2003 Field Biology and Geology of the Coastal Temperate Rainforest

Teacher's Team Journal

Friday, July 25 th 2003

The morning of July 25th was an early one. We woke up in the thick mossy of the Hurricane Ridge campground in the Olympics at 4:30am. David V. aptly demonstrated his skills at packing Occida (note the change to the feminine form - renamed on 7/31 after the ladies took over as the dominant passengers) in the early morning dark. Groggily, we were transported down the mountain to line up for the ferry in Port Angeles.

We stumbled on over to a diner and consumed a great deal of coffee while the morning sun attempted pushing through the fog. Because we were early for the 8:20am ferry, we spent some time wandering around Port Angeles. Kathy, David, and I strolled on the beach talking about travel, life and the good stuff. This was our first time seeing any intertidal critters off the dock – just a small preview of the wonders to come!

The ferry across the Strait of Juan de Fuca was quite packed and there was little to see until Victoria became visible through the fog. Along the way, we took some time to look at a map of the Olympic Peninsula and discuss historical land ownership and use. Kathy had notes confirming continued discussion about cultural and industrial history on the Peninsula, as well as the differences between various protected areas of the federal government (my inadequacies note taking were due, I think, to the early hour, the fog, the general lack of sleep, and a distinct discomfort from the slow rocking of the ferry).

We docked in Victoria and made it through customs only after David emphatically insisted that no, we did not have any firearms and really, truly, only brought over four beers. We parked downtown and proceeded to change money. Occida and Blanca nearly got themselves a ticket but David, our fearless leader, was able to sweet talk the meter reader down to only a warning. Whew. The ladies then headed to the British Columbia Provincial Museum ($13/person), where we later met up with David V. It was a great museum filled with absolutely fascinating exhibits – our allotted one hour was simply not enough to digest all the incredible artwork, history, and information about the First Nations of the British Columbia area.

After lunch at a small coffee shop, we picked up Sennen Charlesen, the teams aboriginal resource sociologist, and then departed Victoria with an aim of making Tofino by 17:30.

The drive was lovely as we twisted and turned over the mountains and fjords on Vancouver Island. I remember falling in and out of a restless sleep looking out to massive mountains, nestled in hills of ancient forests (and far too many second and third growth forests), streams, lakes – everything rich in vibrant, vivid green. Langusto (David V.) enthusiastically recalled the drive – he had a great time at the helm of Blanca. Kathy remembers this was the first time we saw an eagle, a sighting that became commonplace (though never mundane) throughout the remainder of the trip. Lovely, lovely place to drive.

We rushed into the “dry” Pacific Rim campground (Alan, from the Yukon with a terrific accent that David picked up almost instantly, informed us at the time that there was no water), and set up tents at two sites. Barb learned that finding personal private places to do personal private business were hard to come by in this campground when the restrooms were down… So, we headed into town, this time David V. at the helm of Occida, and met up in Tofino at the Common Loaf bakery. There we met Kim, Dennis Morgan (the team's coastal ecologist), and Sarah Tyne (the team's marine biologist). It was a mess of names and introductions and enthusiasm as we headed over to la Casa Azul for a great dinner of fish tacos y cerveza. There were introductions, toasts, and some creative trading of food throughout dinner. We had some time afterwards to walk around Tofino, pick up last minute supplies, and most importantly, buy blueberries. Later that night, settling in for an earlier bedtime, David V. sang us to sleep with some great tunes; Michelle Shocked’s “Memories of East Texas” was especially memorable.

Overall, it was a great day, full of anticipation and enthusiasm. Beautiful place, incredibly talented people and a full week ahead of us.

Sunday, July 26, 2003

The group was up at 6:00 a.m. after a good night sleep. What a great group. Two days in a row we made are departure time. At 9:30 we launched for our private paradise. Good weather with an overcast sky allowed us to go on the wild “outside” route of west Vancouver Island . On the ride over we came upon two groups of grey whales. They appeared to be feeding along the coast line. One group appeared to be a mother and her calf. With a stroke of good fortune we saw a pile-up. It was amazing feeding frenzy of occulate diving birds. They actually made the water churn with all the activity.

The costal landscape consisted of greywacke. It was formed over 125 mya. Three distinct tidal zones were visible. The black upper region consisted of lichens. Sea caves were also dotted the coast. Some were used as Nuu-chah-nulth First Nation's burial sites.

Organisms visible from the dock:

Pisaster starfish

Dungeness crab

Organisms on the trip:

Grey whale

Bald Eagle

Dolphins

Marbled murrelet

Sea otter

Ravens

Cormorants

Occulate bird

Sooty shearwater

Pigeon guillemot

Richardson gulls

Steve Charlesen (Hesquiaht Heriditary Chief) and Josh (his son) greeted us with a short canoe trip into camp.

We loaded the equipment in the longhouse. Steven introduced himself and the rules of the camp. We quickly lined-up for Karen Charlesen had prepared us a feast of salmon salad and egg salad sandwiches, fresh vegetables and chocolate chip cookies (worth every calorie). We had free time after lunch and some took the opportunity to stroll the beach. We saw a green algae called Turkish towel. What a extraordinary privilege to walk along a beach with no condo, hotel or parasailer.

At 3:30 p.m. David exposed us to the group dynamics of expeditionary learning. We brainstormed to identify positive group behaviors. During the discussion a mule deer wandered on to the beach while a bald eagle watched from a tree on the north point. A loon also could be heard.

We reconvened in the long house for a presentation on Costal Temperate Rainforest.

Our next adventure was a hike through the temperate rainforest. The sun was starting to break through and create a delightful contrast of shadows and light patterns in the woods.

Organisms in the woods:

Spruce trees

Salal berries

Sword fern

Deer fern

Banana slug

Red alder

Lung wart

Huckleberry

Pacific fir

Mistletoe

Balsam Fir

Rattlesnake plantain

Shell fungus

Saprophytes

Steven guided us to cedar trees which had been stripped of bark by members of the First Nation. Many of the trees were over 150 feet tall. Many showed considerable healing and thus the stripping was done long ago. These are the signs that David spoke of that help native populations identify their presence on the property for legal purposes. Steven also guided us to a tree that had been felled and used to make a canoe. A 55 foot tree was cut to make a 35 foot canoe. Any strange sound or signs that the spirits did not want them to use that tree, the workers would abandon the canoe.

A salmon jawbone and limpet were found in the woods. This supports the transfer of energy and nutrients from the ocean to the terrestrial biome.

After a dinner of smoked salmon, potato and pasta salad, tossed salad, we relaxed on the beach to watch the sunset and listen to music. What a day!!!

July 27 th

We woke to a misty, chilly morning with the clouds surrounding us, but luckily Karen had prepared delicious, raisin-filled oatmeal that gave us energy for our day’s endeavors. Kathy had been up early and found wolf tracks – Steven said the wolf is a scrawny creature - it would have benefited from our fine breakfast, had he decided to hang around.

After breakfast Sennen spoke about Hahoulthlee in the context of houses. I will not be able to do full justice to Sennen’s deep thinking on the topic, but as I understand it, indigenous people have difficulty conceptualizing money within the historic context of their cultural values. Natural energy flows sustain the Hahoulthlee and the welfare of the family ensures the general welfare of the Hahoulthlee. When you throw money and Western economics into this natural, self-sustaining system there ensues chaos and cultural fragmentation. Western Society as an energy flow in the Hahoulthlee Complex ends up compromising the idea of sustainability within the Halhoulthlee. When I think about the Hesquiaht longhouses I would guess that they support the family in a communal way by their clear organization and open communication. Steven as Tyee, spoke about Hahoulthlee too. As Sennen would say, “It’s up to you to connect the dots.”

After lunch (pea soup…..mmm yum, bagels, crackers, etc.) The sky had almost totally cleared and the day was warming up! Dennis Morgan spoke about salmonids. It was fascinating to learn about the connections between the salmon and the nutrients they supply to the forests. Ironically, clearcutting typically ruins the small streams in the watersheds which ultimately leads to declines in the salmon population. Ultimately, the decline of salmonids will hurt the forest industry. Will clearcutting (variable retention) ever become a thing of the past? The scars of it are everywhere British Columbia.

After his presentation, Dennis took us to freshwater streams where we did stream morphology assessment. This involved bank and depth measurement, slope, temperature readings, sediment size and looked at type of fish present. We noted if the section of stream was a riffle, pool or glide. There was lots of berries to eat along the streams too…mmm.

For supper Karen had prepared chili and rice with salad and jellybeans.

That evening, Kathy spoke about outdoor classrooms and Anna spoke about teaching at the Jemez Pueblo. There was music at the fire and a beautiful sunset…

28 July 2003

The clear crisp morning was enhanced by the gentle movements of the Yoga of Lagusto and Anna. Seagulls squawked in their morning serenade. Banana slugs are on their daily patrol around the longhouse and kitchen. The artful position of an eagle feather next to the shell made it surreal. The smells of eggs and peppers, bagels, cantaloupe, oranges and drinks for breakfast lured the sleepy campers out of their sleeping bags. The breakfast banter of the Bo and Hell’s Angel mishaps had everyone in stitches. I’m sure there is a book in there. Dennis presented the Near shore and Intertribal Ecology information necessary for our field trip later in the day.

We started our climb into the forest, from I U Suk, to explore logging impact and stream ecology. The first exciting thing we saw was a tree that a small bear had marked. Evidence of carbon transfer was noted by fish bones and clams way far from the water. Steve told us the legend of how a chief’s wife accidentally poisoned her children by preparing a salmon with backward scales for her husband’s children, but her children ate it instead because it looked better on the fire. The chief left his land and was taken in by another tribe. Lunch was salmon sandwiches, water, fruit leather and granola bars. David took the opportunity to give a lesson on the geology of the metamorphic and country rock in the area during the break. Landslides, from previous faulty forestry practices were visible from the beach. Side castings are no longer allowed. The soils are not fertile enough so the regeneration efforts are not doing as expected. A cave where people went to purify themselves was part of the hillside, but ceremonial tribe’s exclusion was not honored. The climb was brutal, but the group made it to the stream where fish surveys were conducted by Lagusto, Josh, and Dennis.

Steve told us about the tribes being wards of the State and was only allowed what the state would let them do despite tribal needs. The lake has a merametric salt water bottom and prevents submerged logs from being logged out. If the levels are reversed, a fish kill will result.

On the walk back on the logging road we saw 4 bear droppings along the way.

Organisms seen on the hike:

California Gull

Salmon berries

Foam flowers

Winter Wren

Green slugs

Savory clam

Belted Kingfisher

Thimble berry

Merganser duck

Green Dragonfly and Damselflies

Equisetum

Fireweed

Goat’s Beard

Cutthroat

Steven told us about the management of the harbor and plans for clam research to promote another food source. Several members of the tribe were pouching the area and Steven has to testify about the constraints set up by the council to not use the area when he was chief. It is not going to be well accepted by the tribe, but he has no choice but to tell the truth.

Cathy Law presented her greatest hits to keep students actively involved during science classes. She gave a very energy driven presentation.

Christa followed with a presentation on marine algae in preparation for our intertidal study tomorrow. She talked about biological factors, chemical factors, levels of occurrence for the three types of algae we will find.