Day three completed on stream number 2!
Hamilton Creek is our 2nd assigned creek to survey, and is roughly 7 miles long and is located in the Gorge National Scenic area in Washington. It takes us about 2 hours to drive there (including stopping for food and gas), and we actually got a different truck today our supervisor has nicknamed "Bertha". She only has a single cab so all three of us sit in the front on the bench seat which makes us feel eerily like a landscaping crew.
This stream is really different from Dinger, and I feel very much like a mountain goat trying to rock hop my way up the stream. Instead of pebbles and sand, this stream is dominated by GIANT boulders and sheer rock walls. I have fallen into the stream like 3 times already, filling up my waders and drowning my clipboard. My balance will be improving rapidly.
Something very scary happened today while surveying! Our group of 3 had stopped to do a snorkeling survey at a pool adjacent to one of the rock walls that was about 80 feet high. So after staying there for 30 minutes or so, we cleared the area and 5 seconds after I walked out, a huge rock slide happened which showered boulders and rocks right on to the place we were standing. I actually got kind of shaken up because it was SO close, but thankfully everyone was okay! The first thing I thought was "wow, God is really watching out for us"; this thought has shown to be a theme on many adventures and I have realized I have a lot to be thankful for.
I spent this last weekend hanging with Janelle and her family in Washington doing some crazy things! On Friday she took me to Molten Falls which I had to jump off of (it was probably 30 feet?) into freezing cold water. It was so fun! Then on Saturday we went zip lining in the Gorge.
This zip line is actually the longest zip line in the US and is going to be used in the 3rd Twilight movie (I have never seen any of them or read the books, but I think some people will find that interesting) I got to flip upside down in my harness while cruising over a 350 foot canyon with a waterfall... it was incredible. Incredible.
This coming weekend we are planning to go to Seattle and the Coast to camp for a few days. We are definitely going to go to the Science Fiction Hall of Fame, the Space Needle, and much more! Weeee. I can't wait! Shannon only has a few more weekends here so we have our next month of weekend activities planned out including going to California and seeing the Red Wood forests, climbing Mt. St. Helens (or at least camping there if they require permits), going skiing on Mt. Hood, Crater Lake, and ?????who knows????
I miss you all very much and I am looking forward to seeing all my family and friends soon!
Cheers!
Elyse
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