Weeks 3 & 4

Things are starting to get rolling, seems like a slow start, but both projects are just getting underway.

Last week I had a phone conference with Anne with WDFW and Jon with USGS to discuss the methodologies and goals for the sediment project, it was pretty productive. We decided that our sampling techniques will be a combination of the methods WDFW uses to collect the forage fish eggs and how the USGS calculates sediment statistics. The overall goal of the project is to determine what conditions forage fish favor for spawning areas.

We will be sampling a surface layer of sediment as well as a subsurface layer. It will be sampled in two ways, first each layer will be photographed digitally and we will collect sediment to sieve at the lab. The purpose of the photograph is to import it into a program like Photoshop and we will have good enough resolution to determine mean grain size in the spawning areas. We will calculate the same information using a sieve, but the digital method is much quicker and is relatively accurate.

Anne also says our project should be presented at the American Fisheries Society conference in Bellingham next March. We will not have results by then, but she recommended a presentation or poster on our methods and purpose.

Jon will be in Port Angeles in early November to go out in the field with us an analyze sites. He will be helping us get our technique and processes down so we can start collecting the data in the months to come. Tides are going to be a challenge in November and December, so we may be sampling at night. Swells may be forcing us to go to the beaches from land instead of from a boat as planned.

The hydrology project is getting started. We are conducting research into past studies (or at least should be researching, pretty swamped right now, need to get back into good time management) and getting a feel for what is out there. Erin, one of the other REU students on the project and I hiked into Royal Basin to do some recon for the project. It drains from Olympic National Park into the Dungeness River. The hike was 6.25 miles each way and had some great scenery. Need to ask if it is going to be a study site and the logistics of getting in and out due to the number of drainages that may be avalanche prone. Also, it took us 6 hours to do the round trip and we were moving to beat sunset.

This week there are two meetings setup with NASA to discuss the project. Hopefully we can get out there soon (just want to get outside). Today Hurricane Ridge reported 6 inches of snow on the ground!