After two nights in Yakutsk, we’ve finally arrived in Cherskiy! Although my situation stemming from missing paperwork remains a bit tenuous, it appears that I won’t be sent back to Moscow. After carelessly throwing out my immigration form after passing through customs, only to learn later of my mistake, I’ve had several stressful days waiting to get my paperwork sorted out. Unfortunately, I have not yet been able to apply for a duplicate form. But luckily, Kate is traveling with us and is working on getting this sorted out.

Thanks to Paul’s strategic placement of our checked baggage on the airlines scale, we successfully “reduced” our overweight baggage from 600 kg to a mere 60 kg. With this knowledge in mind, my fingers were crossed as we struggled to lift off the tarmac. To put our situation in perspective, upon landing in Cherskiy, the stewardess requested we remain in our seats until the baggage was unloaded from the rear of the plane. She was worried that if we all immediately exited at the rear, the plane would tip up on its tail. Safely back on the ground, we were greeted with gray skies, rain, sleet, and cold temperatures. When compared to the heat of Yakutsk it felt like we had certainly finally arrived in Siberia.

Our first hours at the station were spent unpacking and becoming acquainted with the barge, our home for the next three weeks. With a wood fire burning in the stove and biscuits and chocolate laid out on the table, it immediately felt like home. After settling in, we toured a few of the lab facilities and became acquainted with the layout of the station. As the PIs have hurriedly begun unpacking equipment and inventorying gear left from previous summers, many of us have been left to ponder our own projects. Conceptually and logistically, I still have many details to work out regarding the project I hope to complete in conjunction with the terrestrial survey. But with the help of the PIs, I feel as though the pieces are beginning to come together. Within the next couple of days I hope to begin collecting data. Tomorrow the real work begins as we will enter the field to scout potential sampling sites and become familiar with the various sampling protocols. After nearly a week of traveling, everyone appears anxious to dive right in.