By: Eden, Trevor, Hitomi, and Harper

We woke up, as usual, to our breakfast buffet set out by the breakfast crew. Everyone ate their various breakfasts and packed our lunches for the day. We rubbed our bleary eyes and got ready to work. Instead of going into the field, we started our day with a couple of hours of dedicated project time done from the comfort of our dorm rooms. People decided on specific research questions and began background research. Some even wrote out their specified methods, getting ready for the field data portion of our day. 

After planning out our projects in the morning, we split up into two topic-based groups. One of these groups went to help Sage with her eelgrass data collection, which is the one I decided to join! We spent about four hours at Fourth of July Beach, collecting statistics about eelgrass populations within 3-by-8 meter plots. These plots (approximately 8 in total) were divided into harvest and observation plots, with the harvesting plots requiring an additional step before completion. We would trample all the plots by crawling through each one on our hands and knees, but the harvesting plots had half of the flowering heads (those with seeds) taken for replanting. Once we were done helping Sage with her data, those of us with eelgrass-related projects got to start our own data collection! At the end of the session, we all (very tiredly) walked back to the van to get to our next activity.

Those who chose to spend their time clam digging headed over to Argyle Lagoon with Riley and Adam. We first enjoyed lunch on Jackson’s Beach with the beautiful sunny weather! After relaxing for a bit, we split into groups and dug up clams from first the high intertidal zone then low intertidal zone, all in search for Soft-shelled Clams, Little Neck Clams, Bent-nose Clams and Varnish Clams. After recording the data needed, we returned all but the Varnish Clams (as they are an invasive species), so instead we took them back to the lab for further research.

After fun clam digging, we returned the gear to the van to dry and in the meantime searched for sand dollars in the nearby waterway. Along with sand dollars we discovered a very rich ecosystem with HUGE (possibly ten year old) oysters, mussels, chitons and crabs! Upon returning from our clam adventures, Riley and Adam helped us finalize our project plans for the official start of our research tomorrow!

After we all returned to the dorms to eat dinner, we all settled down and joined a Zoom call with our guest for the evening: Ms. Megan Cook. Megan works as the Director of Education & Outreach at the Ocean Exploration Trust and she is currently serving as the Communications Lead aboard the Exploration Vessel (EV) Nautilus. Megan graduated from Oregon State University (SKO BEAVS!!) in 2009 with a focus in marine biology and chemistry, after which she worked various jobs before graduating from Duke University in 2020 with a master’s degree in Environmental Leadership. Currently, the EV Nautilus is stationed in the Solomon Islands mapping a deep sea region known as “Iron Bottom Sound” which has served as a graveyard for countless World War 2-era vessels. Though sonar has been essential in creating these maps, Megan and her crew also utilize several mechanical drones that allow them to visually survey the seafloor, these being the Uncrewed Service Vehicle (USV) DriX and the Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) Hercules. According to Megan, only around 26% of the ocean has been mapped with modern technology while less than 0.001% of the deep sea has ever been seen with human eyes!

After saying goodbye to Megan, we started to prepare for bed, wanting to get sleep for the day ahead in which some of us would begin conducting research for our independent projects…

By Anisa Singh, Orrin, Isabelle, and Violet

Saturday, oh Saturday, how I love you so… (hopefully)

We all woke up this morning with bright plans in mind, as today was set to be a chill day. Many of us had stayed up late watching movies and playing cards—some even played games until the wee hours of the morning. So, when a few of us slept through our alarms, it was hardly a surprise. A groggy start eventually gave way to a calm morning, followed by some productive project work and a trip to survey data on pigeon guillemots at the Friday Harbor Dock.

Six of us joined this outing, eager to dive deeper into behavioral science and explore how field scientists collect data. One of our goals was to gather information for our upcoming poster projects. For others, it was a chance to see whether a project about pigeon guillemots was the right fit for them.

After a couple of hours of research and work, it was time for lunch. We packed into the van and headed to Deadman’s Beach, where we enjoyed our meals with a stunning ocean view. Afterward, we went tidepooling and discovered all sorts of marine wonders—giant nudibranchs, huge chitons, colorful sea stars, countless crabs, and many other breathtaking organisms.

On the way back, the next thing on the schedule was something mysteriously titled “Structured Recreational Time.” This, understandably, raised many questions and even a little apprehension, which were voiced repeatedly to our van driver, Maya. Upon returning, we learned what it really meant. Though some of us expected an afternoon wandering through a sculpture park–which didn’t exactly spark a ton of exitement–we were happily surprised to find out we were going back to Roche Harbor (the same place we visited earlier for kayaking).

There, many of us grabbed ice cream, wandered through the harbor shops, and enjoyed the lively energy of the area—including a very loud live band playing for passing pedestrians.

After exploring for about an hour, we returned to the dorms to check in, prep dinner, and enjoy some free time. Soon, we were seated around the dinner table with plates of fried rice, joined by Dr. Anna Shcherbina, an immunologist who is now focused on molecular biology.

After dinner, we dove into a learning session focused on the intersection between marine biology and immunology while discussing how different scientific fields can play very different yet vital roles in various aspects of biology.

With our heads full of new knowledge and inspiration, we split off for nighttime activities—some continued card games, others watched movies (like Maze Runner), and a few people crushed their friends in intense chess matches. Excited for the next day, we eventually wound down and drifted off to sleep.

Thursday, July 10th, 2025; by Asher, Mira, Noam, and Vidita 

Today we were thankfully back to waking up at our regular time. We had breakfast at 8:00 and headed out a bit after 9:00, returning to 4th of July Beach to do an eelgrass survey! We were helping the San Juan Conservation District, as their eelgrass conservation crew is only two  people (Mitch McCloskey and Sage, who we had over for dinner last week), making it difficult for them to get work done quickly. While there, we made note of the population of flowering heads and did several treatments to determine the effect of harvesting. We also saw many megafauna, including a giant dungeness crab, many shore crabs, and several species of bird.

We returned to the dorms for lunch after a brief detour to look for orcas that we tragically did not see, then headed out again to pull in plankton down at the marina and examine it under our microscopes. We found many types of zooplankton and phytoplankton, including baby jellyfish and some krill. Although the lab was rather hot, it was worth it to observe these fascinating organisms.

After free time and dinner prep, we had dinner with Jess Farrar, the research director at the Friday Harbor Whale Museum. She gave us an interesting lecture about her journey into the marine science world and pinniped facts. Some highlights include smiling at cute baby seals, learning about opportunities to contribute to The Whale Museum exhibits, and the entire room gasping at the story of “Hoover the harbor seal” who imitated his owner’s thick New England accent. We ended the presentation with a round of applause and several more questions.

Wednesday, July 9th, 2025. By: Lars, Miles, and Leah

Our day started out at an ungodly hour .. 7 am! We had to get up and out the door by 8 am to catch the low tides to for our surveys. We were also charmed by the piercing winds on the coast, a kind drizzle from the sky by mother nature, and the overall dewy weather. Despite all odds against us, many of our spirits remained lifted!

We started our surveying with a warm up led by Dr. Katie Dobkowski and her undergraduate research assistant Gabby. They asked us to walk arms length apart, in an even line down the beach for 1 minute. Searching intensely for crab molts. The goal was to understand weather any of the crabs living in this area were part of the invasive green crab species. We did a total of 3 of these walks, finding many crab molts varying in size along the way – none were green crabs! Currently, European Green Crabs are considered one of the most invasive species in the marine environment. Efforts from university researchers, and state researchers are coming together to prevent the spread of this species into the beautiful marine ecosystem surrounding the San Juan Islands. “Green crab could potentially damage Alaska’s multi-billion dollar fisheries industries, especially for salmon, crab, and mariculture operations.” (NOAA Alaska Regional Office, 2023)

Continuing on with our deep dive scientific studying, we moved onto instruction and participation in a continuous survey Dr. Dobkowski keeps up on seaweed species on Cattle Point. We scaled down the dangerous-ly slippery rocks COVERED in seaweeds of red, green, and brown. Our quadrads were used to identify the various species within them. Our groups identified lots of rock weed, rusty rock, and Turkish towel. We layed out our measuring tape from the sector identifier at the top of the rock, and laid a quadrad down at each even meter on the line. Based on speed, some groups did many quadrads while some only completed one. On our survey sheets, we would make note of many things, most notably how much of the identified species of seaweed was identified within each section of the quadrad. Some sections were identified with having a 5 level, or 50 to 100% seaweed within the section. Others were identified with 1 or 0, 5% to 0%. Feeling pretty accomplished, we spent some time reflecting on our work with Dr. Dobkowski spotted many foxes and retreated to our warmer vans.

We stopped at the lovely Jackson Beach to get a quick bite and rest our bodies and minds before returning out to the field. While at Jackson Beach, we met more scientists from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife attempting to trap our enemies, the European Green Crab. Next, we slid on over to Mt. Grant, and met up with the wonderful Shauna Barrows from the San Juan County Land Bank. She shared some thought provoking insights on the local water sheds on the island and the role they play in marine organism health, specifically salmonids. The County Land Bank is putting in a lot of effort into conserving the watershed, but the large amount of local agriculture causes degradation on the streams and creeks. They have began problem solving ways to keep the water quality up, without the full support of the land owners. I had no idea that there was a time when salmon spawned in the San Juan Islands watersheds every fall, and its sad to know that they no longer do that due to our impacts.

We concluded our journey at Zystera Lake, and discussed the history and cultural significance of that specific man-made lake. The lake is currently having a lot of problems with toxic algea blooms due to an abundance of nutrients in the water. As a solution, the County Land Bank is attempting to built these “beaver damns” in order to better slow down and filter the water coming from the creek to the lake. They are currently only working on this at a small scale, but hope to expand in the near future. Finally, Shauna drove home the point that conservationist like herself have to continuously think of ways to conserve the depleting nature around them without attempting to control the locals, because at the end of the day us, and her have no control over how the publics actions influence the environment if we don’t make an attempt to repair it, and educate.

We returned to the dorms briefly for a quick bite, and maybe an outfit change and heading out one final time! This time we were catching one of the weekly seminars hosted by UW at the Friday Harbor Labs. This talk by Shirel Kahane-Rapport on filter feeding in mobuilds (manta rays). She dove right into the fascinating topic of how she used models in person and on a computer to simulate the lobes in a mobulids filter and how changes may impact a mobulids ability to feed. The talk was super physics, data, and graphs heavy but the majority of our students seemed to stick onto her train of thought super well. In fact, I would say our body of students asked her more questions at the end than the other researchers at the lab! My favorite feature of her talk was her opening of background information on mobulids, how they feed. She made it possible for those outside of her area of study to understand her work without any background experience. Although that seems like it should be obvious, it is not always a given in the scientific community! If your interested in learning more about ricochet separation and the science behind how manta rays feed, we recommend skimming through this paper! https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6157963/#:~:text=Our%20results%20indicate%20that%20manta,flow%20rates%2C%20and%20resists%20clogging.

Finally, we relaxed after a long, eventful day! Food on our plates, minds full of new knowledge, we begin to reset for another adventurous day ahead!

By: Hitomi, Eden, Trevor and Harper

We woke up to a new day back at the dorms ready to restart our research explorations. After breakfast, we ventured out to False Bay. The bay is an open area with small pools of water surrounded by large breaks of muddy land. False Bay is a perfect place for annelids (segmented worms) to hide, as well as a fun spot for shrimp, clams, and crabs to live.

Our group went to this muddy haven to learn how to take lugworm surveys. We split up into groups of three or four and we each recorded different data sets around the beach. Five of the six groups recorded the number of fecal castings left by lugworms while the sixth group dug up the castings to see if any burrows were inhabited.

The groups found many different types of worms, as well as some ghost shrimp, crabs, natural clay, and clams.

After about two hours of data collection, we were exhausted and ready for our lunch break.

To regroup after exploring the wonders of False Bay, we enjoyed our sandwiches which we prepared earlier that morning. Eagle Cove was the most crowded beach we have yet to discover. The beautiful weather called for many picnics at the beach and paddle boarding dogs! During time spent at the beach, some enjoyed sightseeing & people watching, while others helped themselves to exploring the rocky coastal environment.

After our exciting lunch at Eagle Cove, we drove down the road to the American Camp Visitor Center at the San Juan Island National Historical Park where we met our tour guide, Emilio Santiago. Emilio works as a Cultural Resources Program Specialist for the National Park Service & he has been operating as the park’s resident archaeologist since 2018. In addition to being an engaging presenter of the park’s history, Emilio is currently campaigning for the position of Friday Harbor’s town mayor (We wish him luck!). During our tour, Emilio regaled us with a brief history of the 1859 “Pig War” which saw the American and British militaries nearly coming to blows over which of the two powers “owned” the San Juan Islands. We were shown around the foundations of the camp as well as the few remaining buildings that had been restored over the years. After this, we returned to the visitor center where we got to examine several artifacts from the various Coast Salish indigenous tribes who lived near the park prior to colonialist occupation (these being the Samish, S’Klallam, Lummi, and Lushootseed nations, among others). After saying goodbye to Emilio, we drove back to the dorms to start our next activity: brainstorming for our independent research projects.

We returned earlier than normal to the dorms today to start brainstorming our projects! These first steps are very exciting as we began to develop our current interests & ideas into project questions. Maya, Riley and Adam helped some develop their interests into possible projects. Within the next week we will be given more support and resources to solidify our topics as we move further into the first steps of our projects!

To end the day, we were joined for dinner by Dr. Billie Swalla, a professor of biology at the University of Washington. She was the first female director of the Friday Harbor Laboratories, among many other accolades, and we were thrilled to have her visit. Whilst we were eating spanakopita and yellow rice, we talked about cellular division and ctenophores. Similarly, after dinner, she gave a talk about genealogy and her journey as a marine biologist, which I found very in-depth and invigorating. Right before bed, we had a few hours of downtime, allowing us to take a break and prepare for another busy day tomorrow!

Salish Sea Sciences returns to Friday Harbor.

By: Lars, Eden, and Hitomi

Starting early in the morning we packed up our kayaks and left Stuart Island and voyaged back to Friday Harbor! We had a pretty smooth trek with 4 knots of wind behind us.

Tyler and Zoe were super helpful! They made us amazing pulled pork sandwiches for lunch! They cleverly included apples in the coleslaw – super yummy!

While waiting for our sandwiches to be prepared by our guides, we explored the whole island. “Posey Island, at 1.1 acres, was never transferred out of the federal public domain into private ownership.” (Washington State Parks, n.d) If your interested in reading more on the history of this island, look into this great source! https://parks.wa.gov/about/news-center/field-guide-blog/posey-island-marine-state-park-history

Post arrival to the dorms, we swiftly gathered our belongings and fought for shower and laundry spots. Caroline called everyone down to regroup, to catch up on chores, reflect on our kitchen habits, and catch up on blog posts! We are looking forward to a restful evening full of yummy dinner, ice cream, and hangouts. See y’all tomorrow for an exciting visit from an impressive guest!!

The Salish Sea Sciences’ hike to Turn Point Light House on Stuart Island, Sunday, July 6th, 2025. By: Asher, and Miles

On our second day on Stuart Island, we woke bright and early, (mostly) ready to go on a three mile hike to Turn Point Lighthouse! After breakfast, we prepared for the hike, and headed out.

We stopped, shortly after setting out, to look around the old Stuart Island Schoolhouse and the historical museum there. We learned all about the former residents of Stuart Island and facts about the current living conditions on the islands. After that, we continued on the trail where we found a great view of Mount Baker, an impressive sight.

Once at Turn Point, we had a delicious lunch of pita sandwiches and looked at the view for a while—some of us were lucky enough to see a harbor seal playing in the bull kelp. After lunch, we took a small guided tour of the lighthouse keeper’s quarters. We hung around for a while longer, looking at tide pools, birds, plants, kelp, and the like. 

We then hiked back to the campsite and got several hours to relax before one of our science directors, Maya, gave an interesting talk about kelp. The talk, though, was interrupted by a river otter swimming by, which we took delight in watching. We then got some more time to rest and socialize, before a delicious dinner (pasta, both pesto and red sauce).

After dinner, many of us stayed up late to stargaze, despite having to get up at 7 am the next morning. The stars were beautiful and a lovely way to close out a trip.

By Anisa Singh, Isabelle van Thiel, Orrin Spiess, Violet Marshall.

The day began like any other, but everyone knew it was going to be different. Our dry bags were filled with clothes, toiletries and anything else we would need to keep ourselves occupied for the next three days. Instead of our usual trips to the Friday Harbor Labs or one of the island’s assorted beaches, we piled our stuff into the van and headed to Roche Harbor. Located on the north side of the island, Roche Harbor was the starting place for our biggest adventure yet. 

After a rushed morning, we were all ready to get on the water and out of the heat on the dock. Getting into the kayaks and learning how to paddle properly from our wonderful guides, we then took off; it would be a 10 miles trip in total, lasting about 3 hours. The first stop would be on Gossip Island, a small rocky outcropping about 8 miles away from our starting point. We were tired, wet, and salty, however the rest after about 2 hours of work as well as the boost of energy from Thai chicken wraps led us on to finish the second leg of the journey after about 45 more minutes of paddling.

At last, we arrived at our home for the next two days: Staurt Island. We were pulled onto the beach, some of us began unpacking all the kayaks while others chatted, snacked, or went to test out the pit toilet (which smelled as you would expect it to). Soon, we had figured out our rooming pairs and began the arduous process of unpacking and setting up our tents. Some were experts and got them up in 2 seconds flat while others might have taken a bit longer…

After exploring the island a bit, we sat down to dinner and made some amazing snores for dessert. We then prepared for tomorrow, both physically and mentally.

Friday, July 4th, 2025. By: Tori, Wyatt, Annika, and Ella.

Today our cohort woke up at 8am awaiting the Friday Harbor fourth of July parade. Our breakfast consisted of the regular cereal, sandwiches, fruit, and boiled eggs, which were quickly eaten! Before our cohort went out to find our seats for the parade, Caroline held a Map Talk, where our group got the opportunity to understand our surroundings and their history. After the “Map Talk”, our cohort took our seats on the side of Spring Street where we waited for the parade to begin (which took almost an hour). The parade was full of joy, with the vibrant culture of Friday Harbor on full display. From being pelted by candy to cheering on the UW marching band, the parade was a great way to start off our fourth of July.

– Picture of 4th of July parade (taken by Annika)

Following the parade, we put the chairs back to their original spot and then returned to the dorms for a meeting with Caroline. After she addressed the chores for later, she kindly gave us each a 20 dollar bill to buy lunch and released us for 2 hours of free time. The majority of the group went to the pig war picnic where there were many fun activities, and food options. Most people first looked at the various food options which included pulled pork sandwiches, mac n cheese, sushi, pizza, and tacos. After getting food there were several activities such as a cake walk where some people actually won a cake! At 2:30 everyone returned back to the dorm room to pack for the kayaking trip. 

– Picture of the Pig War Picnic at the fairgrounds (taken by Annika)

After lunch, fairgrounds, and exploring town, we took a group vote to go to the beach with Riley. Everyone reapplied sunscreen, some brought games or volleyballs, and a few brave souls grabbed swimwear. We were off. One 20-minute walk past ongoing festivities later, we were greeted with ocean air and stunning views across the archipelago at Jackson’s Beach. Despite the chilled wind, beach volleyball was played, forts were reinforced, swimming was swam, beachcombing combed; it is safe to say much relaxing was done, and fun was had. We, windswept, cold, and many damp, walked back to Spring Street and enjoyed a classic Fourth of July dinner of hamburgers, corn on the cob, and watermelon.

– Picture of Jackson Beach (taken by Annika)

After dinner, everyone walked down to the end of the docks to hang out and enjoy the fireworks. We spread out along a section of the docks and waited listening to music for the fireworks to begin. Once the fireworks started, it was hard to look away from them, and fireworks from other islands could be seen in the distance. When the fireworks were over a couple hours later, our cohort returned to Spring Street for some well needed shut-eye before the next day’s trip. However, some people decided to stay up later than everyone else and have ice cream and chat.

– Picture of fireworks (taken by Annika)

Salish Sea Sciences trip to The Whale Museum and Lime Kiln Point State Park. Thursday, July 3rd, 2025. By: Asher, Mira, Noam, and Vidita

The Salish Sea cohort woke up to a clear-skied, warm morning in the dorms. After eating breakfast together–cereal, fruits, and other such things–we head out into town to find The Whale Museum, which, surprisingly, is a museum about whales.

Once arriving, we were kindly greeted by Tracie Merrill, who had thoughtfully allowed our group to enter the museum before opening hours. Tracie led us through the exhibits, which covered different topics such as morphological variations between species, Coast Salish cultural stories, and the demise of conjoined twin seals. The group was quizzed on various topics about whales, such as the difference between baleen and toothed whales–which we aced. She also opened a touch-table, where the cohort was allowed to feel the skulls and furs of various marine animals. 

Upon being freed to explore the museum alone, the majority of the group trailed towards a movie that explained sound pollution and its effect on whales. It explored equitable ways to reduce noise in our precious waters–including slower cargo ships and efficient propellers. Others wandered into a red, vintage booth that allowed one to ‘call’ different species such as humpback whales and otters and listen to their noises. Certain whales were so quiet one had to strain to hear their screeches, but others were so loud one could hear it from a few feet away.  Some students colored shrimp, seals, and whales in whimsical colors in the children’s section.

All in all, it’s not difficult to conclude that our cohort thoroughly enjoyed learning about different species of whales and sustainability. We left the museum feeling fulfilled in our experience and excited to spend the rest of the day outdoors.

After our time at the museum, we returned to our dorm to pack lunch, which was sandwiches, fruit, and various trail snacks, to take to Lime Kiln State Park. We spent an hour there, eating, and going down to the water to stand on the pillow basalt, which, as we learned later, is cooled at a different rate, allowing it to take on a more ‘pillowy’ shape. We enjoyed our time at a new inter-tidal zone, with acorn and gooseneck  barnacles, egg yolk, and moon jellies, one of whom had six gonads(the four clover rings) instead of the regular four. The jellies seemed to enjoy a mass of fallen leaves, sticks, and kelp that was floating by the shore. We certainly had fun peering at anemones after eating a fulfilling meal, and were ready to head into our next adventure.

Next, we were lucky enough to get a tour of part of Lime Kiln State Park by Erin Corra, who is the founder and program director of Friends of Lime Kiln Society (Folks). We saw many types of beautiful trees including Douglas firs and Mandronas. One tree that stood out in particular was “Old Man Doug:” a 250 year old Douglas Fir! Additionally, we passed several divers from the Friday Harbor Laboratories (where we visited yesterday) wearing gear that they said weighed over 100 pounds. We then watched as they embarked on their journey of measuring sea urchins. Our final destination was the lighthouse, where we made our way to the top and gazed out over the gorgeous Salish Sea. Some of us even spotted the beloved harbor seal, Snowball! Visible from the lighthouse was Vancouver Island and the Olympic Peninsula, providing a breathtaking view that we were all too engrossed in, ending up arriving back at the dorms late.

After our tour of the park, we returned(belatedly) to the dorm, where Adam, our instructor, was to tell us about our kayaking trip that we leave for on Saturday.

To end out our day, we had a delicious dinner of Indian chickpea and spinach curry, naan, salad, and fruit. Joining us were Mitch McCloskey, the Project Manager of Eelgrass Restoration for San Juan, who is in the process of completing his Masters degree at Alaska Pacific University, and Sage, an undergraduate with Western Washington University, who earned her Bachelors degree, also from Western, in geology. After dinner, they informed us of their attempts to repopulate the San Juan coasts with eelgrass by various methods. In a few days, we’ll be helping them with their research.

Overall, it was a very fun day, lots of interesting insights into the ecology of the whales and other marine mammals!