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[[underlined]] Feb. 17 noon - catching up [[/underlined]]

Zodiac landing went w. great dispatch. Great nets of boxes were craned over side and passengers arranged themselves on top or edges. Suddenly the call came in ~at lunch time that the small one would return in 15 minutes and they wanted 5 passengers. Five went; then a large one took off full of cargo, then mine came. Lots of boxes, some shovels, & me, piloted by a crewman who took great care w. waves - We met a returning zodiac en route and stopped briefly, then crossed their waves at 90°. Weather remained fair and the sea ~ calm. We rounded the near island and made our way to Seymour where a spot or 2 of yellow showed where our tent camp was building.

On the low tide mud flats, don Cheney met us in hip boots & ordered me to jump off & run for shore, else I get water in boots. I made it good, & up a narrow, wet muddy ravine. A whole series of people in boots, including Marilyn, were lined up to carry the boxes ashore. Phil & Cheney had the little 4-wheeled vehicles, which were a godsend, dragging trailers. Tents were lined up in a row on a flat stony muddy bluff. I found Toni putting the floor into a nice new tent. Our liquor box was on the side of it so I assumed it was ours; put my camera bag (orange) beside it. Bill asked me to sort thru boxes & find sleeping bags & types of food. more stuff kept coming. By the time Toni & I returned to our tent it had been claimed -- so had every other tent! So, learning of this, Bill ordered all nearby hands to 

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turn out and set up our tent. They dug holes & tied ropes around big rocks -- scrounged from countryside by Phil-the rockhopper penguin -- and buried them deeply.- Bill said they had to be deep or they would pull out in a good blow. They set us up fairly well & Bill said we should see to the details of all the tents. But just then another zodiac arrived & we all went to the beach to unload it. I commented to Bill how lucky we were to have so fine a day. Back at tent, I put shovels of rock & soil around base, and boxes of juice etc. for weight. Weather began to turn : we all took food boxes but also distributed one box or can of each opened & handy type to each tent. Each took a stove, fuel, water jug. Then the blow really started and we all dove in for shelter. One large rock tied outside beside a hole - never buried - Many details remained about making tent fast and learning to tie front opening - and lighting stoves. We drew one old, used Coleman instead of 2 little burners as I had wanted. Yet, at the very end, Toni turned up w. an Optimum stove, my old familiar type from Allan Hills. I lit it, w some trouble & we were inside and cold but w. a fire. Then it struck us: not one pot or pan. We felt alone and abandoned, at the far end of the line with noone close (a second tent was to be raised between ours & Freds. The longest walk, through the mud, from supper.

We dined on Ritz crackers and deviled ham and creme de menthe. Poor Toni was taken w diarrhea today - As she said, why did it wait so long. The privy was intended to be set up early, but was never shipped over.