Today Kate, Jen and I packed up and moved camp to Conrow Glacier. We spent the morning packing up and a little after lunch a helicopter came to take us from Stocking Glacier in Taylor Valley to Conrow Glacier in Wright Valley. We rode in a Bell 212 helicopter, a large helicopter capable of carrying a lot of weight. Our helicopter had to make two trips. First, the helicopter picked up us and packed as much equipment as could fit in the vehicle with us (about 600 pounds). Then the helicopter had to go back to Stocking Glacier and pick up our sling with the tents and other equipment, weighing around 930 pounds. After the helicopter left we spent the rest of the day setting up camp.
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| Our Bell 212 flying away after dropping off our sling. |
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| Stocking Glacier from a helicopter. You can see how it is shaped like a stocking you would hang on the mantle for Christmas |
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| Conrow Glacier from our helicopter. Its shape at the terminus, or end of the glacier, is more diffuse compared to Stocking Glacier. |
Stocking and Conrow glaciers are very different in shape. Stocking Glacier has a very steep cliff face with an ice apron at its terminus. Large blocks of ice fall off the end of the glacier and crash to the ground below creating the ice apron. Unlike Stocking, Conrow Glacier gently slopes down to the ground surface. It becomes difficult to differentiate between the end of the snow apron and the beginning of the glacial ice in Conrow Glacier. This difference is likely due to the wind patterns in this area of Wright Valley.
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