The Revenge of Strawberry Hill...

So it was bound to happen sometime. I completely bit the dust today during our field trip to Strawberry Hill. In the past when I have fallen I was fortunate (?) enough to land on my butt which while painful didn't really do that much damage. However, today I was not so lucky. I slipped sideways and my knee cracked against the corner of a very pointy rock outcropping. Upon impact I thought I was going to throw up. Thankfully Gayle was near-by and came over to help me up. She let me hold on to her while I gained control of my senses against my now throbbing knee.

After a few minutes it seemed all right and we continued around the tide pools, hopping a little more carefully this time, and found tons of stuff. By the time we got back to the vans though my knee had swollen up and was taking on a purplish tint. Needless to say it was hurting quite a bit. I've been icing it and taking ibuprofen all day, hoping to get in front of some of the swelling, but I guess we will see how it is in the morning when I have to go out into the mudflats with everyone....

Tuesday though was a great fun day. We went up to Cascade Head to view the coastal headlands and other geological features that we had discussed that morning in class. It was great fun. Here's a good shot of the Westwind beach (with a smokin' rip tide) from the top. It's always nice going up Cascade Head because it reminds of the first summer at camp right after I had graduated from high school. Except this time it was a little more special because that first time was really the beginning of a new time in my life and now I'm working on finishing that chapter. Fitting that I should include Cascade Head in that.

I've been thinking about what my project is going to be for this class, and I'm starting to churn over ideas concerning anemone reproduction. Anemones are the cousins of corals, and I'm really getting interested in the genetics of corals, and while I won't have the capability to do genetic studies on anemones, although I would LOVE to do genetic surveys of aggregate anemone colonies to determine their level of relatedness, I think that I will be able to come up with some kind of project that includes anemone reproduction. Great stuff.

I was going to include a picture of my busted knee but I figured that I would spare you guys the sight of my disfigured self and rather give you a lovely picture of me at the top of Cascade Head with the Salmon River Estuary behind me!