I'm not sure if I was born with this ability or grew into it out of necessity but I have the uncanny knack to sleep just about anywhere at anytime. Flying out of Denver yesterday, I was asleep before the plane took off.

I was looking forward to the flight from Dallas to Santiago as an opportunity to bank a few extra z's but couldn't seem to get comfortable enough. Still, I know I slept because every so often I actually woke up - contorted in one position or another with my neck cricked awkwardly and throbbing in pain.

I shouldn't be complaining. Compared to my predecessors like Shackleton, Scott and Amundsen a little pain in my neck is hardly worrisome. They had nearly a year's worth of adventure just getting to the actual jumping off point of the expedition. Then over wintering, then a journey through uncharted terrain. Finally a doubtful return trip.

Me? Just a casual evening of sitting in a chair in the air (i.e. flying), arriving in Santiago, passing easily through customs then relaxing at the Medas grill for a salad and a big glass of water. (I'm trying to stay hydrated).

In Punta, I met up with some of the other ALE (Antarctic Logistics and Expedition - the company who hired me to lead the expedition to the South Pole) staff. It's fun to see familiar faces and hear stories of expeditions to Greenland, northern Norway and climbing in Europe and Asia. I also met Dongsheng Liu, my Chinese team mate. He looked fit and ready to go. I was also pleased to see he had packed only two small bags. Traveling light is an important component to being successful.

There are other expedition teams in Punta now staging for various Antarctic trips. It is interesting to see the different styles of teams and philosophies. More than anything however, there is a spirit of camaraderie and excitement. Here are others with a polar dream and love of ice and cold.

I have been corresponding with Ted Scambos of the National Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colorado and we have sketched out the rough outline of some basic research I'll be doing in Antarctica on his behalf. I will be collecting more qualitative information on snow and ice conditions in two basic areas:

(1) Rough, wind-driven accumulation surfaces: regions with sastrugi greater than ~60 cm height noting wind direction(s) that formed them either by a 'formational' wind, that creates smooth 'accumulation' features; or an 'erosional' wind that undercuts these features creating sharp, undercut, or 'sandblasted' features.

(2) Wind glaze: regions with a 'sheen' in the southward direction, no sastrugi or low, platy surface features, and (importantly) a network of thin surface cracks spaced by 3-20 meters.

In both cases, I will be taking pictures with the following data added: latitude, longitude, elevation, date, and pointing direction of the camera. I will also take notes on the sastrugi height, or glaze layer, crack width. I'll explain on how all this relates to Ted's work in a future update.

In the mean time, join me in a silent salutation of joy. Tonight I am sleeping in a bed not a planer or not sleeping at all. I'm tired and having a hard time keeping my eyes open, but I am hesitant to go to sleep just yet. Punta Arenas is the southernmost city in the world. Just over Magellan Straights is Antarctica... Snow, Ice and Adventure is calling.

Surely a few more minutes awake to dream and plan couldn't hurt... Image: Roughing it in Santiago: Ensaladas at the Medas Grill.

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