Two more sites

A couple days ago we made it to our second sampling site: Signy Island. Signy is at the top of our transect, all the way up at 60°S. It is a very beautiful place!

The British Antarctic Survey has a research base on Signy Island, and we started with a visit to the scientists living there. 

Then, the five of us hiked up the hill behind the base to look for a sampling site. We actually had a hard time finding a good spot, because while there’s a TON of green stuff, it’s mostly moss. We had to look for a while before we found an area that had a lot of grass.

After sampling, we spent the next day processing the samples in the lab while we sailed to our next site at Elephant Island. We currently sit just off the south shore of Elephant Island waiting for the wind to die down. The LMG can’t sail right up next to the islands, because the water gets too shallow. We have to take zodiacs (small boats) from the LMG to the islands. The zodiacs are light enough that wind this strong can flip them over! So here we wait…