Blog for 7-16-18

By: Ela, Zoe

Today we woke up at the abnormally late time of 7:45 with little knowledge of the long day ahead.  After breakfast, Caroline came to talk to us about the longboat trip.  We reflected on some questions that she asked us for about thirty minutes. And even though the longboat trip was only six days ago, it feels like an eternity, because our days are so jam packed with science.

We went up to the lab to analyze the eelgrass scans we had made with Morgan the previous day.  It was tedious work, but very rewarding, we ended up with an extensive set of data.  With all fifteen of us, we made speedy work of measuring the eelgrass and finding the area of the diseased lesions.

Laying out eelgrass to scan

Lunch was a nice break from the eelgrass state of mind before going back up to the lab to make scans.  We worked on separating the leaves from the eelgrass plants and laying them out on transparency sheets. After three hours, we prepared an early pack- dinner for the evening canoe venture.

 

Unfortunately, before we left, we had to say goodbye to our lovely group member and friend, Clarissa. Clarissa left for a wedding in California and it already feels different without her. Saying goodbye to her was the most difficult part of the day. We hope that she has a great time in California and knows how much we miss her!

Clarissa the Softball master

We went to Westcott Bay to paddle and learn about the history of Native American and Hawaiian voyaging canoes. Being out on the water in the evening was a serene and peaceful experience. It was very quiet too, the only thing disrupting the silence was the sound of our voices singing to keep our paddling rhythm.  Once we reached our destination, we tied up to a dock, and some of us went swimming. It was refreshing and cold!

We came back exhausted at 9:30 after canoeing for two and a half hours. We were all ready for bed.