Last day of 2010

Here are a few pictures of some of the birds on the island.  Can't wait for 2011!  Hope to update the blog again in a couple of days.  Enjoy the holidays!

Banding the birds

Jimmy is holding a Laysan Albatross while I put on a metal band on one leg and a plastic band on the other.

Christmas on Tern Island

T

Christmas dinner

Spam turkey

About to eat dinner

Sitting around the tree

After opening our secret santa presents

Christmas on Tern

The Pinnacle Post

Merry Christmas! I'm sorry it has taken me so long to update the blog! I have been busy learning how to capture and band the birds. Life on the island is very nice so far. The weather is warm and breezy and the water a beautiful blue. The first few days here we did Laysan Albatross sweeps, which means we have to record the band number of every Laysan Albatross on the island and band those without bands. Christmas eve we took the boat out and went to other islands in the French Frigate Shoals such as Trig, East, and la Perouse. We went snorkeling near trig and saw lots of fish and a white tip shark. We have a Christmas tree decorated and had a spam turkey (spurkey) for dinner. I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!

We Made It!!!

We finally made it out to Tern! The runway was a little damp, but the pilots did an excellent job! I am so excited to finally be here!

Maybe a flight tomorrow!

The weather is starting to clear up on Tern Island so we are going to make our 2nd attempt to fly out there in the morning if all goes well! Hopefully the flight will not be postponed again.

Still In Honolulu

Our Plane

Take off (before heading back 3 mins later)

The storm preventing us from flying out to Tern Island

So our boat is in for repairs on Dec. 7th our original departure date, so we were supposed to take the small plane out to Tern Island. The night before our flight our pilot "got sick" so obviously, flight cancelled. One week later (Dec. 13) we are prepared at 5am for our next flight. We pack our bags, board the plane, and take off...but wait... the landing gear isn't coming up!! So 3 minutes later we land again. Then they tell us there is bad weather on Tern Island. Soo...... we are still waiting for our pilots to get motivated to fly. Hopefully they will bring us out there soon!

Honolulu

Allison and I in Lanikai

 Ben and Jen Morse's Wedding

 The Moke Islands

Allison and Ryan Langley on the North Shore, Oahu

 Pineapple bowls from Haleiwa

Hi! This is my first blog! I am currently in Honolulu, Hi waiting for my plane to head out to Tern Island on Dec. 7. In the mean time it is important to fill up on fresh food and drink a few beers. This past weekend was amazing. I attended Ben and Jen's wedding and it was absolutely gorgeous!!! To make the weekend even better Allison Langley and her husband Ryan welcomed me into their home and brought me around the island to all my favorite beaches! I am now at the Kapahuhu bunkhouse and have a full week planned with lots of paperwork, packing, buying supplies and learning how to do a bird necropsies. Thanks for reading!