My 5th Glacier Field Season

Beautiful lil paradise! Bright green moss on the rock face covered with yellow and pink monkey flower 

This summer was my 5th field season working with the North Cascade Glacier Climate Project, and my second summer taking my own measurements of crevasses in order to observe their changes in accordance with the retreat of the glaciers.

Here are some photos of this field season! Next post I will show my field sketches from this summer!

A got a grant through the Center of Undergraduate Research at UMaine, and used it to buy a laser rangefinder (to shoot distance, height, inclination), the cam-line I am using here (intended to measure well depths, a steel cable with markers every foot for measurement. I used it to measure crevasse depths!!), and most of my plane ticket out here.

Watercolor near the terminus of the Lower Curtis glacier on Mt.Shuksan

Trudging back to camp after a long day of working on the crevasse-ridden Rainbow glacier (behind me)

Hike out of one spot - hike into another!

Descending the blue ice near the terminus of Easton glacier on Mt. Baker

Watercolor and colored pencil sketch of this pool at the terminus of the Iceworm glacier.

Mountain goats - I have a neat post about them coming up! These guys are very elusive, you can't get near them usually.

Ben using a rope to measure the depth of the snow accumulation from the past winter (crevasse stratigraphy - like tree rings!)

Checking out a lil water-filled crevasse on lower Rainbow glacier

Partway through a sketch of camp below Easton glacier

Working on Easton glacier

crevasses, crampons, and mountain goats

This video captures the North Cascade Glacier Climate Project's 2012 field season with pictures and videos my dad and I took throughout the trip. Check it out!!

This is my last night at home before heading back up to Maine. I will be hiking Mount Katahdin with my boyfriend Jackson, move in one the 2nd, and classes begin on Tuesday the 4th :) I am super excited for my second year at school, and I plan to take advantage of as many opportunities as possible and learn a lot! I'm prepared for a very busy, for very awesome semester! I can't wait to post new artwork once my painting and figure drawing classes get goin :-D

Positive Mass Balance and Pirates of Mars

Field sketch of Michael's Sword on Daniel Mountain
In the North Cascades

I did this field sketch last season with the NCGCP, it is the first piece in my concentration section I submitted for the AP Studio Art Exam. Some exciting news about the video, besides the promo that came out a while back, there is now a 19 minute clip of the film, which you can view here! Don't forget to type in the password "hotdocs" which it does let you know on the page. I can't wait till it's complete!

The above painting is titled, "Positive Mass Balance", and it was the last piece I created in art this year. It was originally going to be the last piece in my concentration, but when I arranged my 12 artworks before the exam, I ended up moving it back a bit. This painting comes after a series in which Mt. Baker's glaciers all gradually melt. I wanted to resolve what had happened to Mt. Baker. A girl is saving the mountain by literally painting the glaciers back on it. This represents my motivation to be involved with the glaciers and to stop their retreat. I'll post my whole concentration and breadth sections soon!

The first volume of Veronica Fish's and JJ Kahrs Pirates of Mars is out! Support Veronica by going to PiratesofMars.com to read the comic, and purchase it on Lulu!