Goodbyes

Benji and I on Masaya Volcano.

Its very hard to explain the feelings I'm having right now. One of the most interesting experiences in my  life is about to be over. You would think that I would be used to this by now...but nope, it still sucks!

The rafting crew

We came together as 31 strangers, not really sure what to expect out of each other and this semester. Costa Rica was new to all of us not like anything we'd ever experienced before.
Now, there's only 3 of us, and I'm stuck in some weird emotional limbo. I've said goodbye to everyone else. But I'm still here on campus, waiting as if they're just in town and will be back any minute.

Chirripó summit!

Our first hike with Achim

Prom pic!

The rest of the group left at 4:30am for their flights home. We said our goodbyes that didn't seem quite real yet. "This is weird," I kept telling myself. "This is really weird." We stood at the gate, and down the line they went, wishing us each a safe flight home and good next semester, many of us blatantly ignoring the fact that we might not be seeing each other for a very long time. The goodbyes were rushed and unreal. Before I knew it, they were on the bus and we weren't. I couldn't stand it any more and the emotions finally caught up with me.

on Maderas volca

A final wave and the bus was out of sight. We stood there in silence as we let it all sink in. This was the end.

But now I'm still on campus, making this goodbye even more surreal. We had a great semester. Not what I was expecting, but exactly how I wanted it to go. I have a new family of 30 people and I'm sure we can all say that this was a life changing semester.

I'm going to miss them a lot these next couple weeks. But that's life and things will get easier. Its important to remember: without a sad goodbye, the hello wouldn't have been worth it.


Pura Vida, mae.
SFS Costa Rica Fall 2012

Into the Puma's Den: Directed Research

The semester is coming to an end and we are starting the final segment of academic studies. The last three weeks are completely dedicated to our directed research project. The 31 of us broke up into 4 groups, each with one of the professors, to develop a project, collect data, and write a paper.

Ellie tagging and measuring the
diameter of the trees!

I chose to study with Achim, our Natural Resource Management professor and one of the most interesting guys I've ever met. Our project was to study the overall biodiversity and carbon storage capacity of a forest fragment in the Atenas area. We were a group of 8 students and we delved into topics ranging from aboveground carbon storage and soil organic carbon storage to the influence of surrounding forests on certain coffee farms. The overall project is a continuation of a study started in 2008 that has been exploring conventional and organic coffee farms and forest fragments. We were lucky enough to get to spend the week collecting data in a beautiful secondary forest located near a huge coffee plantation.

Before heading out for our first visit of the study site, Achim warned us to be careful of all the usual things: steep terrain, snakes, spiders, etc. We were'nt expecting what he was about to say next! Apparently the forest was home to a large cat that had been bothering the surrounding community for a few years. The puma was rumored to have killed an eaten a few dogs as well as a horse! Naturally, we were even more excited to get into the forest and start our work!

Leslie and I measurin diameter and height

Unlike the other groups who traveled to different parts of Costa Rica for their DR, we got to stay on campus! Hot food and a comfortable bed were perfect after the long days hiking through the thick jungle that was our study site. Each day we would leave by 7:30am and get to work tagging, measuring and identifying trees as well as taking soil and leaf litter samples. We got to know the forest better than any forest I've been in before.

After the field work, we spend a week analyzing our data and writing our papers. I can confidently say I've used more statistics in that week than in my whole academic life. Our papers are due 4 days after the end of data collection and a presentation and poster are due only a couple days after that. Stressful and busy, we powered through our last days of work this semester.
But as we finish, we are also getting closer to the time we have to say goodbye and leave the center and Costa Rica!

Chirripó: The Summit

Up at 2am we were greeted by an awesome display of stars, we were off on the last 5km hike to the summit of Cerro Chirripó! Thankfully, the clouds from the day before had blown away and we were hoping to watch the sunrise from the summit. Still groggy and very cold, we passed over rolling hills and valleys for a few km until we arrived at the Valle de los Conejos (valley of rabbits). At every break we would stop, turn off our headlamps, and stare in silence at the amazing view above us. This far away from civilization, the stars were brighter and more spectacular than I've ever seen. The milky way cut across us and left us dumbfounded as we counted one shooting star after another.

The last few km entered the rocky peak that led to the summit. It was cold now, and the clouds were starting to roll in, but there was no stopping us. We had to scramble up the art 500m, but it was more than worth it as the summit sign came into view!

Although we were completely clouded in, it was a great feeling knowing we had climber 12, 500 feet above sea level. There is something majestic knowing you are the highest point for miles around. I can literally say now that on Chirripó I was the highest I've ever been!

After a half hour and some fun pictures later, we decided to head down and get out of the freezing cold cloud that had blanketed us in. Little did we know that the walk down was going to be equally impressive. The sun had risen and the clouds were breaking up lower down, so we were able to see the beautiful valleys and mountains surrounding us that we missed on the hike up.