Today was a very, very wet and windy day. The work was wet, cold and muddy which made it seem like a much longer day. BUT! There is one very nice, bright spot:
Bre is here!
At about 10:30 this morning, Bre MacInnes, who has been working with the geology/tsunami group at Dushnaya Bay, arrived via the Iskatel and the zodiac. She will be staying and working with us for the rest of our time here.
It started raining sometime last night and was still going this morning. So the first thing that we did was build a rain tent shelter out of our tarp that we place over the excavation each night, so that the excavation site didn’t become a soggy, muddy mess while we worked today.
Working to build the frame for the tarp tent shelter so that we can work out of the wind and rain at the Vodapadnaya excavation site. Pictured are Ben Fitzhugh, Natasha Toropova, Dima Chvagian and Volodya Gulobtsov.
Working to build the frame for the tarp tent shelter so that we can work out of the wind and rain. Pictured are Ben Fitzhugh, Natasha Toropova, Dima Chvagian and Volodya Gulobtsov.
First, a frame was constructed. A set of three taller poles were driven into the ground along the center of the excavation with a set of three shorter poles on the windward side of the site. Long poles were then tied to the top of the upright poles and they were stabilized like a tent with ropes tied to stakes. Lastly the tarp was pulled over the top. That was the messiest part. The wind was blowing and flapping the tarp everywhere so that dirt was getting flicked into our faces. Then we were trying to put heavy, wet, muddy blocks of sod on the edge of it, so even more mud was flying around.
Natasha Toropova is still smiling despite a face-full of mud and dirt from securing the tarp tent shelter at the Vodapadnaya excavation site.
*Natasha Toropova is still smiling despite a face-full of mud and dirt from securing the tarp tent shelter. *
Eventually, we got the edges of the tarp secured and then more ropes (all scavenged from the beach) were tied across the top to try to keep it from being blown away.
The tarp tent structure that we used to cover the Vodapadnaya excavation site on the wet and windy work day. With the exception of the tarp itself, all of the other materials (ropes, poles and stakes) are scavenged from the beach.
The tarp tent structure that we used to cover the Vodapadnaya excavation site on the wet and windy work day.
With the exception of the tarp itself, all of the other materials (ropes, poles and stakes) are scavenged from the beach. It was still a windy and wet day working in and out of the tent, but we got a lot of productive work done.
Our working conditions on the wet, windy day at Vodapadnaya. Pictured are Mike Etnier, Ben Fitzhugh and Dima Chvagian.
Our working conditions on the wet, windy day at Vodapadnaya. Pictured are Mike Etnier, Ben Fitzhugh and Dima Chvagian.
By the end of the day, we welcomed a chance to get warm, eat some hot food and rest and relax before bed.
Spokonyye Noche! Misty