Article: Could you work in the Antarctic? 4000 people already do

[Tony]

You can view the page at http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/content.php?r=670-Could-you-work-in-the-Arctic-4000-people-already-do

 

[John Fenna]

I actually applied for a job out there once ... but was turned down for the post as I did not have enough Glacier Rescue experience.
Well that was their excuse....

 

[santaman2000]

I actually applied for a job out there once ... but was turned down for the post as I did not have enough Glacier Rescue experience.
Well that was their excuse....

I suspect that a majority of those who are accepted were invited to apply. That said, such a process makes sense, in that they have to fit in socially with a small group that they'll be sharing close quarters with for an extended period. You'd only invite those you expect to fit in.

 

[rorymax]

I might have considered applying for a job down there, but on checking it out; too many people congregate in one small space, just damned overcrowded for my liking.

 

[santaman2000]

Rather like life aboard a research ship I'd imagine.

 

[HillBill]

An old friend of mine broke his spine working down there... he was skiing and had an accident.

 

[santaman2000]

Hopefully he recovered? What sort of work did he do?

 

[HillBill]

He was a station support assistant at the British Antarctic survey.

Hes in a wheelchair for life... though he does have sensation in his legs partly, he has no control/sensation over the muscles covering the front of his legs, but he can control the muscles at the back. He can stand up ok, but can't walk without having to grab his leg with his hands and physically move them forward, or twist sideways and shuffle along.


He does Paralympics now.. Racing in his chair.... he has an off road chair too so still gets across country, though on established paths.. Such a positive guy.

 

[nunzionuk]

I applied for a job there once, back in my younger days. But was refused due to lack of a degree.. again a club for the post-grads.

 

[Harvestman]

I used to work for the british Antarctic Survey, but I never went south. They are based in Cambridge. Too cold for me, and not too many bugs. Some of the stories people told though...

 

[Joe tahkahikew]

Where I live there are only about five hundred people, mostly cree, some whites. We get few visitors. The weather sounds about the same as the antarctic, and its a bit more risky up here as we have many animals which would love to eat penguins. No dangerous animals to worry about in the south. Your food comes by plane and if you get fed up you resign and fly home. Oh, and you get paid. Sounds like good place to live.

 

[Tengu]

You wouldnt like it Joe, no culture.

I wont go unless Im given a mining claim. The Antarctic is a prospectors dream

 

[The Cumbrian]

Working in Antarctica is one of the best things I ever did. I was a young electrician not long out of my apprenticeship and I sent my CV in on the off chance that they might have something for me. Four months later I was sat on a plane getting ready for my (first ever) flight to the Falklands, followed by a 5 week boat trip across the South Atlantic to Antarctica, visiting South Georgia and the South Shetland Islands on the way. Priceless.

 

[Damascus]

One of my life's great regrets, I was asked to go whilst in the military as a radio operator down there, but love and having bought my first property I stayed. I often wondered should I have gone?

 

[Tony]

Yeah, it would be a great experience to go down there, it's going to get busier as the years go by as well

 

[Harvestman]

Where I live there are only about five hundred people, mostly cree, some whites. We get few visitors. The weather sounds about the same as the antarctic, and its a bit more risky up here as we have many animals which would love to eat penguins. No dangerous animals to worry about in the south. Your food comes by plane and if you get fed up you resign and fly home. Oh, and you get paid. Sounds like good place to live.

I'd take issue about the dangerous animals. Leopard seals are huge and fast and extremely predatory - the south's equivalent to a polar bear, and elephant seals are even bigger. I had a colleague injured by an elephant seal that he got too close to. he was lucky to survive. They rear up and then come crashing down suddenly and strike with their tusks. People assume they are slow and get too close. I agree a polar bear is more dangerous, but there are certainly animal hazards in the Antarctic.

 

[santaman2000]

I used to work for the british Antarctic Survey, but I never went south. They are based in Cambridge. Too cold for me, and not too many bugs. Some of the stories people told though...

Well; not too many air breathing bugs anyway. What about the crustaceans?

 

[Harvestman]

Well; not too many air breathing bugs anyway. What about the crustaceans?

I'm a terrestrial ecologist, and a rotten swimmer, so aquatics are not in my line. There are no crabs or lobsters in the Antarctic, so their roles are filled by giant isopods: think woodlouse a foot or more long. They had some in tanks in Cambridge, and it was fun to reach in and pick them up to show people.

 

[santaman2000]

Thanks. I wasn't sure and thought it worth asking.

 

[Joe tahkahikew]

I'd take issue about the dangerous animals. Leopard seals are huge and fast and extremely predatory - the south's equivalent to a polar bear, and elephant seals are even bigger. I had a colleague injured by an elephant seal that he got too close to. he was lucky to survive. They rear up and then come crashing down suddenly and strike with their tusks. People assume they are slow and get too close. I agree a polar bear is more dangerous, but there are certainly animal hazards in the Antarctic.

Its the same up here. Some folks from town think they can make friends or get up really close with some animals. Animal don't like it, charges at town folk. Person gets injured, then animal called dangerous. Only foolish people really.