The Yak Shack Forum

...on a field trip to look at barnacles, so I will "see" you all in a couple of days... hopefully by the time I get back HP SS will have started to appear...

Kate  ;D

How long are you going to be gone :'( :'(

Only a couple of days

Be back soon ;D

Barnacles :o.....well that is certainly something you don't hear everyday.  Good luck with that tell Billy the Barnacle I said whazzzzzup.

I wish I was off for a few days, the waiting may drive me crazy someone better get some boxes or cases Fri, I don't think I can wait til next week to see breakdowns and images.

But the cases were just shipped a day or two ago! :o  For all we know, Artbox has staggered the shipping and some orders may not even have gone out yet.

It always seems like someone gets there cases a day or two before everyone else.  I remember when star wars heritage came out there were a couple people who had cards listed on ebay 2 days before the release date, just hoping we get to see a few of the cards!  Even if it isn't a shacker.

I can't wait to see the cards, too.  I think MPC was the first person to get update card and put up auctions.  Well, we'll just have to keep checking the Shack and eBay! :D  It's going to be a lonnnnnng weekend.

Ooops, apparently it's going to be a long week, now that Anna's post in the SS section confirms that cases will be shipped today, Monday and Tuesday.

I'm back, and I found some barnacles, though none named Billy :o Had a nice time, did heaps of driving (over 1000kms), got a bit wet and a bit cold, and am now safe at home, in my pjs and about to feast on pumpkin soup and irish cream fudge...

Soup and fudge?? Well, I guess everyone different. I just grab some chips and a soda after a long trip or drive ;D

Not together!  ;D My mum made pumpkin soup for tea, and then I ate some fudge that I bought while I was on my trip.  I drove for about 5 hours yesterday, so it was a nice sugar hit  :D

 :rofl:

Sorry

This is the best thing about field trips, especially marine ones although I don't know exactly where/how you carried out your trip... after days of tramping around everywhere and all the hard work there's nothing better than a good soup and some sweeties and then a relax watching a good film all curled up on the sofa... and really feeling like you deserve the rest too! Awesome work!

All I did was drive around to heaps of beaches along the Victorian coast during low tide, trying to find barnacles...took me two days to find any!

Yet again I am off on another trip (about the 10th one this year). Ill be away a lot longer this time, about 10ish days. Im heading up through the middle of NSW, then across to the coast, then visiting a different beach every day to collect more barnacles.

I prob wont have a lot of internet access while Im away, but I will try to check in when I get the chance (ill have my laptop with me).

Hope every one had a great christmas, all the best for the new year, and ill see you in just under two weeks.  ;D

Have a great time Blackcat and keep safe and we will all see you when you get back

Ok, checking in very briefly. Its early morning new years eve, and im currently in Port Macquarie which is a fair way north of Sydney (I live In Melbourne which is an 8-10 hour drive from Sydney). Its been hot, with a couple of days around 38degrees when I was in Dubbo and Tamworth (home of country music). Ive got lovely sunburn...strange patches on my back, and burnt achilles  :-\ Having a good time though..started collecting samples yesterday, found the hugest barnacle (about 4cm tall), but managed to remove part of a fingernail in the process of prising it off the rock...its very hard to type when you cant use one of your index fingers.

Happy new year to everyone. Hopefully I can check in again in a few days.  ;D

Kate

For when you get back to civilisation ie the internet Happy New Year Kate  ;D

Made it back to the internet again! Im at a motel with a casino and several restaurants, most of which are closed.

Not the best day to be doing fieldwork on the beach. 45+ degrees (which im told is over 100 F), and I was on the beach in the fall sun, lots of sun, and not a chance to actually go in the water. It was quite horrible, and im glad its over, only 3 to 4 more days to go, then i get to go home sweet home  ;D

I'm Back!!!  ;D

Very glad to be home, details of trip, and maybe some photos if youre lucky ( :P) to follow.

Kate

Alrighty, the photo story begins...

We left Melbourne on Boxing Day, heading for Dubbo, and on the way passed "the dish" used to communicate when the moon was first landed. Its huge!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/PC260305.jpg)

We moved on to Tamworth, home of country music and the big Golden Guitar
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/PC280330.jpg)

Then on towards Port Macquarie, and the never ending stretches of road; the good old Aussie outback
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/PC280333.jpg)

Arrived in Nambucca Heads, and promptly encountered my first tropical storm; the hail stones were huge, and the water that came down was amazing, and the wind! The motel actually lost an aviary with all the birds inside, no idea where it went  :o
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/PC280339.jpg)

Passed through a place called Green Cape on the way home, the most amazing view
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/P1030349.jpg)

Then at last, a sign that I was almost home; the Welcome to Victoria sign
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/P1040355.jpg)


And for those that wonder just what the barnacles I work on look like, this gives you some idea...
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DSCN0324.jpg)

enjoy ;D

Wow!  Thanks for sharing the pictures from what looks like a fantastic trip.  Much, much more fantastic than any current scenery from the Northeastern United states at the moment, I can assure you  :D.   

You must really have a passion for barnacles to keep up with such work, but it obviously has lead to some nice adventures.  What kind of research are you doing exactly?
Cheers.

It was a fantastic trip, but Im so glad to be home. We ended up travelling 3600km!

Im doing my phd, started 10 months ago, and Im looking at the genetic relationships between a whole heap of different species here is Aus, among other things. Also looking at relationships between populations, as barnacles have a larval phase, which disperse via currents etc...

Alrighties, Im off on another trip, this time to south Australia....Leaving tomorrow morning 6am, will be gone for 10 days. Hopefully will be able to check in occassionally....have configured my internet to allow me to log in while out and about, hope it works...

"cya" all soon

Have a safe trip!!!  ;D
And remember!! Pictures are a must!!!  8)

have a great trip stay safe and see you when you get back

Just checking in briefly from Ceduna, in the western region of South Australia. Its absolutely beautiful here, though there isnt really much to do...its right on the water though. We were in Port Augusta yesterday (about 400km east of here), sitting in our motel room, when we heard the most amazingly loud noise. We dashed outside to see a procession of army tanks driving down the street! thats not something you see every day; apparently the army barracks there had recently expanded, and so all the new equipment was being moved in, by driving it up the main street. Ill post photos when I get home; Ive got my laptop hooked up to dial-up in the motel room, but it would take hours to upload pics.
Talk to you all again soon

Im back! 4500km later, we arrived home tonight, very tired, but looking forward to being back in my old bed. Ill get around to putting some photos up some time tomorrow; at the moment Im facing the lovely task of unpacking, plus I just dropped a knife in the kitchen and sliced my toe  :'(

My dogs were over the moon when we got home; Millie managed to get her tongue in my mouth  :P havent seen the kittens yet, hopefully can collect them tomorrow

Yowser - get that toe some attention!

You look to have had a great time :D it looks much greener than I expected :)

New south wales was green, South Australia tends to be more red (except at the beach), sort of like this, which is a mountain being dug away for Iron ore
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/P2120393.jpg)

Areas of Australia are colour coded...? :rofl: how very helpful... ;D

And like the colours suggest, you try to avoid the places that are coded red, like South Australia :rofl:

Juuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuust kidding! ;D

Ok, so the photo story is about to begin...ill try to make the pictures smallish so that dont take too long to load...

A view of the Australian outback; not much there, just the occasional hill
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/b273fa2b.jpg)

Old railway station at Port Pirie
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/7230ffd4.jpg)

Jetty and Bridge at Port Augusta at the top of the gulf; beautiful spot for swimming
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/f8b3b607.jpg)

A view of the Flinders Ranges; they always have this cool violet tinge
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/f2523395.jpg)

The army arrived in town while we were there; thats not something you normally see (tanks driving down the main street that is)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/221104b2.jpg)

A gorgeous stumpy-tailed lizrard out near Ceduna; they sit in the middle of the road so you have to be careful not to run over them
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/07c45b78.jpg)

Skippy!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/skippy2.jpg)

A view of cactus beach (a well known surfing haven which the sufers like to keep quiet); pic taken from up on the cliff
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/85ea988b.jpg)

One of the beaches I collected barnacles at; had a wicked surf, I spent two hours watching waves and dashing out, grabbing a barnacle and then running back in. Got very we feet. View was spectacular
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/40bec219.jpg)

You know you are in the middle of no where, literally, when the highway sign points you north to one state, and east to another; this was definately worth a photo
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/af721135.jpg)

That blob of land you see in the background is Australia (the mainland); I took a day trip to Kangaroo Island (and didnt see a single live skippy)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/lookingtoMainlandAustralia.jpg)

The Giant Koala (us Ausssies seem to like things big; ie the big pineapple, big banana, giant galah etc)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/GiantKoala.jpg)

The kittens; I picked them up yesterday. Bella (the white one) doenst have a kitten face anymore  :-[
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/KittensComeHome.jpg)

Bella, all grown up; she hasnt grown out of her habit of howling in the early hours, or of slamming her paws against the food bowl so that food lands on the floor (where she eats it), and makes a heap of noise in the process  :P
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v223/blackcat20/DSCN0921.jpg)


Enjoy  ;D

Great pictures Kate!  Thanks for sharing. ;D  Wow, Bella's growing up fast! :o

She grew really fast! I was only away 10 days, and she got heaps bigger, and much more mature. though shes still only about 13ish weeks old, so technically a kitten.

When I rang my friends to see if I could pick her up, they asked for another week  :rofl: When I said no, they asked when I was going away next....Im having them over for dinner at the end of the week so they can have a reunion  ;D

Thanks Kate!! I love Skippy!!!
OMG!!! I can't believe how much the kittens have grown!!!  :o :o

ive replaced the skippy photo, should be easier to see

That's a much better picture of Skippy. ;D

Yet again Im on a trip away from home, this time spending a week in the nations capital (canberra).

Its cold, lonely (im here on my own), and finding a place to get decent food it hard...no idea what Im doing for breakfast... my internet on my laptop wont work, and there is one internet computer in the "library" which I had to wait 45min to use while an old lady browsed ebay.... absolutely nuts.

Anyway, enough of my winging; POTC is on tv so Im off to have a peek before settling in for the night.

Kate