Chile: Part 3

I was a bit disappointed when I went through this last folder of pictures. The area of the island where they were taken is called Plazoleta El Yunque. El Yunque is the name of the highest peak on the island that rises abruptly behind Cumberland Bay where the town is located. The translation then is roughly "small plaza (think town square) of the mountain". Plazoleta is spectacular old growth native forest, latticed with small streams that gently trickle through the ferns and around the giant roots of the ancient trees. This area also houses the highest concentration of hummingbird nesting known on the island. I tried taking pictures of nests and females on the nests, but that really didn't work so well. Turns out tiny birds that nest in the upper canopy are hard to photograph with a point and shoot.

The lighting was horrible the day I was taking pictures and thus washed out the colors. Couple that with a camera lens fogging internally due to passing showers that brought large swings in temperature and humidity, and my pictures just do not do justice. But, I will share nonetheless and at the very least you can get a sense of the uniqueness of the flora and the beauty of this island.

This is the best picture I took of the old growth, just doesn't do it justice though.

To get an idea of the scale of this plant look at the upper left corner for one of our local partners with a red backpack.

When large trees fall and leave openings in the canopy in riparian areas this plant takes off.

Chile: Part 2

As promised, round two of pictures. Some of the pictures below were taken by my coworker, as noted. There apparently will be a round 3 becasue I haven't even got to the folder with the old growth forest pictures yet! Enjoy.

This was the first island I have worked on with a permanent year round community. It was certainly a different experience than being on an unpopulated island, especially given most of our work was being conducted in the small town. The main "industry" there is artisanal lobster fishing, which like other places in the world with commercial fisheries (think AK), leads to a seasonal influx of activity and people during the fishing season. I was there in the off-season, when lobster was closed, so the fisherman that were still around were spending their days repairing boats, building lobster traps, and/or doing odd jobs to get by until the lobster season opened. There is also alot of subsistenance fishing that goes on and I certianly enjoyed the fresh fish and octopus!

I will not go into detail here, but the people there are hardy and have lived through tragedy. The large destructive earthquake that hit Chile in early 2010 created a tsunami that directly impacted the islands, killing many and destroying a large portion of the town. It was certainly moving to hear the locals tell of their experiences. This link is to a short slideshow one of our conservation partners put together shortly after the tsunami to help spread the word about what happened and raise funds for the community, it gives a good overview of the event with before and after pictures as well as some great pics of the boats/lobster traps. I highly recommend taking a look: JF Tsunami

Cumberland Bay today; you can see the on going construction in the foreground.

We joined our local conservation partners for some outreach at the 'Dia de los ninos' event. These girls were adorable, but I wasn't fast enough with the camera to catch the better angle showing the dog under the table eating the crayons they were dropping.

Chileans love to BBQ. (Photo: Erin Hagen)

What is the best appetizer at a BBQ....why Chori-pan of course! (Photo: Erin Hagen)

Even though it wasn't lobster season, they decided I couldn't visit without having some. Although it wasn't fresh, it was certainly delicious. (Photo: Erin Hagen)

Locs.  (Photo: Erin Hagen)

The dogs there made me smile. They came in all shapes and sizes and seemingly infinite combinations. This little guy looked to be golden retriever and corgi. He liked to follow me around and chase off any other dogs that came by.

Chile: Part 1

Two months in Chile...time sure does fly. They say pictures speak louder than words, so here are a few cliff notes and the first round of pictures from my trip. I will do another post with more of my favorites and will also add others to the slideshow.

I left in June for Chile, spent two months on an island 300+ miles offshore. It was winter, so it rained a lot and was cold. The island is incredibly beautiful and rugged. The native wildlife were breathtaking. The locals were welcoming and tried to be patient while I stumbled through my Spanish. Our project had some struggles, but overall was a success. Enjoy the pics:

On approach. 

The runway literally ends...

The Critically Endangered Juan Fernandez Firecrown, the only island endemic hummingbird in the world.