7:15 Wake Up
7:30 Breakfast (Pancakes, Bacon, Oatmeal, Toast, Orange Juice)
8:25 Divers meet for equipment at dive shop
8:45 Everyone load onto the trucks
FYI…We ride in trucks to all of our sites. The trucks are big pickup trucks with benches around the bed.
Today was a very special day. It was Jonny’s birthday. So on the way to the site, while riding in the truck, we all sang Happy Birthday to Jonny.
9:15 Arrive at Snapshot Reef in Fernandez Bay
9:20Take initial site observations in field notebooks
9:30 Snorkelers and Scuba Divers explore the reef
We saw a Southern Stingray, Yellow Stingray, Moray Eel, and Lionfish
11:00 Everyone meet back on beach
11:30 Depart for GRC
On the ride back, it rained. For those of you at home that don’t know what it feels like to be in the back of a pickup truck going 30 mph in the rain…it feels like pellets of hail.
12:00 Arrive at GRC
12:00 Lunch (Tuna Salad, Egg Salad, Chicken Noodle Soup, Pears, PBJ, Deli Sandwiches, Fruit Punch)
FREE TIME!!!
Since our days are so grueling, free time is very precious. During this time, most people play Euchre, take naps, study, or shower
1:30 Load Trucks
1:50 Arrive at Fossil Reef
Fossil Reef was once an underwater coral reef until the sea level dropped, exposing the reef and all of its inhabitants to the world above the water. This happened 125,000 years ago and since then the reef has turned into a giant fossil.
2:00 Take initial site observations in field notebooks
2:10 Explore Fossil Reef
Some of the fossil corals found were Staghorn, Elkhorn, Club Finger, Brain, and Star.
2:45 Take our First Field Quiz
3:00 Walk to Cockburn Town, which is across the street, to shop
Cockburn Town is the only town on the island of San Salvador. There is one grocery store, one store that sells t-shirts, and a straw market that sells handmade bags and wallets.
3:45 Load up trucks and leave town
4:05 Arrive at GRC
FREE TIME!!!
5:30 Dinner (Roast Beef, Green Beans, Mixed Vegetables, Salad, PBJ, Peach Cobbler, Birthday Cake)
FREE TIME!!!
7:15 Class Lecture/ Discussion
8:30 Done with Class
At the end of class we read all the comments made about the blog. We love all the comments to make us feel connected to our families. Please keep them coming!
FREE TIME!!!
Today was 83 degrees, which is cooler than most other days on San Salvador. Today was the first of two birthdays we will be celebrating here on the island. Jonny turned 19. Today was also the first day that the divers, JB , Rachael, and Stephanie, got to dive. Tonight will be a late night for most as we will be studying for our first exam of the trip.