Good day all,

Today we returned to the field! We went back to Magothy Bay to improve on our past visit. We took cores to determine the stratigraphy and decide where the best sample could be taken. Interestingly we hit peat in a small strip running south to north through the marsh, which can tell us where sea level was dating back into days far gone by. We also retook the tidal elevation as our last measures had large gaps. The day was hot and we got a bit of a late start so mud fights and painting abounded as well as some friendly rivalry between coring teams looking for peat.
Our late exit this morning was partially due to the arrival of Taylor, an EarthWatch SCAP participant from last year. Her sense of humor and rapport with Candace and Simon has thrown her into the group with ease. It has been fun to hear more about last year’s team and the work that they did. Taylor will stay with us until tomorrow afternoon. Our group has really started to fall into step as we all get to know each other more and continue to work together. This has led to more joking around while cementing a stronger community.
After departing to the sage advice of “top-cat,” some questionable fellow who wondered by this morning, our intrepid leaders continued to lead with poise. Simon has begun to share more of his vast music collection while Candace continues to lead as the hardest hardcore corer. We got muddy today and were desperately in need of a hose down upon return.
We had a wonderful Thai creation for dinner and complemented this dish with a geographically opposite drink, Horchata, a choice rice drink from Central America. Our group has become devoted to international soccer and today’s Russia Netherlands game was no disappointment. Tonight we sampled one of America’s cinematographic classics “Zoolander” a wacky spoof of sorts on the fashion industry. By tomorrow we will all have our blue steel down to a T.
Simon, Taylor, and I took a trip to the Food Lion today. Yet, upon our return it seemed as though we had never gone as most of the groceries were consumed within minutes, I guess that is what fieldwork does to you.

Cheers,
The Team