While I didn't leave the island this week, I did keep track of how far I walked each day in the field. Between five days of field work, I walked 42 miles!
I am still 1,800 miles from home, but as I grow more familiar with my surroundings and colleagues, the distance feels smaller and smaller. Just like going away to college, living somewhere new felt unusual at first, but every day I feel more at home.
Because I stayed on the island all week, I just walked around. The distance from my room to the laboratory and dining hall can be a pain if I forget something, especially because there are so many stairs, but walking is always enjoyable. I often see howler monkeys in the trees above me and leaf-cutter ants lined up on the pavement below.
The hike out to the end of the trail with Aulden took us to a breathtaking lookout point with a lighthouse. The lighthouses on the island are a bit unusual. Instead of shining a bright light out of the top, the lighthouses are lit from below to guide ships crossing through the canal. The front of the lighthouse, which faces out toward the canal, is painted black. The back is painted white. If a ship is headed directly toward the island, they won't see any of the white.
