Personal Reflections Day 5

Yesterday we had one of the best days so far. Once again, we were seperated into our groups and we all had a different task to do. Our group (the Blicks) got to do research about tropical fish that were placed in the warm water springs of Kelly. We got on our rubber boats, packed our bags, grabbed our hoo-rahs, got in our van, and left for our project. The day was full of: changing wet socks, drinking lots of water, measuring the depth, the width, and the temperature of the water, measuring the temperature of the air, and the fun fact of pushing people into the snow.
-Shane Jimenez

Yesterday we explored the science of snow, which is actually much more interesting than it sounds. Snow is an always changing entity that has many factors affecting what it's doing. We started out with the question: What snow will make the best snowballs? But this soon changed after we realized all the snow was faceting and none of it packed well. We learned the difference between faceting (jagged) and rounding snow and that how each are caused. Our question was changed to: How does the weather affect snow pack? The answer is that the clear cold nights we have been experiencing have caused the snow to facet which makes it much harder to pack. This trip is great and I'm sad that tomorrow is our last day.
P.S. We had steak tonight for dinner which was AWESOME!!!
-Andrew Carey

Yesterday was really interesting. The Cupine Crew went out skiing, dug snow pits, and learned about snow science. We found layers, measured, took temperatures, almost got charged by a Moose, and did mad cross country ski tricks which resulted in marcel's ripping out of a binding. We also learned enough about rounding snow crystals and faceting snow crystals to prove our hypothesis wrong. My group is writing a rap song right now, and I am finishing up with the weather. It's snowing so much up here. The temperature I just got outside was -22 degrees farenhiet. The steak was amazing last night, it was more like rib meat. I guess the trip is coming to an end, but this has been a great experience and I hope I can come back sometime. I can't wait to get my phone back, though, I need my music fix
-Stevie Strehl

Yesterday was so much fun for me. We went to the Kelley warm springs where we learned how there were new invasive species that had the potential to affect the native populations. Our task was to find out how far down in the stream the water stayed warm. In the process Davis and I were walking in thigh deep water with boots that only covered us to about our shins. So funny. We then had to run from the fan to our cabin in our bare feet: a good 200 yards. I will always remember this as being one of the funniest things that happened on our trip.
-Pat Griffin

Yesterday, working on our research projects was really fun. We cross country skied around to three different communities (Sage, Aspen, and Conifer) and dug two snow pits to test all the different layers in the snow and if the snowflakes were faceting or rounding. After we had collected all of our data, we went back to the lab and started putting together our presentation. Mat, Chris, Sam and I worked on the Powerpoint while Thomas and Camille wrote our Tic Tok parody song. Our presentation and song went really well and I enjoyed listening to the other two groups' presentations as well. It was a lot of work putting our research project together, but in the end it was fun to do it and we learned a lot.
-Alex Baker

Yesterday, we went out to the field and our groups each had a research project. Basically, it was a science experiment. We went around to the three different communities in our area (pine, conifer, and sage) and we measured the snowpack and how they were different in each of these communities. After collecting our data, we went back to the lab and made a Powerpoint and a song to sing to the other groups.
-Mathew Kestle

Yesterday was research day. My group did a research project based on snow science and we learned and studied snow crystals, their formation, and their behavior. We learned the process behind digging a snow pit and analyzing the snow, and got to cross country ski all over the campus. It was pretty fun and all of the groups had great presentations. Plus, we had a steak dinner! Pretty incredible. It's still beautiful up here and I'm kind of sad to see the week coming to an end. Today was just as great though. I'm definitely loving the experience.
-Marcel Gaztambide

Yesterday was a fantastic day! My group and I went up to Moose Meadows to gather data for the presentations on snow formation which we would later present to the other groups. We cross country skied to the Sage Flats Riparian to dig snow pits for the experiment. We learned about the differences in faceting and rounding snow and how it effects snow stability. Observations went on for a couple hours until we had what we needed, then we headed back down to our station to finish the project. The whole day was spent outside; the snow was fresh, the air was clear, and the view was breathtaking. To finish the day, the other groups performed the songs they had come up with throughout the day: not nearly as original as The Cupine Crew, but a good show to end the day. (:
The amount of knowledge I have gained on this trip (even when I consider the complexity of snow solely) is incredible.
-Rachel North

Yesterday was our group's research day. We all wanted to cross-country ski, so that's what we did. Our group then went to the play area to practice skiing. From there we went around and about and got about 20 feet from a really big moose. Then we went up one of the steepest parts of the trail: not the best time, but it was really nice once we got up there. We dug a couple of snow pits to see the different layers and different temperatures. The digging part of it wasn't that fun, but the skiing part was extremely fun because of the new snow. The types of snow that we saw were faceting snow and rounding snow. Faceting snow is snow that grows from the bottom up and it looks and feels like sugar. Rounding snow is the snow that is wet and heavy- usually new snow. Yesterday was pretty fun.
-Collin Yoshinaga

Yesterday we did our research projects. We went and dug snow pits in the Aspen, Sage, and Conifer communities to see if the snow was more faceted or rounded. Most of the snow ended up being faceted and it felt sugary...it was also good eatin' snow as Camille put it. Then Camille and Cheese came up with an amazing parody of Tik Tok about the Tetons and we all sang it. It was pretty awesome. I had a lot of fun doing the project and I loved watching the other groups do theirs. I'm not ready to go home.
-Sam Simpson

On Thursday, we found ourselves doing our mega-ultra-super-dooper research projects for the day. Our team (Team Dwight) skiied out to three different communitites, the Sage, the Aspen and the Conifer. Here, we tested what kind of snow we found in each of these communities. Then, after digging plenty of snow pits, we analyzed our data and put together a Powerpoint to present to the rest of our classmates. The best of part of our presentation had to be the parody Thomas and I put together. I admit, it was epic-to say the least. The songs from the other groups were fantastic also. Quite the creavtive and witty group we've got here. Glad I got to share this wonderful experience with them.
-Camille Overmoe

Yesterday was research day. My team, team Blick, went to Kelly Warm Springs. Our task was to see how far it took for the temperature to drop in the creek. We took the temp, depth, and width of the creek every 30 meters. We traveled about 900 meters and found that the temperature only varied within about three degrees. Our day also consisted of wet socks, lunch, lots of laughs, and getting pushed in the snow. It may have been research day, but we had a ton of fun.
-Ellen Sliwinski