SPoT

Back in the day, we used to have almost 350 missions every
season to the South Pole. One reason is because they were
building the new Station there. The other was because almost
every mission late in the season was a tanker mission. This
means that each LC-130 was literally a flying gas tank, taking
valuable fuel that the South Pole needed for its very survival.
Then, several years ago, the first South Pole Traverse (SPoT)
trudged it's way to the Pole, literally carving an ice and snow
road all the way to the Pole for about 1200 miles. Their main
mission is to haul fuel to the Pole. This trip replaces many
many flights that would take three hours to fly to Pole each
way. This year's first Traverse took exactly a month to get
there, but typically the trip isn't that long. It's pretty much the
ultimate road trip, but there aren't any convenience stores or
gas stations along the way. Just hours and hours and miles
and miles of nothing but snow and ice. The Traverse crew
have to spend a lot of time together, driving, cooking and
entertaining each other. Hopefully not driving each other
crazy! Now a second Traverse is on its way and should
arrive around New Year's. It's far from a busy "highway", but
is on it's becoming more and more so every year!

The Big Roadtrip

You won't find this roadtrip in any Rand McNally Atlas.
There aren't any 7-11s along the road to stop for a
Big Gulp and bag of Fritos. It's the South Pole Traverse.
The group left McMurdo a couple of days after I got here in
late October and should be arriving in a few days at Pole.
This year they're hauling fuel and materials to both South
Pole and to the remote AGAP camps. Ultimately in years to
come, they want to be able to deliver up to 200,000 gallons
of fuel each year to the Pole but that will be years from
now. Currently, only LC-130's can carry fuel to the Pole
and they use up a lot of fuel in the process to get it
there. There's been some international angst against the
road, but let's get real here. It's not really "a road".
If it weren't maintained, it would be gone in only a few
years, it's existence gone forever. Plus, it's not like
tourists will be moseying along it. How could they? There
aren't any 7-11s along the way!


click on map to enlarge