Well, today is my last day on the Farallon Islands, and I honestly cannot believe that the last eight weeks has gone by so quickly. I’ve spent today tying up loose ends, packing, and doing my various studies–rhino daily checks and PIGU breed.
Tomorrow, Hannah and I will be boarding “Mi Vida,” a 42′ sailing yacht whose skipper is a member of the volunteer Farallon Patrol, and heading out to Alameda, where the boat docks. Then we will unload all of the trash and recycling from the island and drive up to the PRBO offices to finish cleaning things up.
In some ways, I am ready to go home–I want to eat ice cream, see Harry Potter, little things like that. In other ways though, I know I’m really going to miss this place. Just two days ago, for example, twelve Humpback Whales parked themselves in Fisherman’s bay and proceeded to feed en masse for over an hour. Watching animals that huge and that close is an amazing experience. This whole island is an amazing experience, and I am truly fortunate that I got the opportunity to come here for so long, to work with the people (and the animals!) here, and to see all the things that I have seen. It has been the greatest experience of my life, and certainly a formative one.
The forecast tomorrow is for smooth sailing, so I can only hope the weather holds. By tomorrow evening, I will be back in civilization, dealing with traffic, waiting in line, and other people. It certainly will be different!
Well, that’s all for now.
Best,
Eleanor