By Carol Moorman via The Star Post
Published 11:16 am on March 12, 2026
Two years ago, Anna Haynes did not even know people lived and worked in Antarctica — the coldest, driest, and windiest place on earth, covered 98% by ice.
But over the past five months, the 2020 Bemidji State University graduate has experienced life on the icy continent, living and working at McMurdo Station, a small community in a remote location on Ross Island in Antarctica’s Ross Sea. It is an American Antarctic research station operated by the United States Antarctic Program.
“When I learned about McMurdo Station, it took hold of my brain and became a bucket list item for me,” Haynes said.
Haynes has traveled the world since graduating from Albany Area High School in 2016 and BSU in 2020. She has volunteered, held teaching jobs and attended school in Norway, Spain, Mexico, France, Eastern Europe, Thailand, Southeast Asia, Dominican Republic, South America and Central America.
She learned about an Antarctica position from a friend.
“She was just back from spending six months on the ice and told me about how she loved her job and community here at McMurdo Station,” Haynes said.
It took Haynes two years to get accepted to work at McMurdo Station. The process, which includes filling out paperwork and medical reports, is grueling because they want to hire people who understand the difficulty of Antarctica living and will make it for the duration of the program.
In January 2025, she was offered a job.
“I was initially nervous about committing to spending more than half a year at the bottom of the world, unsure what the work or living conditions would be like, so I requested they call me back if they had a short-term contract they needed to fill, and I got a phone call on Aug. 10, (2025), asking me if I could come to Antarctica to work as a janitor for six weeks on Aug. 20, (2025),” Haynes said.
She admitted to being overwhelmed and nervous, but it felt like a dream was coming true, so she accepted the offer.
She arrived at the McMurdo Station Sept. 5, 2025, a few weeks after her initial start date, due to storms.
“One thing I've been told time and time again is that there are no promises on the ice,” Haynes said before her departure. “I will be happy if I leave by March 1, but I understand that, in Antarctica, everything is up in the air (except for the planes).”
She is sure of one thing.
“Once I was here, I fell in love with the people and the craziness of the entire place and began looking for another job I could do that would keep me here through the end of the summer season,” she said.
Anna Haynes drives a payloader at McMurdo Station, an American Antarctic research station on the southern tip of Ross Island in Antarctica. One of the jobs she was assigned to was driving a payloader to move materials around outside at the station. (Contributed via The Star Post)
Antarctica, as a continent, is both strange and strangely normal, she said.
On Ross Island, workers — up to 900 people at peak times — live in a small town.
“It feels like being in an Old West mining town at times,” she said.
There are two bars, a coffee house, a chapel, a gas station and a few hikes around town they can go on.
“It has an otherworldly, beautiful feel when you leave town,” Haynes said. “We are between Mount Erebus and the Royal Society mountains, and on a clear day, when you can see for miles, I have a feeling of awe and gratitude that I get to live in such a strange, special place.”
During the austral summer — December-February in the southern hemisphere — the weather is surprisingly pleasant, she said.
“It could be up to 30 degrees, and when the wind isn't blowing, it's a nice place to be,” Haynes said. “Now that we're moving into the winter season, we have snow and winds that feel like they'd blow you away if you don't hold onto something.”
She usually wears two hats and two neck gaiters when she works outside to deal with the often below-zero temperatures.
Haynes was hired as a supply technician.
“I've been happily auditing and issuing supplies to the station since then,” she said.
She works across different departments of supply, performing a wide variety of tasks in a week.
“Sometimes, I help in the carpenter's shop moving lumber with forklifts; sometimes, I help in the freezer pulling the station's food for the week,” she said. “Sometimes, I help with special projects like sending beverages to (Amundsen-Scott) South Pole Station or organizing and consolidating oxygen and nitrogen cylinders to be sent stateside and refilled.”
Working six days a week, nine hours a day, Haynes said there is never a moment of downtime.
“I love my job,” Haynes said. “I feel like I'm becoming more competent and confident every day, from just making a simple decision on my own to driving a forklift for nine hours straight. I get to learn a little bit about every part of the station. I love living so close to my friends, and the people I'm meeting here are so interesting, adventurous and open.”
In February, the coast guard and the station’s resupply vessel arrived, and her job became very intense.
“I help with vessel offload, which means working seven days a week, 12 hours a day for about a week and a half, depending on how quickly we can finish the job,” Haynes said.
Workers are all salaried and do not make overtime or receive compensation for the extra hours.
“The idea is everyone does everything possible to keep the station going, as we have a lot that needs to be done and a limited population,” she said.
Haynes said there is camaraderie knowing every member of the community is working hard to keep workers warm, housed and fed.
“We all go home exhausted at night, but we all appreciate that everyone goes the extra mile to keep the station running,” she said.
Haynes admitted her real challenge is just feeling tired all the time.
“After work, it feels like you have to choose between being social and being properly rested,” she said. “After 54 hours on my feet, it's a challenge to force myself to go out for a hike or even to leave my room sometimes.”
While what she calls her “magical journey to the seventh continent” is nearly over, Haynes appreciates the experience — and the people she has met along the way.
“The community has been hands down the best part of the experience here,” she said. “It's a collection of some of the most interesting and well-traveled people I've ever met, and they're all very friendly and eager to hear my stories as well.”
Add Antarctica to Haynes’ stories.
Written by Carol Moorman of The Star Post
