Halfway through my 10 weeks and boy am I wishing I could be at the cabin with my family or hiking in the Beartooths this weekend! Homesickness isn’t really an issue until the annual events come along and you’re not there to share in the festivities. Other than that minor blip, I am so happy and thankful for the opportunity to be here. It has been such a learning experience along with lots of fun on the weekends!
Work is getting really interesting now that the mission is over. The final Alpha fly over occurred Sunday and the team taking ground based measurements returned on Tuesday. It is my job to use GIS and Google Earth to get a 3-D image of the CO2 and CH4 measurements. Sounds simple but actually takes quite a while because the original files need a lot of processing before they can just be put into GIS. The Picarro doesn’t collect GPS data, which makes it impossible to map, so to correct that, the pilot carries a handheld GPS. Both the Picarro and GPS record time so we can synchronize the time and then join the two files based on time. Unfortunately, the Picarro is a 3Hz instrument, which means it takes 3-4 readings every second, the GPS only 1/sec. But, it’s kind of lucky for me. Because of this, I get to learn a program called Python that uses computer code! Ok, lucky might be a stretch J I am happy to learn it though because so much can be done when you understand coding language. Hmmmm, this might be getting a bit boring for you so, let me just end with I’ve made some really cool vertical profiles of the data collected and I had to figure out a lot of new programs to get there! I’ll be working on that for much of next week and then I’m not sure exactly what I’ll be up to.
Since I am currently up to date with this blog I’m actually writing this weekend’s events as they happen. Friday was a bit frantic because I stayed at the office later than I’d planned and had to get to REI and the grocery store before they closed. Businesses seem to close early here…9:00PM on a Friday?! Anyway, I had an awesome time in REI and as expected, spent way more time & money than anticipated. I did get lots of cool stuff and yes, I’m sure it was all absolutely necessary J
After REI I had to grab some groceries and do my laundry! Lucky for me the laundrymat…yes, the Moffett Laundrymat not the Laundromat, was open so I threw in my load and waited. As my wash was finishing (around 9:30PM) the owner came in to close. He said I could finish drying and then proceeded to talk to me for the next hour…note my clothes were dry in 20min. He was a super sweet guy though so I can’t complain, but boy was I a tired girl and a little antsy knowing I still had to pack and wanted to hit the road by 7! It’s nice though isn’t it, the unexpected conversations you can have with random people? J The person at the checkout line, the guy on the train, the smiles received when walking down the street, in general, they tend to make us better. Whether it be because it brightens your day or leaves you with an insightful thought or idea, suggestion for new things to do or try, overall I leave with a smile on my face and a happy heart. Unfortunately, it also made me leave late the next day and have to deal with traffic….dang it Jameel! Haha Just kidding. But, I did get a bit later start and then had a bit of a difficult time finding a campsite.
Now, I expected I might have a little trouble because of so many people out on the holiday weekend, but it wasn’t the people that prevented me camping at most of the campgrounds. I travelled east on CA Hwy 4 toward the Calavera’s Big Tree State Park and Lake Alpine. Cindy, my student’s mentor, had suggested Lake Alpine because she thought it wouldn’t be quite as busy this time of year and because it was supposed to be pretty hot (90-100s) this weekend and Lake Alpine is at about 7,500ft. Now, I’m not sure if it’s unusual or not, but most of the campgrounds I tried were still covered in snow! I think the Sierra’s had a higher than normal snowfall this year, though I’m not 100%. It could also be that it’s just too early in the season, though I think Cindy would have known or anticipated that so I think it may be an anomaly.
Anyway, I had to drive a bit farther than expected and due to my late start (and little sleep the night before) I didn’t get any real good hikes in today. Poked around Hermit’s Valley along an Off-Highway Vehicle trail but it was pretty rocky and steep so didn’t get very far. I set up my tent, opened my book, and enjoyed the sounds, or lack there of. I was surprised at how quiet the forest was, all I heard was the sound of the creek running near camp. Guessing it will be another story tomorrow morning at 4:30-5:00.
Campsite complete with au naturale refrigerator and a sink!
Sink
Success with the striker!
Overall, a laid back and pretty great day...will be perfect if I get a successful fire lit! I may start a list on the pros and cons of solo camping J Today’s Pro – no one upset if schedules aren’t met but yourself and the Con – no one to remind you to buy marshmallows before you leave L
Sunday morning I packed up camp and headed back to Calavera’s Big Trees. I thought it might be the best idea and when I stopped at a local gas station for coffee the clerk told me the trails were all closed in the higher elevations due to the historically late snowpack. Latest on record! I was lucky to get a campsite in Calavera’s so I set up my tent and headed down to the South Grove. It’s about 8mi from the entrance and a little less populated than the North Grove. It also has one of the ten largest remaining redwoods, Louis Agassiz, 26ft diameter six feet above ground and 250ft tall. Seeing the Redwoods is really something you must experience. Sure, they are just big trees, but seeing them leaves you awestruck that something could be THAT big! Going through the south grove you see a lot of evergreens, dogwoods, and other trees and intermixed you see these massive sequoias! I tried getting pictures but without some reference point it is hard to really get the idea. Even when I look at the pictures now I’m bummed because they don’t capture the true sight. So, if you’re reading this and you’re going to northern California, be sure to stop and see for yourself J
"Normal" size trees in the park
Redwood with one base and two peaks
Base of Agassiz tree
Fire scar on opposite side of Agassiz
Wow...
Palace Hotel...think perhaps its a palace for bears not humans :)
I hiked the 5mi South Grove trail loop and then went to find another trail. As I looked at the trail map I found a trail called Lava Bluffs and was intrigued. It was about a 2.5mi, “moderately difficult” hike and looked to have interesting geology. When I got to the parking lot at the trailhead I saw one other car…hmmmm should I really do this? I really wanted to see the lava flows so I layered on sunscreen, filled my pack with water, and headed out. About 5 minutes in the trail began a steep incline and my breath became short. I guess I’m not in as good of shape as I’d hoped. But, I wasn’t on a time limit so I continued on taking breaks when necessary and pushing through the pain J It was a quiet hike and though my Grandma and mother think I’m super brave and do crazy things, I’m actually a bit of a chicken. I wasn’t so worried about bears, but I am a tish scared of mountain lions. Bears I would respect and can back away from, but a cougar could stalk me and I wouldn’t know til it was too late. Now, sitting safely in my room back at the NASA Lodge, I’m certain there wasn’t anything that was going to “get me” out there, but at the time I wasn’t as confident. But, I really wanted to see the lava flows so I kept going and was rewarded when I reach the high open meadows. The lava flows were very cool and there were still some flowers, butterflies and tons of ladybugs. It was kind of crazy how many lady bugs there were…it was a swarm and pretty cool to see. I guess the redwoods are VERY lucky J After arriving at the meadow I threw in the towel and headed back down to the car.
Lava flows
Lava bluffs meadow
Steeper than it looks!
Sweaty and hot, I drove to the nearby town of Arnold for dinner and marshmallows. I had a very large, delicious burger at Suzie’s Diner, was directed to the local market for overpriced (but worth every penny) marshmallows, and headed back to camp. I was again successful at starting a fire with my striker, but it took a lot more tries and patience this time. I think I’m going to buy a lighter before the next trip and save the striker for emergencies J it claims to work even wet so best saved for a rainy day. Luckily I need a bit more practice at keeping flames burning and was left with wonderful hot coals that roast marshmallows to perfection! Dessert of toasted marshmallows was the perfect end to a very successful first-time solo camping expedition!
Campsite number 2 complete with firepit, stove and bear box
Mmmmmmm heaven!
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