APLIS POSTCARD #16
27 March 2007
Position: 73-12N/145-09W
Temperature: -1¼F
Greetings from APLIS, adrift in the Arctic Ocean.
Not as cold as yesterday but the wind still has us isolated
to the area immediately surrounding the camp. WeÕve had to postpone a surfacing we had planned for
ALEXANDRIA today but have a couple more days to fit that in. Meanwhile, the Stargate people are shooting
here near camp, allowing me to turn this over to somebody else again. From Stargate, hereÕs Amada Tapping:
Hello there everyone! I am so thrilled to be here and to be
able to tell you about my experience so far. I am in love with the Arctic and have decided to buy real
estate up here. ItÕs going cheap!
I am still grappling with the fact
that we are adrift on the ocean! Aaaiiiieeeeyyyy! You can see the frozen waves as you
look out over the landscape. It is
so magical up here.
Barry Campbell briefed our team very
well before we left Vancouver and we have the following mantras that are vital
to our survivalÉ. Ò Cotton KillsÓ
and ÒSweating is DeathÓ. I
had a nightmare the other night about an army of soft Cotton Fruit of the Loom
T-shirts marching across the frozen landscape and assaulting us in our
sleep! I awoke in a panic with
sweat dripping down my backÉ.I await my slow and imminent death.
We have been able to film a few key
scenes for the movie. I keep
forgetting that is why we are actually here! On Sunday we were able to go on board the USS Alexandria and
were given an incredible tour and served lunch. It was fascinating.
When the sub is able to surface again we will film on board. We have shot one surfacing so far. We have also shot some walk and talk
scenes with Ben and myself. One
particular scene that we shot as the sun was setting will stick with me as
perhaps the most magical experience of my career. The ice made a hollow moaning sound in places and the ÒsnowÓ
crunched beneath our feet. The sky
at sunset was a beautiful pink and I knew I was in paradise.
Amanda
and Ben at Sunset
Thank goodness for our amazing
cooks, Victoria, Stephanie and Trina.
They are keeping us going with gourmet cooking that rivals some of the
best restaurants I have ever been to.
Barry told us we could eat 5000 calories a day and still lose weight! I have taken this part of the
mission very seriously. Sadly, I
donÕt think even Barry anticipated the amazing morsels we would be served. I donÕt think anyone is losing weight
here!
The people here are amazing and so
welcoming. They are a wacky bunch
of intrepid explorers with hearts of gold, deep belly laughs, and wonderful
stories.
We have settled in to camp life with
ease.
The Stargate girls have taken over
New York, New York. We nested like
little mice when we got in. We
filled the cracks with paper towel and duct tape, put the ice on to boil as our
humidifier, made ÒcarpetsÓ out of cardboard boxes and duct tape decorated with
Sharpies, and filled the hooch with aromatherapy courtesy of Brenda Turner (hair/
make-up). MacGyver
would be proud! Now if only weÕd
brought a cappuccino maker!
APLIS stands for Applied Physics
Laboratory Ice Station, but I am told it really stands for Abnormal People
Living in Sheds. I proudly count
myself as one of them!
I am off now to shoot a scene where a
helicopter will drop Ben and me on the ice and then take off again while we are
filmed from a distance. It will
give the audience the idea of how vast and desolate this place is and how
desperate the situation is. I, for
one, hope that they spot any Polar Bears before Ben and I do. I have visions of a Polar Bear being
chased by a helicopter as Ben and I await our slow and imminent deathsÉÉ..But
seriously, have I mentioned how much I LOVE it here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Amanda Tapping
ÒColonel Sam CarterÓ
ItÕs been interesting having the Stargate crew here at
APLIS. They are all good,
down-to-earth people and have fit right in with our APLIS team. Everyone is going to remember this
experience for a long time.
Jeff Gossett
Arctic Submarine Laboratory