The REACH students, hailing from both Port Susan and Stanwood/Camano Island middle schools, assembled in late September in Everett to depart for an island they knew well, Camano Island, it was practically their back-yard. They then sailed through Deception Pass to spend their second night at the state park, in Bowman Bay. Along the way the students kept focus on the study they chose, to determine if more nitrates (a nutrient) in an area would mean less Zooplankton (in numbers). The students held watch meetings twice daily to share information and determine the best sampling, sailing and camping plan given the current weather conditions and data collection needs. This led the students to wonder what else directly effects the zooplankton population, in addition to nitrates. There were a handful of pre-seasoned salty student-sailor-scientists aboard for their second Expedition, and proved their familiarity with the Carlyn and the science sampling gear early on. If you follow the cruise tracks for each day, you will learn more about the REACH expedition, and about Nitrates in the water.

Day 1 of 3 Everett to Camano Island State Park

The first day of the expedition provided a beautiful day of sailing and sampling through Saratoga Passage and up to Camano Island State Park. The students were savvy, quickly setting up their sampling gear, collecting their data and getting the boat back underway was a smooth operation. Often this takes a group two or three days to begin to work so fluidly together. Then came the best catch of the day. The students had been collecting buckets of water to use onboard, and came upon a Melibe, also known as a lion nudibranch. To add to the lion like marine creatures captured that day, the students picked up a lions mane jelly with the deck wash bucket. The melibe is a gentle 'sea slug' that seems to swing from side to side in a vertical position as they move. These melibe's are not an easy catch, while most of the students aboard, which live in the area and frequent the water, have never seen these small translucent creatures!

Day 2 of 3  Camano Island State Park to Bowman Bay (through Deception Pass)  (Click to view cruise track image),

The students woke up on 'Jellyfish Island', and had planned to navigate through Saratoga Passage, then through Skagit Bay and through Deception Pass. The Carlyn can pass under Deception pass during favorable tidal speeds. As the pass provides only a narrow channel between the Straight of Juan de Fuca an the entrance to Skagit bay, the water that is funneled into the area between Whidbey Island and Camano Island, the water is forced at a considerable clip during maximum flood and ebb tidal changes. The students eagerly too the challenge of determining the optimal time of passage for the Carlyn, a little after 2:00 pm that day. That meant for a speedy departure from the campsite in the morning and precise timing as they sailed north to the Pass.

The students were able to make it to Deception pass withing moments of their estimate, a certain feat for anyone traveling solely under sail power and variable wind conditions!!  A veteran student took the helm as the sails were dropped and she took the boat under the bridge. The Carlyn came out the other side, into small standing waves, a beach landscape on to the south, driftwood and small, steep islands norht of pass. The students needed a bottom sample to complete their suite of data, and determined Bowman Bay would be ideal. They were able to not only get a bottom sample with sediment, worms, small shells and a brittle star, but also a bit of sea lettuce for dinner (Ulva lactuca, a green algae that thrives in the waters of Bowman Bay and entirely edible!).

Day 3 of 3 Bowmand Bay to Port of Anacortes  (Click to view cruise track image)

This day became stormy early on, and you can see that Bowman Bay is quite protected from most wind, so the students prepared their sampling gear as they had for their previous stations. Once out in Rosario's Straight, the students noticed a gradual decrease in the barometric pressure, and quickly determined that a front was going to come through, quickly.  The visual indications of the weather was what salty sailors call a 'messy day at sea', where the waves not particularly high, yet not consistent; sloshing around as if they were in astirred up bathtub. Then it began to rain. Sure, we have seen a lot of weather on Puget Sound in all seasons, but this day called for some salty crackers to calm the belly. It seemed to work, as we headed into Anacortes, making Monkeys fists (a knot generally used to weight the end of a heaving line, which is tricky at the start, yet can be used as a necklace, key chain etc. at the finish. The cook group in command of determining what was for lunch, happened to be a few, not only well traveled  students, but also students who had sailed on Carlyn the previous year, and picked the perfect meal to end a rocky, rainy day in the Sound. Piping hot, if not authentic, Minestrone soup. Thanks!!!!

Monkeys Fist---If you would like to make one, a diagram and instructions are below.

The Data Results:
Sample Site      Nitrate (ppm)       Zooplankton (ml)
Gedney Isl.           .1                              8
Saratoga Psg.      .1                             23
Skagit Bay            .1                             77
Bowman Bay       .2                             35
Rosario Straight   n/a                           55

What does this data mean? How does the presence of Nitrate  (a nutrient) affect Zooplankton in the water?

Nitrate is a nutrient that is found naturally in small amounts in aquatic ecosystems (marine and freshwater), and when found in large quantities can cause a plankton 'bloom', a rapid growth in the plankton population. This can create a mat of plankton at the surface of the water, looking like a colored ooze that works to block the suns rays from fully penetrating the water, using up other nutrients in the water, and causing low levels of dissolved oxygen when the plankton die, sink and then decompose. The students believed that since Nitrogen was present in surface water, there would be more primary producer (phytoplankton) than zooplankton, eventually leading them to their hypothesis. The level of nitrate change that was found were not in full support or rejection of the hypothesis, as the amount of Zooplankton per site varies quite a lot, where the amount of Nitrogen does not.

Monkeys Fist How To

1.Begin by wrapping the cord around four fingers. Make 3 revolutions.

2. Go between your middle and ring ringer and wrap the cord three times around the center of the first loops.

3. It might be easier to remove your middle and ring fingers while doing this.

4. Insert the marble and make the final three wraps.

5. Once all of the wraps are complete, carefully tighten the loops. I like to use a small screw driver to help pull the ropes.

If you would like, you can leave a long loop in the middle wraps. Tie an overhand knot and use it as a key ring or loop it on your backpack.

I clip off the free ends very close to the ball and tuck them in so that they are invisible.