With less than a week to go the realities of packing for the trip are setting in.  For the past few months I have been collecting things that I think I might need or want.  They have been collecting in a large pile in my spare bedroom.  Now it is time to figure out if all the clothes and gear and equipment will fit in my duffle and suitcase. And, more important, if everything will be under the required weight limit.

Unlike some on our team, this is my first trip to Antarctica.  In spite of all the advice and packing lists I have been given, I am still feeling somewhat unsure if I am taking the right things.  There are two schools of thought – be austere or be a little more extravagant. Basically it boils down to whether or not you want to try and wash your clothes while out in the field.  I am coming down on the side of not trying to do laundry.

I am going to take a lesson from space flight and essentially treat my clothes as consumables.  I am not actually going to throw my clothes away like we do on the Station, but I do have packaged one set of clothes for each week in the field.  Plus a spare set.  Those plastic bags of clothes, all the cold weather gear that I will need to wear and the few assorted hygiene items I am taking will definitely fill my duffle.

Now I just have to figure out how to pack for the rest of the trip.

Shannon