Saturday on Tern Island

The biological work is slowing down and some days look like they will be boring with not enough work to keep busy, but there is nearly always more work if a person looks. Our water catchment and the turtle barriers along the beach edge almost always need sand cleared. I started on that task this morning. I shoveled along the south edge of the catchment where turtles throw sand in their nest building. As I was working Shawn stopped to say his team was going to tag a yearling seal and would I like to watch. Several of us trooped along and listened to the planning and then watched as Shawn, Derek, Monica and Mark ran to the seal, threw a net over it and basically sat on it while Mark and then Derek worked on the tagging. It was interesting to watch. I then went back to shoveling sand until about Noon and Shawn said today would be a good day for me to ride along on their count of the northern atoll seals. I changed and made a quick lunch and met the same seal folks at the dock. We motored south and east for about an hour to the Ginns, a group of small sand islands that I, and many others think is the most beautiful spot in the atoll. We didn't anchor there so the person doing the survey sat on the bow and we motored slowly into shallow water and they slid off into the water with a dry bag containing there survey supplies. We then motored to deeper water and waited while the survey was completed and then picked the person up the same way. The surveys were completed in the same fashion on Ginn, Little Ginn, and Ginn Spit. We then motored back to East and anchored and all of us got out and I was able to watch the survey work first hand. We then got back in the boat and motored on to Round Island where Mark waded ashore to complete the survey. Then we motored on to Trig Island where we anchored and all of us got out and on to the island. It was a great tour of all the islands in the atoll that are above water and dry.A great way to spend a Saturday that started out as a day of shoveling. The sand will still be there on Monday.