The only scary event on my ascent to the to crater rim of Mount Erebus volcano was the snowmobile half of the trip up to the top. Not being experienced at all with snowmobiles, my driving skills were nonexistent. I managed to somehow to drive the 'ski-do' safely from camp up the steep sides of the Erebus until we parked our vehicles and hiked up a steep slope covered with old lava bombs and Erebus crystals.The summit of the crater rim is at 12,485' but the atmospheric density is about the same as 15,000' at home. The air was of a pristine clarity unknown on the human-occupied continents of our planet. We could clearly see peaks in the Royal Society mountain range that were 120 miles distant. Peaks that were 85 miles off looked to be about 15 miles away. The crater is enormous. Much too big to encompass with a single shot of my camera. A fuming, bubbling lava lake glares redly from the crater floor. Loud hissing and swooshing, venting sounds are heard. We missed any major explosions - but I was told that the shock wave could knock a person down. And sometimes one needs to move quickly to avoid the falling lava bombs. I felt an intense pleasure at being introduced to this remote and private summer club of the volcanologists. Many thanks to Phil Kyle and Bill MacIntosh from New Mexico Tech, for their gracious sharing of this very special place that less than 200 humans have ever visited. It was plain to see their deep love of this volcano and its surroundings. We looked down the mountain and saw the, now tiny, Lower Erebus hut that we had come from. Farther off, we could see the Fang Ridge that had loomed enormously over Fang Camp, now looking like a small wrinkle in an endless landscape. Out to sea we spied the enormous, 100+ mile-long iceberg, B-15. We witnessed how the previous days' storm had broken up the sea ice to the North and there was suddenly many miles of open blue water. Summer was coming to McMurdo sound. Erebus is the most magnificent and impressive outdoor spot that I have experienced. Truly and deeply inspirational in many senses. HK  12,465' Erebus from Sea Ice  Snowmobile Ride 1st Leg  Ascent Party Ascending  Erebus Cloudscape  120 Mile View in Clear Air  12,000' and Climbing  Climb to Crater Cam  Crater Rim  Crater Cam at Erebus Rim click here to see the view......  Bill at Rim  Rim Walk  HK Very High on Erebus  Lower Erebus Hut from Above  Fang Ridege from Far Above  View Across Crater 1  View Across Crater 2  Lava Lake
 Back to Main Henry Kaiser in Antarctica page
 Next Entry
 See video clips of Henry in Antarctica.
| 
