Day 4: 'Vegetation day' and Tiger Fern waterfalls

Written yesterday (5/21), posted today:

A beautiful morning at Cockscomb Basin with mist netting at 6 a.m. before meeting for breakfast.  The Saqui’s whipped up eggs, beans, homemade corn tortillas, fruit, juice, unlimited coffee/tea – awesome!   Today’s lesson focused on vegetation starting with 2 lectures and a morning hike up to Tiger Fern Falls. Gorgeous swimming hole and waterfalls with refreshing cool water after a pretty challenging all-morning hike.  A heavy rain started at the end of the hike back to the dining area – very welcomed and refreshing!  A hot lunch was waiting and now a siesta…it can’t feel much better than this!

Today was 'vegetation day'. After 2 morning class lectures on botany and fire ecology with Dr. Sara Brown (fire ecologist) and Dr. Rick McNeill ("the botonist") both led the class on the day's field work and started logging flora species on the jungle trek to Tiger Fern falls. With all the vines, they found out how hard it really is to identify the tons of vegetation types here. They located a few pine trees near the overlook to take core samples to determine the age and health of the pines.  People are loving vegetation, flowers, and forest canopy!

A Happy Happy Birthday to Juan from New Mexico Highlands!

Here are some student entries: 

DENVER: Hey all,  Denver here and I’m one of the two Belizeans on this trip with the Belize Field School. Thus far the experience has been awesome. Its day number 4 and now I now know how it feels to be a tourist in your own country having visited both the inland blue hole and St. Herman’s cave for the first time. Today was an interesting day, after a little mist netting, tree coring and hiking we did a little more than exchange scientific knowledge but I also got a little lesson in dancing salsa and meringue from the Puerto Rican students (I might just go  pro after this)……Beautiful experience.  Viva a la Belize Field School!!!

RICK (botany instructor): Help!!  I’m being held hostages by a bunch of college students from Puerto Rico, Belize and New Mexico.   So far they are treating me well, but to ensure my safety please send $100,000 US (they must not think I am worth much!) in small denomination non-consecutive bills.

FRANCIS:  Hello people!  This is Francis from Puerto Rico! Wiiii :D This has been a very interesting trip and I am enjoying a lot here! Ha sido una experiencia muy diferente a cualquiera que haya tenido antes. He cogido serpientes, cucarachas gigantes, un “stick”, bettles,  tarantula, y me bane con una cucaracha volando en mi ducha :O ahh y dormi en el mismo cuarto que dos ratones :/  (Vale: No le menciones la ultima oración a mami). No tenemos luz, ni teléfono, ni agua caliente…ha sido muy diferente a lo que acostumbro. Por otro lado, el grupo con al cual tengo la oportunidad de compartir es muy bueno, somos muy unidos y a todos nos esta gustando la experiencia. Hoy caminamos como 4 horas, casi escalando! Pero al final llegamos a un rio precioso con dos grandes cascadas (valio la pena el esfuerzo, pero espero que no se repita!) los profesores son muy buenos y se integran con cada estudiante del grupo. Siempre nos están hablando de cada pequeño detalle que se acuerden; estoy aprendiendo muchísimo  Hoy los boricuas le ensenamos a bailar salsa y merengue a nuestros compañeros. Espero seguir disfrutando/aprendiendo en los días que me quedan.  Bendicion mami! <3

LENNEY: Hi folks  my name is Lenney, I am the naturalist guide with the field school. So far it’s been really great, the students are learning a lot of new things, this is our fourth day in the program. Today we did an early morning  birding and mist netting, and then a big  hike to the double water fall on Tiger Fern Trail. We had a great view of the Cockscomb Basin and its spectacular peaks known as Victoria Peak, 3675ft above sea level. Tonight we are doing a night hike to set up some camera traps so hopefully we catch jaguars.  

JOSE: Bendición, lo que escribió Francis de las cucarachas y ratones es verdad pero fue al principio y ya se sacaron pero no te preocupes no es tan malo como crees solo que hay que caminar mucho y  eso estoy acostumbrado, estoy usando el fitter y mosquitero pero todo esta bien y tranquilo solo que no hay luz y puedes ver mas estrellas que las que se ven en Hatillo y no tengo senal de celular asi que sabras de mi por aquí hasta el viernes. Hablamos y todo tranquilo q estamos bien algunas veces exageran un poco como survivor jaja pero estamos bien Bendición bye.