Back at the Antipode!

Hello from Rio Gallegos! Andrew and I arrived in this wind-blown city at the tip of the continent of South America on Valentine’s Day, after spending 24 beautifully hot and sweaty hours in the capitol city of Buenos Aires. Our first few days were spent doing logistical things like getting our rental car,  buying picks and shovels, and reviewing satellite imagery. We really amused the employees of a paint shop by requesting empty paint pails (they are a good size and strength for shipping rock samples), which they had to have someone go fetch from the trash. This morning, John and Rene set off to the southern Andes to do some work with their Argentine colleagues Jorge, Bettina and Hugo. For the next two weeks, Andrew and I will wander these wild plains, working to unlock their secrets about the glacial history of the past million years. We’ll also drink some cheap and delicious Argentine malbec, eat empanadas, and amuse the local population with our crappy Spanish and foreign mannerisms. And I promise that I will try my best to hold back from petting all the sweet and hopeful looking faces of the stray dogs that seem to own these streets.

Me and Hugo Corbella enjoying the view of Buenos Aires from his 19th floor flat.

Dr. Rene Barendregt (Renato de Las Pampas), Master Andrew La Croix (Andre La Cruz), and Dr. John Clague (Juan de Patagonia) in front of our home away from home in Rio Gallegos.

Exploring some sediment exposures south of the city during our first day of field work.