My Journey To Antarctica Began | Noumea, New Caledonia To Hobart, Australia

Wednesday, 22 November 2023
Day 0 of 110ish

A day doesn’t begin in New Caledonia without a pain au chocolate from the Noumea market. And so it was today, however; today was special because I had two big bags in tow. Soon Tom and I would be boarding a bus headed to the airport, though he was only commuting halfway. Today I was on my way to Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.

My journey to Antarctica began!

Really this journey began last year. Tom mentioned his trip to the ice on the Tangaroa with NIWA (National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research) and my interest piqued. I’ve wanted to see Antarctica for a long time now. I’ve even applied for random jobs on the ice in the hopes they were desperate. Not desperate enough, apparently.

I’d long since given up that hope until Tom mentioned the Tangaroa. The only thing standing in my way now was not having my STCW’s commercial seafarers ticket (Standards of Training, Certification & Watchkeeping for Searfares)…and a job offer! 

Winners put themselves in a position to win

So, in Suva, Fiji last year, with this opportunity in mind, I took three weeks to complete my STCW’s. I am now legally allowed to work on commercial boats! Go me! Tick!

Now for the job opportunity. 

Hmmmm…that part didn’t come last summer like I was secretly hoping. Oh well! Keep trucking!

Then on 4 November, 2023, the first miracle happened.

I got a great text from Tom as Ruth and I were flying to New Caledonia to meet up with Kaihanu. He’d just been offered a job as cook on the Antarctic Aurora, a longline fishing boat heading to Antarctica for four months. The pay was enticing and we asked if there was a possibility of a job for me. There was! I was to be Tom’s galley hand and thrust into a world I know nothing about. My forte! 

So the only answer was ‘Yes!’ Let’s do it! 

Plans changed rapidly as we only had two weeks to get Kaihanu a cyclone safe berth in Noumea, pack her down and get her ready to leave again, and find a reliable boat sitter.

Life was a blur but it all fell into place. Miracle two!

Then the bad news came. Australian customs won’t accept the visa that they normally bring boat workers into Australia on. They would have to reroute the boat to Bluff, NZ in order to have Tom join the boat at a cost of around $250,000AUD. Uh oh! It started not looking too good but we kept positive. Turns out another key crew member, an engineer name Andrei, would also need to be picked up in Bluff as well. Plus I think they were struggling to find a good cook at such short notice. Miracle three!

Miraculously, it all came together. Tom and I would part ways and meet up again in Bluff, NZ in 6 days time. A long 6 days!

So I boarded my flights and, fortunately, had a very smooth journey to Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. At 10pm, the taxi driver dropped me off at the port office where the Antarctic Aurora was docked. Timing is everything and a crew member was just getting back from a night out when I showed up. Perfect!

He walked me through security then to the boat and introduced me to Francois (First Mate Fran) where the unnamed crew member disappeared never to be seen again. 

After having a quick safety brief from a groggy Fran and gathering some linen for my bed, I sank into one hard mattress and fell to sleep. 

I’ve arrived. This is actually happening!!!