The 2014 summer field campaign has begun in earnest. We bring with us spring, which also is just
arriving in this northerly part of Alberta -- the leaves are just beginning to show
their greens and the rains are cold. In some
ways it is like we never left, but in so many other ways, it is all new
territory. Meanook remains vacant and is
no longer really Meanook. There isn’t
much left, and we still mourn… the
Athabasca Lodge Motel is a far cry from the field station. We miss it very much, but Athabasca
University has adopted us and we have been welcomed with so much
enthusiasm. We are wildly grateful for
the space that we now struggle to organize and for the abundance of help and
welcoming we’ve received. A huge thanks
goes out especially to Elaine Goth-Birkigt without whom we would be completely
floundering. I cannot express how much
we appreciate the efforts that continue to be made on our behalf by Elaine and
how welcome we feel here at the University by everyone.
Our new students are doing a wonderful job, and we are all excited
to start the field work. We made it to
all of our sites before the rains set in, and as it eases up tomorrow, we will
tackle some heavy water transport of our own.
So far so good. Bring on the fun
and the bugs!
