Morning Commute

On our way to work this morning, we passed this line of elephants heading to work as well. On their day's schedule
1) eat Acacia saplings
2) bathe in the river
3) pose for tourists

(Sorry for the blurry picture; roads are a bit bumpy!)

Learning to divine for water

This week I have been attending a really exciting workshop in Tanzania to set the environmental flow recommendations for the lower reaches of the Mara River. Today, we took a break during lunch for Vivienne Abbott, Project Coordinator for the GLOWS iWASH project, to teach us how to divine for water. Here's a photo of Dr. Margaret Abira, Regional Director for Lake Victoria South Catchment Management Authority, finding water in the garden of the hotel.

No wheels

Preventative maintenance day in Narok.

Meters installed!

Today we got the second of our two main water meters installed in the river. Asante sana to Moses, the guard at the Emarti pump house, for watching over them until we return.

Simple pleasures

Chris and I both got laid out this past week with a stomach flu that's been circling through camp. Fortunately, it's a pretty short-lived bug, and we're both feeling better now, but it's still kind of a bummer to be sick without the comforts of home. However, Chris went up to the safari lodge nearby to find me some ginger ale, just like my mom used to give me when I got sick as a kid. It was just what I needed, and I'm pretty sure that's what led to my rapid recovery!

Lab Tent

Chris is busy today calibrating our water quality meters in the "garage" of our new lab tent. Camp is almost up and running, and we're heading out to the river tomorrow!

Home sweet home

Made it back to the Mara this afternoon. Celebrated our first night back with Mexican food, old friends and a lion roaring surprisingly close to our camp. Good to be back.

Traveling to the Mara

Today we left Nairobi at 6 am, headed for the Mara. It's now 4 pm, and we're almost at our camp. It's been a long, but beautiful drive, made longer by the terrible roads and small car in which we're traveling, and made more beautiful by how green the recent rains have made everything. It's also been fun to travel with our friends and drivers Peter and Stephen, neither of whom have ever been to the Mara before. That said, I can't wait to get there!

First night back

Celebrating our return with a few cold Tuskers on the balcony of the hotel. It's a great place to sit and enjoy a beer, although you have to climb out a window to get there.

On our way...

Thank you to everyone who voted on the number of bags we would need for this field season in Kenya. We really appreciated your optimism, with votes ranging from 1 bag (thanks William!) to 11 (same as last year). Sadly, we all lost the bet, when we totalled out at 12 (including 2 carry-ons each). Special thanks to the patient airline and TSA agents who got our bags here safely, though. We arrived with everything intact! Can't wait to get down to the Mara and unpack!