Today’s 4th of July cooks in front of the impressive menu: Knut, Lee and Andrew

According to schedule, we now have one week left in camp until pull-out, meaning that it is time to prepare the pallets that will go out on the Skier with us and the other cargo that will overwinter in camp until next year. It is a delicate balance to judge how much weight we can fly out on the last plane. We want as much cargo as possible to get out, but we do not want to make the plane so heavy that it may not be able to take off. A lot of cargo needs to go out on this flight – among others drill and radar equipment that will be used for other projects before next season and ice cores. The 14 passengers and their luggage definitely also need to leave on this last flight. How much cargo the plane is able to lift will among others depend on weather conditions at the day of flying. Wind along the skiway is great, but cross-wind doesn’t work. Fresh snow on the skiway, temperatures close to the melting point or low clouds/ground fog are no-goes. So, from now on, we watch the weather forecast intensely every day. Fortunately, today’s calm and sunny conditions were great for building the first retro pallet and for constructing the first snow hill where stuff can overwinter. Today is the 4th of July and the American radar team, Lee, Andrew and Knut, have spent the entire day in the kitchen preparing a delicious all-American meal for us: green bean supreme, sweet potatoes casserole, macaroni cheese, burgers with fresh salat, roast chicken, and marshmallows in chocolate with rum. It was a treat and we are all stuffed.

Weather today: Sunny and calm conditions. Temperatures from -13 °C to -7 °C. Wind 0-9 kt from NE.

Building Airforce pallets has to done strictly according to regulations, but there are still a number of possible combinations in which the items can be placed on the pallet. Best not to have too many cooks involved.

The new winter hill that stores the large snow blower and the tiller on pallets placed on drums that will secure they are not all drifted in over winter.

The mechanics garage is as clean and tidy as it has ever been.

4th of July in sunny conditions