These are images from my first trip in 1989 through to 1992. We sailed down on the RRS Bransfield which is seen here moored up against the fast ice edge unloading cargo. On the right is the wintering team for 1991. The 'For Sale' sign is there as this was the last winter team at Halley 4 before everyone moved to the new Halley V base.

Halley 4 was an underground base with access to the surface via wooden shafts, raised each year in line with the snow accumulation. The reason for needing a new base was the weight of the ice starting to crush the base. We spent many a happy hour attacking and removing the ice that was crushing the protective tube around our two storey living accomodation.

My tasks included making ozone layer thickness observations, three-hourly weather observations and reports and launching the daily weather balloon. Everyone took a part in the communal duties of cooking, cutting snow for water, cleaning etc.

One of the best bits though is getting away from our home and exploring. Halley is on (or in) the Brunt Ice shelf, so there are always plenty of crevasses to explore and the coast was only 12 km away. There was a large Emperor Penguin colony at the coast which always formed the focus of any visit.

The other main area for recreational travel was inland to 'The Hinge Zone', where the ice shelf was flowing off of the continent. As the ice shelf is floating, this is where it hinges. We would usually travel as groups of 4, using two person pyramid tents.

Although the bulk of outings were during the summer, it was still possible to get out during the winter time and there was also the spectacular Aurora Australis - the Southern Lights.

During the winter, the penguins were always very inquisitive and before you even had time to get set to abseil down the cliffs to join them, there would be a long line coming to see what was happenning.