more pics

Posted by Alyssa Howlett , Thursday, May 27, 2010 6:36 PM

MORE PICS :0)

i love bentonite and getting lost

Posted by Alyssa Howlett 6:26 PM

The past three days I have been out on the field! It has been really cool but really tiring. I have done so many things that I would never do regularly, it has been great. Yesterday, we went to Greybull and looked at the Mesa Verde Formation and I got to use my rock hammer for the first time! It is so fun to beat up rocks! Ha! We mapped it and looked at the formation that we have been learning about. It is really exciting to learn about these things in a book and then actually getting to see them, it is so cool!

Two nights ago, a couple of us decided to go on a hike. We went up the really steep cliff right by our camp that we had been looking at for the past 4 days. It ended up being really steep and kinda scary, but so worth it. The view and the experience was AMAZING! We could see for miles and miles! It was sunset time so we got to see the sun set. Again, so pretty. I was tiered though climbing the side of a steep mountain, I got red mud everywhere! Boots officially not clean anymore! Then we went to the huge chimney rock. It is a huge land mark in this area and I touched it and climbed up a side kinda and did the whole “king of the world” thing. One of the guys climbed up the side a little and then threw down a rock with sweet laminations (strips) in it. We all like ran to the rock and were ooing and awing over it, I love geeking out about rock with these guys, it is great. I don’t feel like the nerd, since we are all nerds! :) After that we mad our way back to camp. On the way back we ending up getting lost in the fields with all the fences and one stream to cross, we ran into some hourses (on the other side of a fense that goodness and it got really dark. On the plus side we could see the stars, and it was AMAZING!!! So pretty! We finally made it to the road after climbing about 4 fences and hiking through fields. Then at 10:30pm (three hours after we left) we made it back to camp! WOW crazy, but so fun, and a great memory.

Yesterday we spent all day in the field looking at one formation, the Frontier. We got the strike and Dip of the rock and then fond the base of the rock formation and started looking at each bed about what it is composed of, and then measuring the thickness of the formation. We got into groups of four, I am with three boys, Derek, Joe, and Anthony. We are such a fun group Joe is crazy. Anthony is hilarious and Derek is really smart, then there is me, the mom. I hold everything and wrangle them together. But intern they look out for me. We climb and slide down a tone of steep beds and they were always making sure I was ok. We ate lunch with a gorgeous view of the Big Horns. I didn’t really think about until I took a second to realize what an experience it was. We did the same thing through 3 members of the frontier formation and then headed home. WE got back and then had homework to do and worked with my group analyzing our notes and drawing the strat column. It was a late night of working. BOOO.

Today was HOT! We were out in the field again all day today Looking at the Gypsum Spring, Sundance, Morrison, and Cloverly Formations. We were in our groups again, Group NINE baby. We covered so much ground today, (climbing up down up across down up across down up down up). It was insane to look back and see how far we went. I was wearing my tank top and then had my t-shirt around my neck. Only my shoulders got a little red. I COATED my body in sunscreen. I am smart. :) The boys found me a flower too! I collected squid fossils and pearl/clam fossils they are cool. And at the end we climbed a cliff covered in Bentinite (which is basically really think mud covered in a crust that looks like grey popcorn. I love Bentinite. I slid/climb the side then at the top Joe and I made a Bentinite Castle as our marker since we have to pick up there tomorrow.

We hoped back in the vans and drove to Dirty Annies and THE BEARD (that is our name for our professor) bought us all ice cream! It was so nice!

We are just hanging out. I am getting used to this and other than some new adjustments some aspects of life, I am really enjoying my time here. It is great and perfect way to spend my summer!

water

Posted by Alyssa Howlett , Monday, May 24, 2010 10:40 PM

I showered today!!!!!!!!!
it has been raining all day, ahhhhhh
we did lecture all day boooo
but we had cake at dinner!
and we blew a fuse trying to warm up our room with hair dryer hahaha
end of day 2

Three Parts of the Epic Journey West!

Posted by Alyssa Howlett , Sunday, May 23, 2010 11:43 PM

Hello, I have made it. I am here. And woah baby it has been a journey.

Part 1: The journey to Rapid City South Dakota (our stop on night 1)
Mom and I woke up at 5 am and got ready, snagged some cheerios and left for ISU (after stopping to get ourselves a pop of course) at 5:50. Mom helped me unload my 2 large duffels and my sleeping bag and hung out with me. We scoped out the crowd and were just our regular mom and al (HI) selves. Then after mom left ☹ we got in the vans and BAM I was driving! It was crazy, I felt like I was in a truck/coach bus! We had to pick some other people up and we ended up leaving around 7 am north on I-35. We became quite a spectacle on the interstate 4 white 15 passenger vans all in row. But in them was nice, we only had about 3-5 people per van, so it was quite roomy. (We had to bring that many vans out to haul the students at camp).

But we went north for a while, jamming out and I got the swing of driving, it was pretty fun, I actually got compliments on how my passengers were glad they got me as a driver because I was cool! Score! We went west on I-90 and were rockin in MN. (fyi: I honked and cheered as we crossed into every new state, I am that cool) Right as we got into South Dakota (SD) we stopped to fill up and ate at McDonald’s. We stopped and ate and got to know more people and bonded. I moved with Lisa (my friend) into the head ladies car and road with her the rest of the way out with her. There is nothing in SD by the way… it made me think of the Dixie chicks song cowboy take me away :0) but it was kinda cool that it was open fields of nothing. At about 2-3 pm… I started to die- we had no AC in our van and it was super hot. I ended up laying on the bench with my shirt rolled up, capri’s rolled up, listening to jonas brothers, drinking from my camelpak, trying to be cool. I was tired and hot and bored and not into the journey to the edge of earth that it seemed we were embarking on. But after a quick pit stop Lisa and I watched Sweet Home Alabama. It passed the time for sure but was hard to hear with all the windows down and people going crazy singing on the walkie-talkie but again it was cool.

But then… we made the epic decision to stop at WALL DRUG!!! It was being advertised for the past 300 miles with ridiculous signs... it advertised free ice water! Wooo! So we stopped, I was pumped. We walked around for a bit, I tried on some hats… it was nice. Back in the car we drove and there were some intense storm (thank goodness I was not driving!) We made it to our campsite about 6 ish and it was pretty nice for a campsite. It had real bathrooms and showers with a cool “play area” we played knockout and hung out it was really nice. Dinnertime came around and we decided to ‘go big’ and take a trip to “On the Boarder”. We got margaritas and actually got to know more people and tell stories it was fun! When we got back to camp we played card games, and one called mafia. It is more of a role-playing game and we were laughing and we got to know all 15 people real well. Once it started to rain we ran to the tents, but your friend here, me, ran to the van were I slept. I busted out my sleeping bag and got all cozy.

Part 2: To Wyoming Driver!
We woke up the next morning and got our $3 pancakes from the fancy camping site. The cool old man in-charge made me a special Sponge Bob pancake holding an ISU sign, gave it to me and winked. I guess I have the charm. He was great. :0) We then… WENT TO MOUNT RUSHMORE!!!!!!! My first time ever! It was sooo cool! I was so excited! We drove 30 min to get there and then I took picture galore! It was really cool! We took a big group pic and walked around together. My group was so much fun! But of course all I was thinking about was National Treasure 2 and finding treasure. We then got back to camp and hit the road. I drove with two boys in the car! We jammed in the car and had a great time geeking out about rocks! It was really great! And the trip got more fun too since it was more rolling hills then flatness. And BOUNUS it was 75 mph woo! Party! Once we where in Wyoming it was like a whole new place! Wide Wide Wide open spaces, so pretty! I could imagine cowboys riding like the wild west! We stopped for lunch and I rocked the van, I am pro, really, mom and dad I want a van for school, thanks. I then took the passenger site for the end of the trip. We saw mountains and again so cool! We then made the treck up the big horns. Cool, but scary ahhh! So twisty and almost barfy. Once we got to the top it was snowing. Great. It reminded me of Narnia. Cause it was. We reached 8000 ft and then after like a zillion hours started are journey down. Again, SO PRETTY! Then at 4pm (mtn time) WE MADE IT TO CAMP!!!!!!

Part 3: I so can’t do this
We pulled in and started unloading our things… I am in VERY VERY VERY rustic baric. With port-a-potties and shower room on each end of camp. I was putting my things in my room and had a slight freak out. It is EXTREMELY different then what I am used to and will be a for sure challenge and adventure. I am excited but boy will I have stories.
For dinner we had chicken and beans, pretty good meal! We hung out and then talked about camp from 7-9. After that we ran back to our baric in the pouring rain. And then journeyed to the wash-house (with my HEAD LAMP) to wash our faces. We have no hot water so yeah on going on day 3 with no shower!!!!! Meet the new Alyssa! We are now sitting in our baric talking and hanging out. Start tomorrow at 8 am and we are just getting lectured to.

More about my first night and first day later! Have to head to bed so I can get up at 6:30! Woo! Night LOVE YOU!!!! ☺

The start of my great adventure west!

Posted by Alyssa Howlett , Thursday, May 20, 2010 1:15 AM

I am about to leave for Shell, Wyoming!! Here, I will be attending Iowa State’s Geology Field Camp for 6 weeks. It is located along U.S. Highway 14, two miles east of Shell, Wyoming, on the western flank of the Big Horn Mountains.

Mom and I are heading to Ames on Friday afternoon and I am planning to meet up with some Theta sisters on Friday night for dinner. I officially leave for the great west on Saturday bright and early at 6:30 am! Woo baby, getting a jump-start on the drive out I guess! I am actually one of the cool kids at camp that is able to drive one of the four 15 passenger vans, so I will get the privilege or driving out to camp, as well as around to different sights while at camp. I am for sure going to have the coolest van ever, but I mean that was a given. The Al Van will be well equipped with my always rockin’ jams, a light show thanks to my new flashlight, and of course sweet microphones to sing into.

The camp that we are heading too has permanent “dorms” (aka cabin-ish shelters) that are rustic, and have bunk beds and chests of drawers. I will have a “bathroom” where there are sinks and showers and two brand new toilets! (hooray for at least a little indoor pluming) We have outhouses as well. :/ We will be at this base camp for most of the time, but we will be camping in tents occasionally as well.

There are about 25 of us going to camp this summer, and actually we have around 6 girls! The weather there ranges from snowy during the first week or two to hot, 100°F days during the last couple of weeks, so I am prepared for it all with many layers and clothes ranging from shorts and tank tops to my winter coat.

I got a couple new things for this adventure to the Wild West that are super cool: a headlamp (yes it straps to my forehead… it is sweet), a camel pack (to carry around water in my…), day pack (thank you brother for letting me borrow it), a sporknife? (Charlie got be a pink utensil that is a spoon on one end, a fork on the other, then a knife edge on one of the fork tongs.. in case I have to kill and eat off the land, I am ready), a pink swiss army knife (my mom and dad got this for me, so I am always ready and it even has my initials on it!), a rock hammer (that is just so everyone knows recently painted with silver sparkles all over it, so it is bejeweled and amazing) and of course my boots (they are legit and pretty gosh darn sweet hiking boots).

I am really excited to head out there! It is going to be different, but I am sure my adventure will be filled with a lot of fun stories and memories!

:)

My address to mail things to me is: Iowa State Geology Field Station, 1800 U.S. Highway 14E, Shell, WY 82441

Getting Ready

Posted by Alyssa Howlett , Sunday, May 16, 2010 11:04 AM

I have been getting ready by packing up things and doing some unique shopping (compared to my usual trips) by purchasing a field notebook, rock hammer, and hiking boots. The rock hammer is still sparkling and unused but I have been wearing my stylish hiking boots around the house and around Geneva to get them broken in. I am getting everything organized and packed to leave this Friday for Iowa State, then leave from ISU for Wyoming on Saturday morning.