We here, especially at the end of the season, think five months on the ice is a long time. Of course the winterovers spend about seven months here half of which is in total darkness. Our friends the Russians have us beat though. They are assigned at there station, Vostok, for two years at a time. They have very limited resources, rarely bathe, have no contact with women (which is a good thing if they don’t bathe for two years) and are always wildly happy when they come through McMurdo on their way home.

Last night they almost didn’t arrive at Williams Field. The weather was great up until about thirty minutes before their estimated time of arrival. At that point Mother Nature decided to spice up their lives by sending heavy snow showers and reducing visibility dramatically. The pilot hung in there though and we worked together to get everyone on the ground safe and sound. It’s always nice at the end of the day when the pilot says, “Thanks for the help”. They will be staying with us for a couple of nights as they wait for the next C-17 departure on Tuesday.

I did hear an unverified story once when one of our Russian friends walked into the bar with a gallon of vodka and offered the whole gallon up for a hug from a woman. He hadn’t showered yet and I don’t think there were any takers. They do really enjoy our food and eat mass quantities of it while here. To them, after two years at Vostok, this is like staying at a fine hotel back in the states.

By the way the coldest temperature ever recorded on planet earth was recorded at Vostok several years ago. I’m not questioning the veracity of our friends but it was they who took and recorded the event.