McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

I’d love to hike Antarctica.

Realistically, the best destination would be out of McMurdo.

The McMurdo Dry Valleys are a row of valleys in Antarctica located within Victoria Land west of McMurdo Sound. The region includes many interesting geological features including Lake Vida and the Onyx River, Antarctica’s longest river. It is also one of the world’s most extreme deserts.

… the largest relatively ice-free region in Antarctica. The valley floors are covered with a loose gravelly material, in which ice-wedge polygons may be observed.

… Scientists consider the Dry Valleys perhaps the closest of any terrestrial environment to Mars, and thus an important source of insights into possible extraterrestrial life.

McMurdo Dry Valleys – Wikipedia

The superb photo blog Dark Roasted Blend has done it again. These are just a few of the pics they posted in a series on the McMurdo Dry Valleys.