snorkie with osteichthyes
As of today, I officially only have 3 more weeks in Kino. I'm trying not to get ahead of myself and enjoy the rest of my time here, but I am really looking forward to getting back to Prescott and seeing Dillon and Pablo. I miss my boys.
Really though, don't get me wrong, I love Kino. I'm learning alot and having a great time here. Plus, check out this sweet view:
cloudy days always bring the best sunsets
The week's topic in class has been fish identification. That of course, has meant lots of snorkeling! On Tuesday we went camping at 'Caleta Venicia' one of the COOLEST spots I have ever been at. It was a three hour drive to get there from the station. The third hour of the drive was on a crude super bumpy dirt road with hundreds of turn offs rolling through majestic springtime Sonoran desert. The scenery had me so hypnotized (and a bit carsick) the whole time, that I completely forgot we were going to the beach. When we pulled up to the caleta (cove) I was completely overwhelmed with the change of landscape. It is a small stretch of beach, probably the length and width of a football field, with tall walls of volcanic rock and budding Cardon cacti on either side of it. We jumped out of the van, pulled on our wetsuits, and heres some of what we saw:
Mexican Dancer (sea slug)
Aplysia californica orgy
Sunset at the cove, our trusy school vans.
It was an awesome trip. It's crazy how fast you can learn fish identification when you are surrounded by them. We would snorkel, get out of the water and obsessively make detailed species lists, and than jump back in the water. We only stayed at Venicia for a late afternoon, the night, and the next day's early afternoon. Some of the kids went on a night dive but I chickened out and stayed in the cozy confines of my sleeping bag finishing up Christopher Moore's hilarious novel Fluke. I managed to get in three dives during the trip, finding great visibility and exciting new species every time.
On Friday we took out the boats (despite some pretty strong winds) for some snorkeling off of the Southern tip of Isla Tiburon, 'Dog Bay.' Visibility was a problem not only because of the winds, but because of the MILLIONS of tiny Ctenophores floating in the water. Well, we think they might have been Ctenophores at least...they were tiny clear cnidarian-like organisms. They could also just be tiny jellyfish? There were definitely plenty of adult moon jellies around. Even with poor visibility though, it was another great dive. Tons of tall swaying sargassum forests and sting rays.
Sick booby on the beach the other day, wasn't reacting to anything or anyone, but made for a good photo :/
On a side note, I got an e-mail from Shane of Santa Fe Nat'l Forest giving me ALOT more detail on what I'll be doing this summer. For one, I will be stationed in the Jemez district. I will be living in a trailer with my co-intern Maura in the middle of the woods with no phone reception. The closest town is Jemez Springs which has a post office, a library, 2 cafes, and a saloon. It's most recent population census is 375! I will be an hour from Albuquerque, which is where I will find groceries (both in store and behind!) I will be surrounded by creeks, natural hot springs, and some of the best climbing New Mexico has to offer. Maura and I have been e-mailing each other a bit... she goes to school at GWU in D.C. and has never been in the SW before! She seems like a nice girl, I have a good feeling about her. About this job. About ALL OF IT! I'M SO EXCITED!!
Really though, don't get me wrong, I love Kino. I'm learning alot and having a great time here. Plus, check out this sweet view:
cloudy days always bring the best sunsets
The week's topic in class has been fish identification. That of course, has meant lots of snorkeling! On Tuesday we went camping at 'Caleta Venicia' one of the COOLEST spots I have ever been at. It was a three hour drive to get there from the station. The third hour of the drive was on a crude super bumpy dirt road with hundreds of turn offs rolling through majestic springtime Sonoran desert. The scenery had me so hypnotized (and a bit carsick) the whole time, that I completely forgot we were going to the beach. When we pulled up to the caleta (cove) I was completely overwhelmed with the change of landscape. It is a small stretch of beach, probably the length and width of a football field, with tall walls of volcanic rock and budding Cardon cacti on either side of it. We jumped out of the van, pulled on our wetsuits, and heres some of what we saw:
Mexican Dancer (sea slug)
Aplysia californica orgy
Sunset at the cove, our trusy school vans.
It was an awesome trip. It's crazy how fast you can learn fish identification when you are surrounded by them. We would snorkel, get out of the water and obsessively make detailed species lists, and than jump back in the water. We only stayed at Venicia for a late afternoon, the night, and the next day's early afternoon. Some of the kids went on a night dive but I chickened out and stayed in the cozy confines of my sleeping bag finishing up Christopher Moore's hilarious novel Fluke. I managed to get in three dives during the trip, finding great visibility and exciting new species every time.
On Friday we took out the boats (despite some pretty strong winds) for some snorkeling off of the Southern tip of Isla Tiburon, 'Dog Bay.' Visibility was a problem not only because of the winds, but because of the MILLIONS of tiny Ctenophores floating in the water. Well, we think they might have been Ctenophores at least...they were tiny clear cnidarian-like organisms. They could also just be tiny jellyfish? There were definitely plenty of adult moon jellies around. Even with poor visibility though, it was another great dive. Tons of tall swaying sargassum forests and sting rays.
Sick booby on the beach the other day, wasn't reacting to anything or anyone, but made for a good photo :/
On a side note, I got an e-mail from Shane of Santa Fe Nat'l Forest giving me ALOT more detail on what I'll be doing this summer. For one, I will be stationed in the Jemez district. I will be living in a trailer with my co-intern Maura in the middle of the woods with no phone reception. The closest town is Jemez Springs which has a post office, a library, 2 cafes, and a saloon. It's most recent population census is 375! I will be an hour from Albuquerque, which is where I will find groceries (both in store and behind!) I will be surrounded by creeks, natural hot springs, and some of the best climbing New Mexico has to offer. Maura and I have been e-mailing each other a bit... she goes to school at GWU in D.C. and has never been in the SW before! She seems like a nice girl, I have a good feeling about her. About this job. About ALL OF IT! I'M SO EXCITED!!