Man quits 'rat race' to work in South Pole where it's -60C and no shops nearby
A man has shared his incredible life change after he quit his job as a mechanic in Denver, Colorado, to work in the South Pole.
Jeff Capps, 33, now works in freezing -60C temperatures, sees the Southern Lights every day, and lives 2,000 miles from the nearest shop. He was working in a car dealership when an old friend told him about a job opportunity at the US-government-owned Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station.
He said: "I used to work in a car dealership as a mechanic. One day an old friend came by and said they needed a mechanic to work on snowmobiles in the South Pole I thought 'sign me up!'."
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He says they see the Southern Lights almost every day (Jeff Capps / SWNS)The £63k-a-year role sees Jeff work six-month stints in the South Pole. He started his job in 2019 and describes the facility as like "living on a ship". He even met his partner, Michelle, 33, while in the South Pole - where she worked in catering.
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Scientists at the station do important work on climate change and how the universe began. Jeff said: "We call it our spaceship, as it's 700 miles from the next nearest research station. We're totally isolated from everything."
Jeff says living there feels normal. "If you don't open the door it just seems like you're in a nice hotel," he explained. "We have great team of chefs. It's room temperature inside and you can just walk around in a t-shirt."
Jeff shows how quickly drinks freeze in Antarctica (Jeff Capps / SWNS)
Jeff quit the rat race for a job in the South Pole (Jeff Capps / SWNS)Only a few people share the place last time Jeff counted, there were 43. "You build an extremely close community as you see the same people every day, it's all pretty nice until you open the door outside then that all changes," he said.
Jeff often has to work outside in very cold weather, fixing vehicles. Once, he worked in a biting -76C, which he described as "surreal". He said: "You'd think you'd freeze to death instantly, but it's a dry cold, so it's actually not as bad as it sounds.
"The weirdest thing is I never felt shivering or chilled to the bone. The worst bit is if the cold hits any part of your skin which is uncovered, you get a sharp burning sensation it feels like your skin is being stabbed with a knife."
The Southern Lights seen from Antarctica (Jeff Capps / SWNS)He added: "In winter it's crazy outside it's always dark as the sun sets once a year so it's six months daylight then six months darkness." One of the best parts of living in the South Pole, Jeff claims, is the social life.
"We are all like a big family we have arguments and stuff but you still kind of respect each other. We all give each other crap, but then we all have parties and drink whiskey together. You have no one else to go so you have to make it work."
Jeff proudly said that the parties at the centre are "legendary", explaining: "You have to be much more creative down there. Last time in July we had a Christmas-themed party, and we also did a South Pole Olympics - complete with an opening ceremony."
"We were supposed to do outdoor winter events but the weather was especially bad so we just stayed inside and drank whiskey." Talking about the time he met his partner at the facility two years ago, he said: "There are some women down there. We ended up going to a game night, there were a bunch of us hanging out and playing board games.
"Michelle was working as part of the catering team down there. We stayed together during our time off and ended up going travelling," he added. The couple, who are currently in Oman, have travelled through New Zealand, Australia, Turkey, the UAE and Yemen, and plan on returning to the South Pole next year. Jeff mentioned they see the Southern Lights "almost every day", adding: "It's good work if you can get it."
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* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can report any errors to [email protected]
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