The ice was firm and not slippery, so I rode all the way out to the penguins. More about the pen-gu-ins here but in short, they were adorable. I thought it would be a nice pic to get me riding my bike with penguins in the background. So right, here you go. This is me on the TRUSTY SCHWINN, complete with polar fleece vest, hat (sent down by my mom...interestingly the USAP supplies you with a good selection of cold weather gear but not a regular, generic hat), pager, no gloves, jeans, and bunny boots! Very unlikely attire.... (Photo by Robbie Liben).

So on to the actual riding around McMurdo. This is the Scott Base Trail (or whatever - I don't think it has a name). Anyway, it takes off from the Scott Base Road and cuts straight down the hill to Scott Base. And it is probably the sweetest overall trail in the area. It's great singletrack, with technical bits as well as fast spots. Nothing too gnarly, just a lot of fun. And, unlike most trails around McMurdo which are very loose and steep, you can actually ride back up most of this trail.

Another pic of the trail going down to Scott Base. A month or so after this pic, I pedaled over to Scott Base for a brew, and as I was leaving Robbie Liben showed up. Turns out, he had pedaled over too. So I went back to the bar with him and had a few more. Then we took off on the bikes. We rode up (most of) the trail and then headed back to McMurdo to take pictures at the ice pier. Unfortunately, and despite much talk, this was the only time I actually went riding with someone else all summer.

So we ended up on the ice pier. Here's me screwing around on a plastic step. (Photo by Robbie Liben).

On the hills directly north of Hut Point, there is some good riding to be had. Going up, you have to hike-a-bike quite a bit, since it's so steep and loose. But there are trails going all over the place, and if you get to the top it's a great downhill ride back. Or, alternatively, you can ride up the road to Arrival Heights and cut over to these trails to ride down. Which is what I did this particular day. Here is a pic of the trail, going off to the left, with the Polar Sea out working on the ice channel. Nice backdrop for a pedal! And this trail was a good one.

A pic of the TRUSTY SCHWINN, looking out from the cliffs leading down to the sea ice. On the other side of these hills, I actually took a legitimate header earlier in the year. I was riding down some deep loose soil and, as luck would have it, rode straight into a buried rock....which sent me over the handlebars. But since it really was some soft soil, no problem. Best thing was, nobody from McMurdo had a view to that spot....so no witnesses....

Here's a view of the hills above Hut Point, with various trails. The McMurdo Ground Station is over the hill to the right, and I cut over to the trails from there. This was awesome (note the thumb of approval!). Great, great riding. Some good fast spots, but mostly slow, steep, washed out downhill. I had to step off a few times on the way down...but eventually got all of the parts without stepping off. I really didn't expect to find challenging singletrack in Antarctica....but here it is! About 98% of Antarctica is covered in ice and accessible only with significant preparation. So there's not a lot of good mountain biking to be had here. But overall, I think McMurdo has to be the very best spot on the continent for this. There are a lot of roads and trails around here, and the summer months are (relatively) mild.

Being the weenie that I am, here's a review of the various trails around McMurdo, with 1 to 5 stars....based on overall riding quality, and weighted for Antarctica:

Riding on the road from McMurdo to Scott Base: ** Would normally be * since it's just a dirt road, but the views of Mts. Terror and Erebus are great.

Scott Base, riding the road halfway and taking the trail for the rest of the way: ***1/2 Nice singletrack, with twists, turns, technical spots, fast spots, and even a little wood bridge. And, you can ride up almost all of this trail (if you're into that sort of thing).

Hut Point: * It's quick and easy to pedal down to Hut Point, past Scott's Hut, and up to Vince's Cross. The last bit is an actual trail, but most of it is hard dirt road. Road bike would actually be OK here.

Hills above Hut Point: ****1/2 Well, 4.5 stars if you're riding down, and zero stars if you are attempting to ride up (it's impossible). The way to go here is to pedal up the Arrival Heights road and cut across near the McMurdo Ground Station to reach the trails, and then head back down along one of many trail options. Riding here is often fast and smooth, but also is quite steep, loose, narrow, and technical in spots. Good views of Mac Town and the Transantarctic mountains along the way too. Absolutely bitchin'.

Arrival Heights: *** It's all dirt road to Arrival Heights, but the first climb out of town is a gut buster. Well, not too bad if you're in normal shape, but in my diminished Antarctic shape it's a killer. Then, you pedal past the McMurdo Ground Station where the road gets rockier. Onward to the Arrival Heights hut, with some snow and ice along the way. Here, great views are had. It's a pretty good workout. The best part of course is heading back down - serious speed. Oh, and if you somehow are reading this from McMurdo and want to ride to Arrival Heights, contact the science technician at Crary, extension 4111. It is an Antarctic Specially Protected Area (ASPA) and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Nobody is supposed to go there except those with official business, but in reality, if you coordinate your visit with the OK of the science technician and don't screw around with anything (and stay on the road), nothing too calamitous will befall you.

Ob Hill downhill: **** This is a great stretch of very technical riding. The road to the old water plant (and site of the old nuke plant) intersects the Ob Hill hiking trail about 1/3 of the way up. So you can ride up the road and head down the hiking trail. It starts with two tight steep switchbacks, then straightens out a bit. But it's still steep and rocky...your brakes will get warm for sure. It then takes off steeply to the right where more tough turns are required. Then, the bottom usually has snow drifts with iced-in footprints that are hard to ride through. Then, it's straight down a smooth hill to the bottom. Took me 4 tries to get this trail without stepping off, with many miscues along the way. Awesome.

Cape Armitage Loop: **1/2. OK, OK, I didn't ride the whole thing. But I got a ways out on this sea ice trail while looking for the penguins, so I know it's definitely rideable. Flat, but fun.

McMurdo: ** 1/2. There is a lot to see here - nooks and crannies, out-of-the-way buildings, artistic expressions that people leave here and there, and so on. There are some good drops and balance-things to ride on too. But the safety people and managers would undoubtedly frown on this. So, of course, I have never done any such things.......

Trails around Ob Hill: *** 1/2 There are tons of footpaths on the sea-side of Ob Hill, so it's a good time to pick and choose various ones to try out. The trail on the slopes leading to the sea ice is spectacular (see below), and it is possible to ride all the way around Ob Hill to Cosray and then back on the road to McMurdo. And the best part is, you're completely out of sight (and sound) from McMurdo. Probably won't run into anyone else along the way either!

Here are a few pics from a monumental ride from early March. This truly was one of the few mystical riding experiences I have had in my life. It's rides like these that remind me why bicyling is the ultimate physical activity for me, and one of my favorite things in life. I headed out and rode around town for a while, then headed off on a road up from the helo pad toward the old nuke plant site. I saw some trails heading off around Observation Hill on the sea-side, so I went over and got on one. This is the view looking back toward McMurdo. About 1/2 mile from town, I couldn't see any sign of civilization, and I couldn't even hear the persistent hum of machinery. The sun was going down, it was a clear, windless day, and the sensation was exhilarating. Note the footprints along side the bike track here. The trail was mostly covered by snow, leaving only a thin loose rail of soil to ride along. The slopes went straight down to the sea ice, getting steeper as they got closer to sea level. Taking a spill here might well have been a very bad thing, so I rode what I could but walked several stretches of this trail.

Another pic, looking back towards town.

Looking forward on the trail, heading around Ob Hill toward Cosray and Scott Base.

Another pic of the TRUSTY SCHWINN on this righteous trail.

This is the view out over the sea from the trail. It was almost indescribable - colorful, vast, clear, still, serene, and many other words that I can't bring to mind. It was one of those instances where I truly realized exactly where I was. Antarctica is an intense place. Sometimes beautiful and exhilarating, sometimes severe and demanding, but always intense.

Another picture looking out toward Mt. Discovery.

Me and my bike.

Another picture of shadows in the snowdrift.

Along the way around Ob Hill, I found this Y-shaped rock marker. No idea about who/when/why, but it was worth a picture.

A tough spot that I was reasonably proud to have made on my first try (note: no footprints on the side!)

I decided to turn around and head back on the hills on the same side of Ob Hill instead of continuing on towards Cosray. This was the view of Scott Base and Mt. Terror when I started to head back. Cosray is up on the slope to the left.

On the way back, the snow in spots was hard enough that I could ride down slopes without sinking in. This was great - a new bike experience....riding down a slope on top of a few feet of snow!

July 10. 12 weeks after I broke my hand, I was finally ready to ride again. It was still aching, but I knew it was definitely strong enough to go pedaling. My friend Chris had fixed up one of the recreational bikes here and was riding it around station (he even made chains for the tires!). So we decided to ride over to Scott Base on a Thursday for American night. The moon was out, and there was hardly any wind. Perfect. So we got into the winter riding gear and took off. We rode up the road to the top of the "pass", and then decided to take off down the hiking trail to Scott Base. This was a LOT of fun...working our way down the trail over/through snowdrifts, around rocks, even staying upright most of the time! We met up with some more friends at the bar and had several cans Guinness. The last shuttle back to McMurdo left at 10:30, but Chris and I stayed a bit longer before taking off. Pedaling back up the hill on the Scott Base road was tough. Bike riding is really the only thing I do for exercise, so after sitting idle for months with a broken hand, I am really out of shape. So I had to walk part of the way. But once we got to the top, it was all downhill to McMurdo. This was interesting. There were various drifts along the road, each one with lots of tire tracks running through. Going at these things with a bit of speed (and after several beers) was awesome. Quite the squirrely ride in spots, but what a blast.

When I got here, I anticipated not being able to ride during the winter. As it turns out though, on many days it's not really THAT cold (maybe 10-20 below zero). And if there's not too much wind, it's perfect for riding....provided you wear enough clothing. Here's me with the full compliment....face mask, hat, goggles, helmet. I also wore my regular shoes with heavy socks and sock liners, heavy long underwear and blue jeans, light long underwear and a T-shirt, the RED PARKA, gloves, and a backpack with various items - including a radio. This worked out just fine...I ended up being a bit overdressed, actually.

Here are my friends at the Scott Base bar - Helen, Dave, Chris, Steve.

And for no good reason, here is a picture of the stuffed Kiwi bird on top of the piano at the Scott Base bar. The bar is named the Tatty Flag, by the way.