After a sleepless night, due to quite a lot of aftershocks, I have made it to a Danish newspaper:
http://politiken.dk/udland/ECE1202891/dansker-i-christchurch-efterskaelvene-er-det-vaerste/
Hopefully I succeeded in providing a more detailed view on what the situation in Christchurch is these days (not talking about the current state of emergency) than what is currently in Danish media. To be honest, I got sick of reading about people thinking they were about to die.
23 February 2011
22 February 2011
Earthquake/aftershock
Just a brief notice to let you all know that I am fine after todays 6.3 earthquake in Christchurch. During the shock I was in my office on the 8th floor at uni. As soon as we realised a major shock was going on we dived under our desks and sat it out. Computer monitors were falling over, books falling down right where I had been sitting 10 seconds earlier. Uni was evacuated and I went straight to The Paddock to be with family and out of town.
Damage in town is reported to be worse than in the 7.1 quake in September last year. I have not yet been home to see how my apartment is, but at this stage it really does not matter. Everyone I know appear to be okay at this stage, and my family visiting from Denmark had just left Christchurch in the morning. They are safe in Hamner.
This will be all for now, I just wanted to let you know that we are all safe down here. Hopefully my next post will be less affected by natural disasters...
Damage in town is reported to be worse than in the 7.1 quake in September last year. I have not yet been home to see how my apartment is, but at this stage it really does not matter. Everyone I know appear to be okay at this stage, and my family visiting from Denmark had just left Christchurch in the morning. They are safe in Hamner.
This will be all for now, I just wanted to let you know that we are all safe down here. Hopefully my next post will be less affected by natural disasters...
6 February 2011
Canyoning Leaping Burn MAX 27/1-2011
After finishing my trip with Silkeborg Højskole in Queenstown, I had decided to go canyoning in Wanaka. I will not say much about this, only that Deep Canyon does epic trips for both beginners and advanced canyoners, and I have not heard of anyone who was disappointed with them. If you need another reason for coming to New Zealand, this is it!
Anyways, enough talking - I believe the photos speak for themselves. See more at my Picasaweb, or check out this YouTube video of a different trip down the same canyon.
Anyways, enough talking - I believe the photos speak for themselves. See more at my Picasaweb, or check out this YouTube video of a different trip down the same canyon.
17 January 2011
2010 in review - 8 January 2011
Happy New Year! Today it is exactly 366 days since I first set foot on New Zealand ground, and I suppose this calls for some kind of review post. At the same time, I am currently waiting for a ferryload of people from Silkeborg Højskole, whom I will be guiding around the South Island with three other people for the next 2½ weeks. If I was not looking at another year here, one might say that the circle had been closed - but since I am only half way through my stay, I will not use such pseudo-poetic terms just yet. I was supposed to meet the people yesterday, but due to a delayed flight they missed the ferry and had to spend a night in Wellington. Since this leaves me no choice but to get french toast for breakfast instead of porridge, which I will be living off for breakfast for the next 19 days, I guess I should not complain too much.
Back to the year in review, which might eventually lead to a bit of an update on what has happened since my last post on the Mueller Hut trip (in October? Gosh, time is moving fast!). Back in January, I spend a month with Silkeborg Højskole, getting a first brief look at a lot of New Zealand. Probably the best possible way to enter a new country that I was to call my home for the following two years, with good friends and lots and lots of tramping. February arrived, with university starting, crappy and expensive student accommodation and in March I was finally able to settle down with some sort of routine. While weekdays were spent studying, most weekends were either used for tramping, mainly in and around Arthur's Pass, or visiting family.
At Easter time, I decided to take 5 days tramping solo from Lewis Pass to Arthur's Pass, certainly an experince worth repeating. It is interesting to see the change in what is important, whether tramping alone or with others, and the silence and room for all sorts of random thoughts is absolutely incredible. Back again, I finally got around to buying a car before getting my first experiences of white water kayaking. While it was truly action packed, it also made me realise that tramping is the one outdoor activity that supply thrill and tranquility at the same time, thus offering the perfect getaway after busy days of studying. Besides, the amount of drinking and nudity on the kayak trip was a bit over the top for me. Perhaps I am slowly getting old and boring..?
The next big thing happening was the arrival of winter and various ski trips. Words cannot describe the difference between skiing in Europe and skiing in New Zealand, but I have to admit that I have fallen for the Kiwi ski club atmosphere in spite of being nearly killed by a rope tow at Mt Olympus. Late July brought my first visitor from Denmark, another interesting phenomenon how friendships develop at light speed when you find yourself somewhat isolated on the other side of the globe.
September was entered with a bang and a shake - roughly 45 seconds of shaking to be precise. Very few things since then has not been somewhat affected by the earthquake, mainly because of the still ongoing aftershocks that is a constant reminder of what happened before and could happen again without any kind of warning. Prior to this experience, my only knowledge of earthquakes and the affect they have on people were what the Danish news media had been presenting over the years, and the last months have opened my eyes to the affect quakes have on people living in affected areas. Although the main shock is the most powerful, and most often the most devastating one, the aftershocks are by far the ones causing the most stress among people. With some, you can hear them coming as a deep growl in the ground before everything starts shaking, and the worst bit is not knowing how bad and how long they are going to be.
The other interesting thing to experience is how imortant the depth and position of the epicentre is to the damage a quake can cause. On boxing day (26 December), a shallow aftershock located just underneath the centre of Christchurch had the city centre cordoned off for a day and a half while buildings were re-checked for structural damage. In this, 3½ months after the primary quake, new buildings were condemned. Luckily I know of noone with major structural damage to any property, but noone can feel safe just yet - and noone knows when it will all be over.
Besides earthquakes and studying, I have spent quite a lot of time at 'The Paddock' with my aunt. 5 kid goats were born on the day of the earthquake and the following day (they were expecting two or three), and I do not dare imagining the stress the earthquakes would have caused if I did not have family nearby (and I am still grateful that I was at their place at the time of the main shock). Skiing and tramping has (of course) been a major part of my life as well, and came November I finished my last exams for the year. Since then, I have been awarded a Summer Scholarship to continue my academic work over the summer, and for my Masters thesis this year I have just accepted another university scholarship. When our final grades were released, I even got a 'personal' (computer generated) letter from the Dean of Science, congratulating me on my exam results. It seemed like a bit of a joke, but was good fun reading.
In late November, I spent three weeks with a good friend of mine visiting from Denmark. We spend a couple of weeks driving around the South Island, tasting wine, canyoning, tramping and just enjoying life, good food and excellent cognac, before finishing off with four days in Sydney. An excellent way to celebrate the end of the academic year, and great to see a friendly face again.
Back to the year in review, which might eventually lead to a bit of an update on what has happened since my last post on the Mueller Hut trip (in October? Gosh, time is moving fast!). Back in January, I spend a month with Silkeborg Højskole, getting a first brief look at a lot of New Zealand. Probably the best possible way to enter a new country that I was to call my home for the following two years, with good friends and lots and lots of tramping. February arrived, with university starting, crappy and expensive student accommodation and in March I was finally able to settle down with some sort of routine. While weekdays were spent studying, most weekends were either used for tramping, mainly in and around Arthur's Pass, or visiting family.
At Easter time, I decided to take 5 days tramping solo from Lewis Pass to Arthur's Pass, certainly an experince worth repeating. It is interesting to see the change in what is important, whether tramping alone or with others, and the silence and room for all sorts of random thoughts is absolutely incredible. Back again, I finally got around to buying a car before getting my first experiences of white water kayaking. While it was truly action packed, it also made me realise that tramping is the one outdoor activity that supply thrill and tranquility at the same time, thus offering the perfect getaway after busy days of studying. Besides, the amount of drinking and nudity on the kayak trip was a bit over the top for me. Perhaps I am slowly getting old and boring..?
The next big thing happening was the arrival of winter and various ski trips. Words cannot describe the difference between skiing in Europe and skiing in New Zealand, but I have to admit that I have fallen for the Kiwi ski club atmosphere in spite of being nearly killed by a rope tow at Mt Olympus. Late July brought my first visitor from Denmark, another interesting phenomenon how friendships develop at light speed when you find yourself somewhat isolated on the other side of the globe.
September was entered with a bang and a shake - roughly 45 seconds of shaking to be precise. Very few things since then has not been somewhat affected by the earthquake, mainly because of the still ongoing aftershocks that is a constant reminder of what happened before and could happen again without any kind of warning. Prior to this experience, my only knowledge of earthquakes and the affect they have on people were what the Danish news media had been presenting over the years, and the last months have opened my eyes to the affect quakes have on people living in affected areas. Although the main shock is the most powerful, and most often the most devastating one, the aftershocks are by far the ones causing the most stress among people. With some, you can hear them coming as a deep growl in the ground before everything starts shaking, and the worst bit is not knowing how bad and how long they are going to be.
The other interesting thing to experience is how imortant the depth and position of the epicentre is to the damage a quake can cause. On boxing day (26 December), a shallow aftershock located just underneath the centre of Christchurch had the city centre cordoned off for a day and a half while buildings were re-checked for structural damage. In this, 3½ months after the primary quake, new buildings were condemned. Luckily I know of noone with major structural damage to any property, but noone can feel safe just yet - and noone knows when it will all be over.
Besides earthquakes and studying, I have spent quite a lot of time at 'The Paddock' with my aunt. 5 kid goats were born on the day of the earthquake and the following day (they were expecting two or three), and I do not dare imagining the stress the earthquakes would have caused if I did not have family nearby (and I am still grateful that I was at their place at the time of the main shock). Skiing and tramping has (of course) been a major part of my life as well, and came November I finished my last exams for the year. Since then, I have been awarded a Summer Scholarship to continue my academic work over the summer, and for my Masters thesis this year I have just accepted another university scholarship. When our final grades were released, I even got a 'personal' (computer generated) letter from the Dean of Science, congratulating me on my exam results. It seemed like a bit of a joke, but was good fun reading.
In late November, I spent three weeks with a good friend of mine visiting from Denmark. We spend a couple of weeks driving around the South Island, tasting wine, canyoning, tramping and just enjoying life, good food and excellent cognac, before finishing off with four days in Sydney. An excellent way to celebrate the end of the academic year, and great to see a friendly face again.
13 October 2010
12 October 2010
Mueller Hut, 9-10 October 2010
In spite of semi-bad weather forecasts, five of us had decided to drive to Mt Cook village and do an overnight tramp to Mueller Hut. Several people had backed out due to the expected weather, and in retrospect we probably should have done so as well. Nevertheless, Janine, Philip and myself set off from Christchurch Friday evening with a car full of skis, snow shoes, crampons, ice axes and the mandatory avalanche safety gear, with high expectations for the following two days.
Reaching Mt Cook Village, we met Monique and Brian at the DoC campground, pitched a couple of tents and went straight to bed. Plans were to get up and sign in with DoC at 8.30am, and then head up the track towards Mueller Hut. In spite of our great plans for an early morning, it was 9.40am before we made our first steps towards Sealy Tarns. Five minutes after the start, I realised that I had forgotten my map and avalanche notes and had to run back to the car to get these – a run that proved valuable on Sunday as the weather and snow packed in.
For those that have never been to Sealy Tarns, the track to get there is steep as! I cannot remember seing as many man made steps on a track this short, and with a fairly narrow track, Brian and I found ourselves struggling a bit with our wide and tall packs carrying up skis that just loved catching on to trees, steps and whatever came close. Brian got the idea that navigating our packs had to be somewhat similar to driving large trucks around narrow streets in the city; a comparison that seemed quite appropriate (however, we were not quite sure if we were closer to an 18 or 24 wheeler).
Weatherwise, we had a bit of rain that turned into a bit of snow as we climbed towards the tarns, but nothing too major to destroy our high spirits. Reaching the tarns, the clouds cleared for a moment, presenting us with some of the views that make the long drive worth every hour on the road. Lunch was eaten, before we climbed up the last bits of tussock and rocks and found ourselves facing massive amounts of snow. Without skis and snow shoes, we would have had to turn back at this point, but being well prepared we geared up and made our first steps onto the ocean of white ahead of us.
With a considerable avalanche danger, focus was on safe travel practices from the first steps. Route selections were discussed before moving from one island of safety to the next, and we always had someone spotting the people moving across potential avalanche paths and start zones. Arguably the avalanche forecast was a bit high to go to Mueller Hut in the first place, but we made good progress with sensible discussions and decisions being made on the way.
After half an hour in the snow, Monique and Brian decided to turn back as the terrain was too far out of comfort zones to be enjoyable. This proved to be a very sensible decision, as the rest of us found ourselves in some very exposed places further up the mountains – in fact we probably all should have turned back at that stage. Before splitting up, we had a quick rearranging of food and gear, only to find that we were carrying a tent too much up the mountains – so much for morning coordination of gear.
Janine, Philip and I decided to move on, and made steady progress in the reasonably firm snow. Just before reaching the ridge taking us the last bit towards the hut, we faced the choice of taking the ordinary route looking somewhat dodgy due to a massive snowpack on a perfectly sloped angle facing just the right way for avalanches this weekend or to make the ridge at lower elevations and being more exposed to winds. Since avalanches were highly undesirable, we made the ridge and was faced with a bit of a scramble up some rocks and deep snow. I found myself in waist deep snow trying to make my way up the ridge, and had it not been for a helping hand a few times I might still have been stuck in the snow.
Safely on the ridge, we faced half an hour of easy travelling before reaching Mueller Hut. As we were carrying a lot of gear, as well as a wine, cake and other luxuiosities for the hut, the joy of seeing the hut in the distance put big smiles on our faces.
Reaching the hut, we faced a bit of digging before the door could be opened. Luckily it was only matter of 30-40cm of wind drifted snow since the last person had been in the hut a few days earlier, and the toilets had been dug out recently as well (still it took Janine 30 minutes to dig it out for the first visit – I cannot imagine what it would have been like to dig out the 1.5m of snow covering the second toilet). We arrived at 6.15pm, after a fairly cruizy day, but still tired and very ready for some hot food! After receiving the latest weather update on the radio at 7pm, we had our diner, wine, cake and tried to make plans for the following day. For three hours straight we had a cooker going to melt snow for water supplies – Mueller Hut may have water tanks, but when they are buried under two meters of snow, it seems quite a lot easier to spend the time melting snow rather than digging out the taps (probably just to find them frosen anyway).
We hit the hay around 10pm, and at midnight the wind started picking up. The vents in the hut were howling for the entire night, making earplugs an absolute necessity, and some of the gusts made the hut move a little as well. Certainly not the perfect weather for our walk out the next day, but the forecast promised a window with less wind. All we had to do was to find this window, and so we woke up at 6am to make sure we did not miss the opportunity of getting back to the village. However, the wind speeds kept to a solid 100km/h until noon, leaving us with little choice but to stay put and start thinking about the possibility that we might get stuck in the hut for a few days. Monday promised clear and calm weather, but since a substantial amount of snow had fallen overnight (and kept falling throughout Sunday), the avalanche danger would be too high to risk travelling any time before Tuesday or possibly even Wednesday. We took turns being concerned about the prospects of being stuck, while the other two was sleeping. Going to the loo was quite an experience as well, requiring a full suit up in warm clothing, a shovel to dig out the door from wind deposited snow in between visits, and it took a full hour for the three of us to have our first visits in the morning! By the way, Mueller Hut as a really cool toilet system where you are supposed to deliver your liquids in one part of the toilet and solids in another part – apparently this saves a lot of money flying out the human waste, and I was surprised to see how well it seems to work.
At 1pm, the wind had slowed down to a more reasonable speed, and we decided to head out and have a look around to see if it was possible to get out. We had decided not to leave any later than 2.30pm to allow sufficient time to get out before dark, and after experiencing a few gusts and realising that the wind really was slowing down, we went back in, had lunch and radioed DoC to tell them we were coming down. 15-20cm of snow had fallen during the night and morning, requiring even greater care in route selection on the way down than what we faced on the way up, but luckily we had had a good view of the terrain the day before and decided to backtrack our steps from the way up.
The ridge was negotiated in good time, with just a few interesting spots where gusty winds and exposed terrain made us very aware of the seriousness of the situation. The biggest decision was to be made as we left the ridgeline and moved onto the western aspect of the mountains. Here we expected to find moderate amounts of wind deposited snow, and we had to decide whether it was safe to continue or we had to turn back and stay in the hut for another night or two. I made the first move, with Janine and Philip watching out for avalanches. I called them down, and after a quick assessment and discussion, we decided to move on down. We kept a safe distance in case of snowslides, but never moving out of hearing distance. With Janine and Philip on snowshoes, it took a bit of time coming down, but I enjoyed every bit of it, skiing the best powder of the season and cutting first tracks no matter where I went. In fact, the snow was so good that I managed to pull of some very decent skiing in spite of my 15-20kg pack, and this alone made the whole trip worthwile for me. The other two was not quite sharing my love for the descent, but at least they realised how much they need to get touring skis if they are to go on similar trips in the future.
Reaching Sealy Tarns, we had a quick mueslibar break, while taking off skis and snow shoes and getting ready to walk down the track to Mt Cook Village. It had started snowing, and the wind picked up again. I still find it hard to believe that we hit the tiny window to get out safely – if we had started out just half an hour later we might have had to turn back. Avalanche dangers became very present as we came down the last bits of snow, with cracking and slabs coming loose. Luckily, this was on low angle terrain and with good runout zones not too far further down, but it certainly made the risk very real.
The track down from Sealy Tarns was negotiated in reasonable time, with the biggest problems being navigating a pack with 185cm skis attached to the sides. They had a nasty tendency to catch high steps down, as well as any trees or bushes besides the track. Ski poles proved to be a great aid, especially walking down in skiing boots (which was less of an issue than one might think). We reached the car at 6.30pm, stoked to have made it out safely and in reasonable time. After a quick change of clothes and signing out with DoC, we made the long drive back to Christchurch, reaching the city just before midnight. How I managed to sit a test Monday morning is still somewhat mysterious to me, but the trip was certainly well worth it all.
In retrospect, a few key points remain as a very valuable lesson learned from the trip. This being the most serious winter trip for all of us, there is no doubt that we got in just a little too deep. However, through good discussions on the go and constant evaluation of the dangers present, we managed the terrain and got out not only alive, but in good spirits and without pushing our limits. I keep wondering how much I should have foreseen based on the weather and avalanche forecast, since the issues of rising avalanche dangers were very obvious to me as we were sitting in the hut, waiting for the wind to slow down and allow us to get out. Back home, I found the avalanche forecast for Monday begin raised to high, which would have left us no choice but to stay put until Tuesday had we still been in the hut. We would have had enough food to survive, but two or three extra days would not have been particularly pleasant.
Furthermore, the trip was a reminder that being in the snow can be a very serious business. As the missions into the mountains become more interesting, so does the avalanche danger. I have never felt more exposed than on this particular trip, and I am extremely happy that we were a small group of people knowing each other in advance. Small mistakes could have had major consequences, and although it was a truly amazing trip, it is certainly not recommendable for everyone in snowy conditions.
For those that have never been to Sealy Tarns, the track to get there is steep as! I cannot remember seing as many man made steps on a track this short, and with a fairly narrow track, Brian and I found ourselves struggling a bit with our wide and tall packs carrying up skis that just loved catching on to trees, steps and whatever came close. Brian got the idea that navigating our packs had to be somewhat similar to driving large trucks around narrow streets in the city; a comparison that seemed quite appropriate (however, we were not quite sure if we were closer to an 18 or 24 wheeler).
Weatherwise, we had a bit of rain that turned into a bit of snow as we climbed towards the tarns, but nothing too major to destroy our high spirits. Reaching the tarns, the clouds cleared for a moment, presenting us with some of the views that make the long drive worth every hour on the road. Lunch was eaten, before we climbed up the last bits of tussock and rocks and found ourselves facing massive amounts of snow. Without skis and snow shoes, we would have had to turn back at this point, but being well prepared we geared up and made our first steps onto the ocean of white ahead of us.
With a considerable avalanche danger, focus was on safe travel practices from the first steps. Route selections were discussed before moving from one island of safety to the next, and we always had someone spotting the people moving across potential avalanche paths and start zones. Arguably the avalanche forecast was a bit high to go to Mueller Hut in the first place, but we made good progress with sensible discussions and decisions being made on the way.
After half an hour in the snow, Monique and Brian decided to turn back as the terrain was too far out of comfort zones to be enjoyable. This proved to be a very sensible decision, as the rest of us found ourselves in some very exposed places further up the mountains – in fact we probably all should have turned back at that stage. Before splitting up, we had a quick rearranging of food and gear, only to find that we were carrying a tent too much up the mountains – so much for morning coordination of gear.
Safely on the ridge, we faced half an hour of easy travelling before reaching Mueller Hut. As we were carrying a lot of gear, as well as a wine, cake and other luxuiosities for the hut, the joy of seeing the hut in the distance put big smiles on our faces.
Reaching the hut, we faced a bit of digging before the door could be opened. Luckily it was only matter of 30-40cm of wind drifted snow since the last person had been in the hut a few days earlier, and the toilets had been dug out recently as well (still it took Janine 30 minutes to dig it out for the first visit – I cannot imagine what it would have been like to dig out the 1.5m of snow covering the second toilet). We arrived at 6.15pm, after a fairly cruizy day, but still tired and very ready for some hot food! After receiving the latest weather update on the radio at 7pm, we had our diner, wine, cake and tried to make plans for the following day. For three hours straight we had a cooker going to melt snow for water supplies – Mueller Hut may have water tanks, but when they are buried under two meters of snow, it seems quite a lot easier to spend the time melting snow rather than digging out the taps (probably just to find them frosen anyway).
We hit the hay around 10pm, and at midnight the wind started picking up. The vents in the hut were howling for the entire night, making earplugs an absolute necessity, and some of the gusts made the hut move a little as well. Certainly not the perfect weather for our walk out the next day, but the forecast promised a window with less wind. All we had to do was to find this window, and so we woke up at 6am to make sure we did not miss the opportunity of getting back to the village. However, the wind speeds kept to a solid 100km/h until noon, leaving us with little choice but to stay put and start thinking about the possibility that we might get stuck in the hut for a few days. Monday promised clear and calm weather, but since a substantial amount of snow had fallen overnight (and kept falling throughout Sunday), the avalanche danger would be too high to risk travelling any time before Tuesday or possibly even Wednesday. We took turns being concerned about the prospects of being stuck, while the other two was sleeping. Going to the loo was quite an experience as well, requiring a full suit up in warm clothing, a shovel to dig out the door from wind deposited snow in between visits, and it took a full hour for the three of us to have our first visits in the morning! By the way, Mueller Hut as a really cool toilet system where you are supposed to deliver your liquids in one part of the toilet and solids in another part – apparently this saves a lot of money flying out the human waste, and I was surprised to see how well it seems to work.
At 1pm, the wind had slowed down to a more reasonable speed, and we decided to head out and have a look around to see if it was possible to get out. We had decided not to leave any later than 2.30pm to allow sufficient time to get out before dark, and after experiencing a few gusts and realising that the wind really was slowing down, we went back in, had lunch and radioed DoC to tell them we were coming down. 15-20cm of snow had fallen during the night and morning, requiring even greater care in route selection on the way down than what we faced on the way up, but luckily we had had a good view of the terrain the day before and decided to backtrack our steps from the way up.
The ridge was negotiated in good time, with just a few interesting spots where gusty winds and exposed terrain made us very aware of the seriousness of the situation. The biggest decision was to be made as we left the ridgeline and moved onto the western aspect of the mountains. Here we expected to find moderate amounts of wind deposited snow, and we had to decide whether it was safe to continue or we had to turn back and stay in the hut for another night or two. I made the first move, with Janine and Philip watching out for avalanches. I called them down, and after a quick assessment and discussion, we decided to move on down. We kept a safe distance in case of snowslides, but never moving out of hearing distance. With Janine and Philip on snowshoes, it took a bit of time coming down, but I enjoyed every bit of it, skiing the best powder of the season and cutting first tracks no matter where I went. In fact, the snow was so good that I managed to pull of some very decent skiing in spite of my 15-20kg pack, and this alone made the whole trip worthwile for me. The other two was not quite sharing my love for the descent, but at least they realised how much they need to get touring skis if they are to go on similar trips in the future.
The track down from Sealy Tarns was negotiated in reasonable time, with the biggest problems being navigating a pack with 185cm skis attached to the sides. They had a nasty tendency to catch high steps down, as well as any trees or bushes besides the track. Ski poles proved to be a great aid, especially walking down in skiing boots (which was less of an issue than one might think). We reached the car at 6.30pm, stoked to have made it out safely and in reasonable time. After a quick change of clothes and signing out with DoC, we made the long drive back to Christchurch, reaching the city just before midnight. How I managed to sit a test Monday morning is still somewhat mysterious to me, but the trip was certainly well worth it all.In retrospect, a few key points remain as a very valuable lesson learned from the trip. This being the most serious winter trip for all of us, there is no doubt that we got in just a little too deep. However, through good discussions on the go and constant evaluation of the dangers present, we managed the terrain and got out not only alive, but in good spirits and without pushing our limits. I keep wondering how much I should have foreseen based on the weather and avalanche forecast, since the issues of rising avalanche dangers were very obvious to me as we were sitting in the hut, waiting for the wind to slow down and allow us to get out. Back home, I found the avalanche forecast for Monday begin raised to high, which would have left us no choice but to stay put until Tuesday had we still been in the hut. We would have had enough food to survive, but two or three extra days would not have been particularly pleasant.
Furthermore, the trip was a reminder that being in the snow can be a very serious business. As the missions into the mountains become more interesting, so does the avalanche danger. I have never felt more exposed than on this particular trip, and I am extremely happy that we were a small group of people knowing each other in advance. Small mistakes could have had major consequences, and although it was a truly amazing trip, it is certainly not recommendable for everyone in snowy conditions.
4 September 2010
Earthquake and triplets
Quick update at the end of a very long day. Was woken up by the earthquake at 04.35 this morning without realising what could have happened. It felt like being on a ship in a rough sea for some 10s of seconds, I got up and went to the living room with my aunts. We still had power, so I turned the computer on to find out how big the quake was and where the epicenter was. Several aftershocks happened shortly, and I decided to start writing up an assignment rather than going back to bed after having texted a few key persons in Denmark.
A small amount of writing got done before the first news was on TV at 6AM and my uncle called from Denmark. Everything got pretty hectic as we were talking on two different phones while watching the news and slowly starting to realise how lucky we had been out here. Christchurch was hit quite severely, and our first thoughts were that it was incredibly good timing that I was at The Paddock for a visit anyway.
Around 8AM we all decided to get moving, had a shower and a bit of breakfast, and all of a sudden one of the angora goats went into labour. It had turned to the most beautiful sunny spring day outside, so we all went to have a look at the action. Since nothing happened immediately, I helped out gardening for 30 minutes or so, before returning to the kidding. Out came one tiny little goat kid, then another, and finally to our big surprise, a third kid was born, 4-5 hours after the mother had started contracting.
All of this pushed lunchtime until 2.30PM or so, and then another couple of hours was spent with the newborn kids out in the sun. At 4.30PM we put the goats in their shelter and went indoors to find dinner and some news on the earthquake. It turns out that nearly all the neighbours around here have had electricity and water cuts during the day, while everything has been up and running continuously at The Paddock.
Dinner, a well deserved beer and news altogether got me realising how big the earthquake had really been. Major damage is still being reported from around Christchurch, the university is closed for a week and all students and staff have been told to stay away. In the physics department we have had reports of severe water damage, a chemical spill and possible structural damage as well as broken glass and tiles. It is truly a miracle that no fatalities have occurred so far; with the quake measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale, being only 10km under ground and 30km west of Christchurch, things could have gone so much worse.
At this stage, 10.10PM I am still somewhat shaken and incredibly happy to be at my aunts place instead of home alone. I have been talking to my mom tonight, and to maximise the possibility of getting a decent sleep tonight I will be camping under a table or something tonight. It might be silly, but waking up in a house moving as if it was a boat is something that makes you do silly things. The log burner has stayed cold since this morning, and will probably be so for the next week (at least).
The important thing is that the three of us, as well as the newborn goats, are all fine. Slightly shaken, not only in the literal way, but I am confident that we will make it through without problems. As for the studies, all our deadlines are postponed by a week, so I should be absolutely fine there as well. I am curious to see the department though, but grateful that they are taking all the necessary precautions to keep everyone safe.
A small amount of writing got done before the first news was on TV at 6AM and my uncle called from Denmark. Everything got pretty hectic as we were talking on two different phones while watching the news and slowly starting to realise how lucky we had been out here. Christchurch was hit quite severely, and our first thoughts were that it was incredibly good timing that I was at The Paddock for a visit anyway.
Around 8AM we all decided to get moving, had a shower and a bit of breakfast, and all of a sudden one of the angora goats went into labour. It had turned to the most beautiful sunny spring day outside, so we all went to have a look at the action. Since nothing happened immediately, I helped out gardening for 30 minutes or so, before returning to the kidding. Out came one tiny little goat kid, then another, and finally to our big surprise, a third kid was born, 4-5 hours after the mother had started contracting.
All of this pushed lunchtime until 2.30PM or so, and then another couple of hours was spent with the newborn kids out in the sun. At 4.30PM we put the goats in their shelter and went indoors to find dinner and some news on the earthquake. It turns out that nearly all the neighbours around here have had electricity and water cuts during the day, while everything has been up and running continuously at The Paddock.
Dinner, a well deserved beer and news altogether got me realising how big the earthquake had really been. Major damage is still being reported from around Christchurch, the university is closed for a week and all students and staff have been told to stay away. In the physics department we have had reports of severe water damage, a chemical spill and possible structural damage as well as broken glass and tiles. It is truly a miracle that no fatalities have occurred so far; with the quake measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale, being only 10km under ground and 30km west of Christchurch, things could have gone so much worse.
At this stage, 10.10PM I am still somewhat shaken and incredibly happy to be at my aunts place instead of home alone. I have been talking to my mom tonight, and to maximise the possibility of getting a decent sleep tonight I will be camping under a table or something tonight. It might be silly, but waking up in a house moving as if it was a boat is something that makes you do silly things. The log burner has stayed cold since this morning, and will probably be so for the next week (at least).
The important thing is that the three of us, as well as the newborn goats, are all fine. Slightly shaken, not only in the literal way, but I am confident that we will make it through without problems. As for the studies, all our deadlines are postponed by a week, so I should be absolutely fine there as well. I am curious to see the department though, but grateful that they are taking all the necessary precautions to keep everyone safe.
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