Raurri Jennings and Erin Hanafin

Hello Civilization,

It seems like it wasn't so long ago when I saw you last, but I've been
doing some pretty entertaining stuff with this nice old hippie lady we
met out here. I think her name is Nature, but I forgot -- I'm terrible
with remembering names.

On Friday we made the long hike up Whiteface Mountain for our
Ecology field trip with Wil. We observed the transitions from hardwoods
like striped maples and beeches to firs and spruces to rocks and
lichen. It was funny being at the top and looking at all the people
that had obviously driven up the mountain from their hotels in Placid
wearing funny packs and drinking bottled water. Although, I shouldn't
be too critical, they were nice enough to take many of the nice group
shots you're looking at now. It may have taken us four hours to get up,
but we learned that there is more to a mountain than the peak.

The next day we cleared out of our campsite at the Adirondack Loj
early for our rock-climbing excursion. We met our guides Becca and
Frazier at the Beer Walls - I have no idea where the name came from -
and after a few safety tips we started climbing some rocks. We ate
lunch at the base of the wall, some of us sitting in the hammock Emily
had thoughtfully carried in her day pack and watches each other inch to
the top tooth-and -nail.

Sunday was an optional climbing day, so a few of us stayed to scale
some crags at Pitch-off while the other group opted to sauna and work
on our first paper for Land-use and Change at Arcadia. Rock-climbing is
a blast, but there are few thins that compare to an hour in the sauna
on a cold afternoon.

With love from the whole group,