Training week

The first week was all training. It felt a bit like summer camp. We took a lot of field trips, and it was a pretty easy schedule. We ended up having to put off the first real day of observation until the 11th because of some issues with the software we'll be working with.

The two most fun parts of the week were the trip to Bonneville Dam, and the trip to the Maryhill winery to observe a gull nesting area.

I'd been to the Bonneville dam before, but this time I was being shown around by a Corps of Engineers employee, so we saw some things I missed the first time. Nathan Zorich, one of my bosses, was showing us around. He took us through the hatchery, showed us the sturgeon they have there, and introduced us to the SCA interns they have working there. The interns there are monitoring sea lions. Bonneville Dam is the furthest downstream of any dam on the Columbia, so that is where the majority of the sea lions are. Occasionally one slips past up to The Dalles Dam, but it is not common.

We were pretty lucky and there was a lot of sea lion activity at the dam while we were there. When we first got there, one promptly surfaced with a huge steelhead in it's mouth. There were a couple others swimming around as well. Here's a photo of the sea lion with the fish:


The Maryhill winery was the other field trip. It is located on the Washington side of the Columbia about halfway between The Dalles and John Day dams. After being granted permission from the owners, we walked out across their vineyards to the edge of the cliff to check out the gull nesting grounds in the river. I forget the name of the place, but it is a bunch of small islands in the middle of the river, where thousands of gulls nest every year. Apparently it is a prime place for gulls. There are two dams nearby for them to fish, there are two landfills nearby for them to scavenge, and they are also fond of eating the cherries from nearby orchards.

You can't see it in the photo, but there are thousands of gulls on these little islands.


It was a pretty neat place up on top of the cliffs there. The winery has a large amphitheater for shows and a nice patio. I might have to go back a sample a few wines there once the weather warms up a bit.

And here's a photo of Mount Hood from our living room. This is the first day it has not been at least partially obscured by clouds.