To get to South Pole I first flew to Christchurch New Zealand on commercial airplanes. This part of the trip took over 27 hours from Philadelphia. I then spent 3 days in Christchurch, which is a really great city. Then I left Christchurch for the eight hour flight to McMurdo on an LC-130 Hercules operated by the New York Air National Guard. McMurdo, located on Ross Island, at the northern edge of the Ross Ice Shelf, is the largest station on Antarctica, housing 1200 in summer, and 200 in winter. I spent one night in McMurdo before leaving on another C-130 for the three hour flight to Pole. Here are some Pictures from Christchurch, McMurdo and the flights.