At the end of each summer season, one of our winter tasks is replacing the worn-out flags used to mark safe areas of travel along the roads and trails around McMurdo. Flags of various colors are used as markers along these safe routes and they give a visual reference to travelers when the weather turns bad and visibility drops. The flags measure roughly 12" by 15" in size and are colored red, green, blue, black, and yellow. Red and green flags are used to mark roads and trails. Black flags indicate dangerous areas such as a crevasse. Blue flags mark cargo that is left outside and may become buried under the snow. Yellow flags indicate where you're permitted to urinate.

Earlier this winter we had a "flag-tying" party where most of McMurdo's residents met one afternoon to tie nearly 7,000 flags onto bamboo poles, some of which we would be placing today. Five of us volunteers met early in the morning...