Seasonal Confusion

The last two days have had cool and overcast conditions in Christchurch. Given that I just came from a reasonably hot summer in Colorado, it has made me feel like it is fall. I had a very nice run yesterday where it felt like one of my favorite fall runs. Except it is not fall in Christchurch as it is instead early spring. In a couple days I will eventually be making it to Antarctica where it will feel like a bitterly cold winter, as the season there is changing to spring. Then in six weeks I’ll be returning to Colorado where it will be fall. Such contrasts in weather can make for confusing conclusions about the current season.

I am still in Christchurch and will continue to be here for at least another 36 hours. The current schedule has me flying south on a C-17 military cargo plan on Friday morning. Today was another day of weather delays due to weather in McMurdo and we have also slipped to a later flight to arrive closer to our cargo. Thus far all of our delays have been of the 24-48 hour variety. Such delays are considerably easier to handle than 24 hour delays when you go to bed expecting to be leaving first thing in the morning. Instead, you wake to a phone call saying 24 hour delay.

The Botanical Gardens in Christchurch is always a great place to visit. However, with it being at the end of winter the gardens are not the typical green paradise that I see when traveling to the ice later in the season.

The center rose garden at the Botanical Gardens is showing its winter colors, or lack there of.

Some tourist kayaking on the Avon around the Botanical Gardens.