Lenin discovered in Antarctica

My wife and parents-in-law are from the former Soviet Union and I recall a few years back walking in Nehru Park in New Delhi with them, and they were so thrilled to see a huge statue of Lenin. My father-in-law remarked, "they are taking them down in the old Soviet Union, but outside they respect history and the past."

Well Lenin is still braving the coldest temperatures in the world in Antarctica, and his bust is reminding the rare visitors of a once glorious past of the Soviet Union.

Scientists trekking across a little visited part of Antarctica last week have discovered a bizarre relic of the Soviet Union is dominating the South Pole of Inaccessibility.

In the middle of no-where – literally the point on Antarctica furthest from the sea – an imposing bust of revolutionary Bolshevik Vladimir Lenin peers out onto the polar emptiness.

A Norwegian-US Scientific Traverse met Lenin this week while nearly a thousand kilometres to the south another group were "moving" the South Pole – literally.

A barber's pole marks the actual spot but the US Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station sits on top of a moving ice-sheet - so the Pole moves.

The Inaccessibility Pole marks the point on Antarctica that is furthest from the ocean. At 3718 metres above sea-level it is in the Australian zone and seldom visited.

The Scientific Traverse this week made it to the Inaccessibility Pole for New Year's Day and found a one time Soviet Union base buried under the ice.

The group's website says Soviet scientists first visited the Pole in December 1958 and built a small cabin there.

After several weeks they left, putting the bust of Lenin on top of the chimney facing Moscow.

"Today the bust is clearly visible from many kilometres away, and remains as they left it on the chimney, although the cabin itself is buried under the snow," the explorers say.

The current expedition plans to leave something more substantial in the form of an automatic weather station. They will also drill a 90 metre ice core.

One of the drillers, Lou Albershardt, told an US website that they took six weeks to reach the pole, noticing Lenin from a long way out.

They all speculated on what the bust might have been made out of; marble or concrete.
“You wouldn’t believe it. He’s plastic,” he said.

Lenin died in 1924 and his corpse was embalmed and placed in a mausoleum on Moscow's Red Square.

The old Soviet base sits at 82 degrees six minute south, 54 degrees 58 minutes east. The pole's actual position is disputed around how to define the coast to the north.

The Inaccessibility Pole is around 878 kilometres from the South Pole.

At the South Pole a ceremony was held this week to move the Pole and put in a marker on the spot that the pole had been.

The US Antarctic Program said in a statement the new marker was designed by base machinist Derek Aboltins. His design has 54 grooves around the edge, one for each of the 2007 winter-over staff.

The diamond shaped emblem on top replicates an old sign that used to be displayed on the old gymnasium before it was torn down. The resulting marker resembles a gear, similar to those that turn the new South Pole Telescope.

The station sits on a glacier which moves about 10 metres per year, so every January 1 a brass marker designating exactly 90 degrees South is placed

University Oval, Dunedin, New Zealand

Today cricketing history was made at the University oval in Dunedin, once a lake, once a great athletic ground in summer, rugby ground in winter and to all Otago primary school children, a venue to have our annual provincial athletic championships. It's a ground I have played 1st grade rugby on, broke athletic records, trained daily for six year, and under the old stand, courted pretty lasses at dances held tere by Otago university.

So what happened

Well, New Zealand the country I was born in, played Bangladesh the country I lived in for a number of years, and I was hoping Bangladesh would push the Black Caps hard. They looked good on the second day, but crumbled.

Still, the Univeristy Oval , which hosted the 1926 South Seas Exhibition, showed it is now a a respectable cricket ground. What more can you expect from a lake ?

New Zealand stormed back from an indifferent second day to dismiss a submissive Bangladesh for 254 and wrapped up a nine-wicket win before tea on day three at Dunedin's University Oval. A four-pronged seam attack turned the Test quickly in the first session, grabbing the opposition by the scruff of the neck after a 161-run opening stand, before Daniel Vettori mopped up the tail quickly after lunch. With Tamim Iqbal and Junaid Siddique dismissed in succession it all fell apart in the second innings rather spectacularly for Bangladesh, who lost ten wickets for 93 runs to hand the hosts a series lead with one to play.

If the batsmen did this pitch some justice on day two, with 349 runs, then the seamers struck quickly to level the contest. The pitch played a little slow and low yet the ball moved around enough to put some doubt in the batsmen's' minds. The seamers were tidy, rarely slipping down leg side with a packed off-side field, and responded to their captain's call with five wickets in the first session.

As thoughts trained towards Bangladesh's highest partnership for any wicket and a debut hundred for Tamim, Kyle Mills struck. The ball nipped back in off a perfect length, kept a little low, and drew an inside-edge from his bat. The look of relief on the fielders' faces was palpable.

As often happens when one dominant partner departs, the second followed. The ball looked about ready to reverse-swing late on day three and Chris Martin achieved a hint of it, operating from around the stumps. Siddique failed to keep one down and edged to a sharp Stephen Fleming in the slips for 74. Bangladesh were still 53 behind at that stage but with the openers removed the tone of the innings changed dramatically.

If they'd done wonderfully to launch an opening platform like that then equally disappointing was how quickly the side pressed the detonation button. Habibul Bashar endured another poor score, tamely cutting Jacob Oram to gully for 11; Mohammad Ashraful was due for some runs but made just 23 before he chased one straight to Craig Cumming at backward point; it got worse, as Aftab Ahmed bagged a pair, producing a shot to beat Ashraful's minutes before lunch. Iain O'Brien's double-strike atoned for a costly fielding lapse - he dropped Tamim on eight in the second session yesterday - and brought his bowling average down to 64.00. Brendon McCullum's constant chirp of "five for 200 at lunch, boys" turned out to be very accurate.

There wasn't much turn or bounce in the track but Daniel Vettori backed himself after the interval. He struck twice in one over, picking up Mushfiqur Rahim and a trigger-happy Mashrafe Mortaza, and later ended a relatively solid innings from Shahriar Nafees (28 from 82 balls) with a clever arm ball and handed Shahadat Hossain a pair as well. With Bangladesh 254 for 9 Vettori beckoned for Martin, wrecker-in-chief on day one, and he finished the innings with a smart bouncer.

Set 35 to win, New Zealand knocked off the target with one casualty, Craig Cumming failing again, to complete trouncing of a side they've dominated all tour. This win, their first in over a year, included a fairytale century from comeback man Matthew Bell - the first by a New Zealand opener in 22 Tests - and its from such positives that the side must build.

Conversely, Bangladesh have plenty to ponder after folding so meekly on the third day, especially after the debut openers led a most stirring resurgence on day two.

Glaciers by night, lamb and red wine

Captions: Waiho River above. Chris Lambert left
Dear Bob,

It’s a while since I’ve been in touch – about 15 years to be exact – but I discovered your blog a few months ago and your recent posts about feeling homesick for NZ, plus a reference to Alec Millar, prompted me to finally contact you.

In your post about Alec you said that during 2008 you wanted to talk about some of the people who had inspired you over the years. I felt that it was high time I paid you a similar compliment.

Back in June 1991, when you were in charge of the National Park at Franz Josef Glacier, I came over as a student from London to spend a few weeks doing some surveys on the landforms east of the glacier. You kindly provided me and a couple of friends with use of a DoC house, and my first night in Franz has stuck in my memory a long while. You picked us up and drove up to the glacier that night, swerving both to run over possums and as you kept trying to retune into the Bledisloe cup match. It was a frozen, clear night in the valley, thick with that incredible rime frost the valley seems to generate, and the Southern Cross was hanging right above the icefalls. You told us the Maori tale of the Goddess’ tears which froze to from the glacier, and then back to yours for rough cuts of lamb and the drawing of maps on your kitchen table with red wine, much relating to Okarito or the Callery. Alec was likewise generous and flew us that Sunday afternoon around the peaks of the Divide

You may not recall any of this (!), and why should you? You are very unlikely to recall a follow up trip I did four years later specifically to climb into the Callery Valley. Following the 1991 visit to Franz it is pretty fair to say that I became obsessed with all things Callery, West Coast gold developments, history of Okarito and Hokitika. I didn’t get into the valley – the photo attached shows the result of the aborted efforts in the winter snows of ’95 – but I wrote a (poor) screenplay based on the West Coast over the subsequent years and, until age 30 when I taught geography, indoctrinated endless students in the magic of the West Coast.

A big picture of the glacier that I brought back in ’91 stills sits in my office, along with some twisted schist from the valley floor that seems to describe everything that it is extreme and remarkable about the place. In retrospect it all seems a bit over the top but there was something about the history, the folklore, and the characters over the years – including yourself – that made it a tremendously powerful thing to steep oneself in. I now find that you can go on to Google Earth and zoom so deeply into the Callery that many of the old features described by Leonard and Lowe, and from Teichelman’s trip, are visible. If I’d seen what it looked like back in ’95 I would probably have saved the airfare! The ‘obsession’ with researching the history of it all over the years, though, has been great fun and very worthwhile.

I noticed in one of your web blogs a reference to some family connection in Scotland, in the pub trade. Maybe not serving Monteith’s but a healthy connection nonetheless! It prompted me to think that if you are in the UK in the future at any point I should like to take you to a good red meat restaurant in London to thank you for all that original inspiration you gave me, plus I’m a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and they have major mountain archives if you fancy getting access to them in case they may be of use to your book research etc.

I have my eye on the RWC in NZ in 2011 as a marker by which time I really ought to return for another trip – can’t believe it’s been 13 years, but I guess that’s what job / family / self-employment does to your sense of timing. However, whenever I think back to my time on the West Coast I turn to some of the old photos. You lent me your car once to drive down the track to Okarito, from where I climbed the trig and took this shot (see attachments 2 & 3), and there’s another of the Waiho for you too.

I hope they bring a smile to your face too, and it helps you along in Jakarta where I remain tremendously impressed by the commitment that you give.

Chris Lambert

Dying in the mountains

Thanks
Gollum








I am pleased someone as experienced as Gollum responded to my brief comments about the sad death of Anton Wopereis on Mount Cook. Gollum you too have climbed penniless in the Southern Alps and stayed at White Horse Hill. I remember big Dave White with his long flowing locks, staying at Wynn Irwin Hut with his cello, with music wafting out over the east face of Sefton, those nights you mention in the tavern bar and all of us being stunned when Pete Gough and and John Glasgow did the first ascent of the Caroline face of Cook. Thanks Gollum for your delightful response.

Gollum said...
QUOTE
The consolation is always that those dying in the mountains at least get to die in a place that they love - doing what they love. That gives meaning to their lives.

I spent a lot of my younger days in the Southern Alps and have also lost a few friends, including Chris Jillet who you mentioned a few blogs back. Now that I live in South-East Asia chained to the corporate treadmill I often think back to those days when we were penniless, hanging out in the shelter at White Horse Hill and getting pissed at the old Tavern Bar(now long gone).

I visited Mt Cook a few weeks ago for the first time in 20 years. We had beautiful cloudless days. Took a chopper flight to give the kids a look at the hills and the feel of the snow. The village is pretty sterile now but the hills are still awesome. Makes me dream of retirement - just gotta knock over the mortgage, pay for the kids' education, save some retirement funds and get off the treadmill.

Dying in the mountains doesn't seem so bad from a distance. UNQUOTE

Death of Anton Wopereis

I arrived at work this morning at 7a.m and checked the NZ news and was stunned to see the news about the death of Anton Wopereis on Aoraki/Mount Cook.

Climbing accidents, like aircraft crashes, occur from time to time. It is always sad to read the accounts. The death of Anton Wopereis was a genuine mountain accident and sadly, killed a highly experienced and respected New Zealand mountaineer. I met Anton a few times in the Southern Alps and have a huge ammount of respect and admiration for he and his achievements.


I leave it up to long-time friend Dave Macleod who said Anton was a quiet, gentle person, but immensely strong physically "in terms of his fitness".

His partner Barbara said keeping fit was his passion. "He was always careful about what he ate."

Dave Macleod said Mr Wopereis offered unconditional friendship "which I think is a rarity these days".

When not mountain climbing or working part-time as a survey technician, Mr Wopereis would often be out mountain biking or cross-country skiing.

"He had a competitive spirit that would surface in his mountain-biking. You would often go out with him on what you thought was a gentle ride which would quickly turn into a race.

"Even though he was 54, he still had a lot of toys in the sandpit so to speak."


Mr Wopereis was good at analysing the risk in a climb and saying "yes" or "no", Mr Macleod said.

"He wasn't a cavalier type of mountaineer and guide."

Mr Wopereis lived with Barbara in Wanaka, and helped care for her four children.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Barbara, children, family and close friends. This morning I saw this quote from the Ramayana that I thought appropriate.

"Oh, best fly-jumpers, just by my astounding and astonishing impetuosity shall I venture to start with the Sun who starts his journey of the day from Mt. Sunrise, and shall I go to Mt. Dusk before Sun, and again shall I venture to comeback even before the sundown towards the same day's flaming Sun when he is garlanded with flaming sunrays around him in midday, that too without my touching the land...

"Shall I overtake all the wayfarers in skyway, or shall I parch down the ocean, or pare off the earth... Extract from: Valmiki Ramayana - Kishkindha Kanda in Prose Sarga 67

Viking woman

Early one new year, long ago, I met a stunning Viking woman. She now lives happily in Denmark. This is a poem I wrote for her








VIKING WOMAN

O Viking woman
Your body and eyes tell me
Of distant lands conquered
That's what I see

Tall and graceful with
Beauty to afford
The sibilant water
From mountain to Fiord

Now on an island
Where the remnants of conquests
Lay scattered
Across your breast

The lithness of your limbs
Conceal energy and dreams
Like the first flowers of spring
Growing beside distant streams

Within your heart and body
Flows blood deep red
Inside your mind
Are thoughts that unsettle the bed

So take me O viking women
In your longship west
Through stormy seas
That's what I love best

Bob McKerrow

Piracy and tidal wave alerts, earthquakes, floods and landslides

Every day Hill and Associates give an update on events in Indonesia. 31 December was a typical day from tidal wave alerts to piracy alerts.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE

Earthquake Shakes Tual, Maluku
An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale shook Tual and Southeast Maluku in Maluku Province today, Monday 31 December at 2.11 am Eastern Indonesian Time (WIT), but claimed no lives. The epicenter was located 104 km northeast of Tual, at a depth of 45 km below sea level, according to information from the Ambon geophysics office. The intensity of the earthquake was relatively mild so it was barely felt by local residents who were asleep when it occurred. Tual was also hit by strong winds which uprooted a number of trees. Two moderate 5.5-maghnitude quakes struck western and eastern Indonesia on Sunday 30 December, but there was no threat of a tsunami and no immediate reports of damage, meteorologists said. The first hit at 10.36 am about 147 km offshore and southeast of the city of Gunungsitoli on Nias Island (west coast of Sumatra) at a depth of 60 km. The second hit about an hour later in the eastern province of Maluku about 340 km southeast of the provincial capital Ambon, at a depth of 125 km. (Sources: Antara | The Jakarta Post)

New Landslide As Search For Victims ContinuesA new landslide buried more than 30 homes at Tengklik village in Tawangmangu, Central Java at around 1:00 pm on Sunday 30 December as rescue workers continued searching for victims of earlier landslides and floods, an official said. There were no deaths or injuries but 177 people are displaced. The recent landslides and floods have killed at least 153 people in heavily populated Central and East Java after torrential rains lashed the region. Search teams were continuing to dig manually and use water to clear the mud to find victims. Rescuers have been hampered by a lack of heavy earth-moving
equipment as landslides, poor weather and large fallen trees hindered their progress. Bojonegoro in East Java and Blora and Cepu in Central Java remained underwater Sunday as Bengawan Solo River overflow had not yet subsided. Aid has been distributed to victims and floodwaters are reported to have started to subside today.

In Pandeglang, Banten, seven districts were submerged following torrential rain and strong winds brought down two high voltage towers in Depok, West Java. Meanwhile, storms hit Padang, West Sumatra, felling aged trees, injuring five locals and destroying cars and motorcycles. Heavy rains were also reported in Bali, Gorontalo, Jambi and North Sumatra. The Indonesian Red Cross Society (Palang Merah Indonesia or PMI) is reported to have responded appropriately through the deployment of trained emergency response teams (SATGANA) and volunteers for assessment, evacuation, relief distribution, monitoring and reporting. (Source: AFP | The Jakarta Post | Xinhua | UNOCHA | International Federation of Red Cross | Antara | Kompas | Republika)
H&A Comment
Environmentalists blame excessive deforestation and logging for the landslides and floods as trees serve to fix soil and absorb rain. Local officials have said that unusually heavy rain this year has destabilised already vulnerable hilly areas. Landslides and flooding are common in Indonesia during the rainy season (December to February).

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE top
HIGH WAVE ALERT 31 DECEMBER 2007 – 1 JANUARY 2008
Height
Location
Remarks

1.25 – 2.0 mWaters to the west of Aceh, the western part of Java Sea, the Sulawesi Sea, waters of the Sangihe Talaud, the Maluku Sea, the Halmahera Sea, the Seram Sea and waters to the north of Papua. Hazardous for fishing vessels.
2.0 – 3.0 mWaters to the west of North Sumatra, the Sunda Straits, the Sawu Sea, the Timor Sea and the southern part of Makassar Straits. Hazardous for fishing vessels, and motorised wooden vessels.
3.0 – 4.0 mWaters to the west of West Sumatra, the Karimata Straits, the eastern part of Java Sea, the Bali Sea, the Flores and Banda Seas. Hazardous for fishing vessels, motorised wooden vessels and ferries.
4.0m +Waters to the west of Bengkulu to Lampung, waters to the south of Java to West Nusa Tenggara, the Natuna and Arafuru Seas. Hazardous for ALL vessels.
(Source: BMG)

Bad Weather Alert
Bad weather has impacted traffic from the Merak seaport in Banten to Bakuheni in Lampung, causing congestion. Ferries are taking longer to berth and to sail. The Meteorology and Geophysics (BMG) Agency predicts that heavy rain and strong wind are likely to occur in parts of Indonesia on New Year’s Eve. Heavy rain may fall in East and West Nusa Tenggara, Bengkulu, Lampung, South Kalimantan and South Sulawesi. Meanwhile, waves 3-4 meter in height are expected off West Sumatra, Lampung, East Java and the Banten Straits. BMG official warn that beaches should be avoided this week. (Sources: Kompas | Media Indonesia)

AVIATION | TRANSPORT top

Emergency Landing Due To Cockpit Glass Fracture
A PT Express Air Boeing 737-200 en route Jakarta-Jayapura (Papua) made an emergency landing at the Juanda airport in Surabaya on Sunday 29 December after a crack was found in the cockpit glass. There were no reports of injuries. Officials are investigating. (Source: Kompas)

SHIPPING | MARITIME SECURITY top
WEEKLY PIRACY REPORT
DateLocationRemarks
N/AIndonesiaNo specific recent events reported but mariners are warned to be extra cautious and to take necessary precautionary measures when transiting the following areas: Balongan, Balikpapan, Belawan, Tanjong Priok (Jakarta). Generally be vigilant in other areas. Attacks may have gone unreported.
N/AMalacca StraitsThough the number of attacks has dropped due to the increase and constant patrols by the littoral states’ relevant authorities since July 2005, ships are advised to continue maintaining a strict anti piracy watch when transiting the straits.
(Source: International Maritime Bureau Piracy Reporting Centre)

City Preparing For New Year's Eve
Police officers have set up a security coordination centre in Blok M, South Jakarta, on Friday. City police have started setting up security centres in more than 600 locations across Jakarta in preparation for New Year's Eve. With millions of people expected to crowd entertainment centres in Jakarta on New Year's Eve, the city administration and the police are preparing to deploy more than 17,000 officers in an effort to step up security and manage traffic in the capital. Police will intensify security in entertainment parks, shopping malls, train stations, bus stations, the Soekarno-Hatta international airport and other public places, Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Adang Firman said. To celebrate the New Year, the city administration has organised festivities at the National Monument in Central Jakarta; Ancol Amusement Park in North Jakarta; and Taman Mini Indonesia Park in East Jakarta. "This is to prevent heavy traffic congestion in those areas," Governor Fauzi Bowo said. From the total 681 entertainment hubs holding New Year's Eve parties, the police would prioritize the National Monument and Ancol, according to the Jakarta Police Traffic Management Centre.