Mount Dickerman

Three weeks ago we hiked Mt Dickerman- about 8 miles round trip and 4500' elevation gain. There were still plenty of mountain blueberries to pick and eat, and we saw a bear on the way down! I also shot a great picture of an unknown person enjoying a truly solitary moment on a nearby peak.

I love my work!

Since November 2007 I have been employed at the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, or SBRI. A quick (20 min or so) bus ride takes me downtown- I work on the best block in Seattle. Tesla Motors just put in a new dealership only seconds away! And the Jones Soda Co. headquarters (more on them later) is across the street.

My two favorite tasks at this job are salvary gland and midgut dissections. Every Thursday I dissect 100 mosquitoes from 10 cages to check for the overall percentage of malaria infection in their midguts (stomachs). The following Monday I dissect 150 mosquitoes from the same cages to check for how many sporozoites of malaria can be expected from each mosquito in subsequent feeds. I basically provide information that can only be obtained through delicate work under a microscope- the rest of the time I'm just a mosquito farmer. Here is my crop:

Hiking class!

I've been enjoying my hiking class this term. Every Saturday I crawl out of bed at 5am (ugh) to join 10 other people for a long but fun day. We have breakfast in a small-town diner, do a strenuous hike up some the most beautiful peaks in the Cascades, then finish up with burgers and a quiet ride home.

This past weekend was Granite Peak. Here are my fav photos. Enjoy :-)
p.s. be sure to spot the ranger tower at the peak, visible in the 5th photo.

Time with Family

We drove over to Richland this last weekend, our best opportunity to spend time with the Swishers before responsibilities take over. Kiana is getting big! We played Mexican train, ate cookies, and shared photos. What a great time!

And, being a casual photographer, I couldn't help but show off my two very similar widescreen shots:

Blakely Island: A popular destination

I speak about Blakely Island a lot when discussing my studies at SPU. General Biology, Plant Biodiversity and Ecology have all led me to our Crowley field station in the San Juans. Here are some highlights from my last trip there in October:

Photo credits: Benjamin Troop

Professor of the Year 2009: Dr. Eric Long

A pod of about 15 orcas passed around our ferry on the way back from the island. One baby was in the pod, and one whale came within a few yards of us. It was very exciting!

Memorial Day

Things I enjoyed this Memorial Day weekend:

piano ~ hiking ~ scrabble ~ church picnic ~ Rose festival
frog hunting ~ Star Trek & Space Cowboys ~ Lots of waterfalls!









Eagle Creek had some spectacular views of waterfalls from trails hugging the cliffs! This one is Loowit Falls.

Mount Hamilton

On May 23rd I hiked Mt Hamilton in Southern Washington with my Dad and Uncle Terry, who flew in from Idaho for the weekend. My main goal was to break in my boots and backpack for an upcoming trip, but reaching the peak was also a lofty goal as it required nearly 12 miles of hiking due to an unexpected detour!

Mt. Hood from the peak

The "Pool of Winds" at Rodney Falls was also a sight to see, and much easier to reach too.