Early morning sun streams through the curtains into our communal bedroom. I get out of bed early in anticipation of a productive day. The Paleo-Ecology team heads out in the truck to get started on their fieldwork and the rest of us will be at Ushki all day preparing for our departure.
The morning meeting helps us plan several scenarios for when we get to the field. There were some last minute changes in the team for various reasons and we are three people short of our expected numbers. This affects how we will conduct the field research and several plans are considered.
Sean-Paul, Irina, Jodi, Greg and I meet to review some plans for the field. We use maps to choose destinations for possible surveys of the land and dig sites.The group comes up with plans A, B and C depending on how transportation will work out and everyone seems comfortable with the decisions. Greg needs to get into town for some expedition and personal business, but also has screens to build for the field. Sean-Paul and I ask Greg to show us how to build one screen and then we will build the rest while he is in town.
With a plan in mind and some practice with Greg we take the tools into our own hands and have it. The progress is slow since we have one drill, one Leatherman tool, and one pocket chain saw. However, after about 4 hours we are well into the project, take a quick lunch break and then head out again.
Sean-Paul and I began assembling the screens for sifting through soil assembly line style. With limited tools it was one way to be more efficient. Some of the Russian students are curious about the tools and project, Sean-Paul demonstrates how to use all of the tools and they help us make a screen or two.It is very warm outside and there is very little breeze. The mosquitoes are swarming us and my hands are actually swollen from all of the bites. Sean-Paul is trying to brave the process without a bug hat but finally succumbs. By about 6:30 PM we finish the job and we are tired and sweaty. Leaving the tools for now, we head down to the lake, strip down a couple layers and walk in to cool ourselves off. It is a brisk dunk in water that tops out in the 38-degree range, but it feels great after our ambitious day.
Sean-Paul, Claude and Irina pose next to the newly completed screens. It was a good day's work followed by a little play.It feels great to have a productive day after so many days of travel and inactivity. The work helps me feel like the time has become valuable to the team and to the project. That said, I left the tools outside on the porch so I could go for a swim and I need to finish the job we started.