Kamchatka 2008 blog

 

We returned yesterday from our long excursion to the east where our work was extremely successful. We were based in an abandoned village, which was a blessing as we were able to sleep under a roof in a ramshackle hut and escape from the mosquitoes. The ferocity of the local mosquitoes was incredible - I've never experienced anything quite like it. They were worse than elsewhere in Kamchatka, and much worse than any tropical rain forest I've worked in. This made being outdoors extremely unpleasant, especially in the evening or close to the river. The village has only one permanent inhabitant, Zyelotok Vassilyevich, the archetypal old man in the woods. He proved to be an able guide and led us to some fantastic old-growth forests that were exactly what we were looking for. He also supplied us with mammoth salmon and trout from the river, so we gorged ourselves until we were sick of the sight of fresh fish. We were also blessed with good weather - the only half day of rain coincided with a rest day, which was excellent timing. As a result we managed to complete a further two and a half plots, although this effort has left the group pretty exhausted. Our plan is to return there at the end of August to complete the third plot and collect some more samples, but only for a few days, which will be much less gruelling.

 

Last night the team went out to dinner to celebrate passing the halfway point in the expedition, after which we joined in with the summer festival in the village. It's been a great relief to return to some home comforts and to dispel the cabin fever. We now have a month remaining out here, and plenty left to do if we're to meet all our objectives. Tomorrow we travel south to survey some birch forests in the upper reaches of the Bystrya river, and we'll return to Esso on the 15th August.