Christchurch turned out to be a great jumping off place for air and passenger travel to stations on the Antarctic continent. Adjacent to the airport is the International Antarctic Centre that provides experiences for tourist. Below, are photos and videos from our experience there.

A retired Artic vehicle and personal carrier (partial vehicle) that tour guides drove us tourists through the obstacle course in the rear of the facility.

Video of the obstacle course ride showing the ability of the vehicle to traverse crevasses.

We got to experience what it is like in the Antarctic during a severe windstorm. We put on over clothes and went into a very cold room with snow and ice on the floor. For, I think, 5 minutes they turned on the fans at a temperature of 14 degrees F to let us experience foul weather.

You can see the snow on the floor. Their rooms was freezing. Unfortunately, I took a movie inside the room during the demonstration and I can’t find it. It was a great experience, however.