Week 3: Ample Amounts of Algae!

Monday:

Monday was a fresh start after a well-rested weekend to push us into our next topic: algae! We met our professor Sarah Henkel and our teaching assistant Miram before diving straight into the realm of greens, reds, and browns, oh my!

The section started with 2 introductory lectures before going to the lab and practicing identification. We had 17 algae and classified them by phylum, thallus, branching, holdfast, and reproduction (if we could see the difference!). We took a short lunch break before returning to learn about the history and evolution of algae through primary and secondary endosymbiosis and how these led to the formation of red algae (Rhodophytes), brown algae (Ochrophytes), and green algae (Chlorophytes). Sometimes, red alga look extremely similar to green algae, but it can always be differentiated by pouring boiling water on the algae which reveals its true color. The different colors each algae produces is specific to its phyla and the different accessory pigments located within the cells of the algae.

After this lecture, the class was divided into 9 different groups and assigned different phyla with varying characteristics. With these algae in mind, we ventured to Boiler Bay for our first algae field trip! We returned many of our beloved marine invertebrates to their rocky shore home and began learning about the different types of algae and how to identify them. We frantically took notes on the different varieties of algae and collected the majority of the genera we were assigned to find before heading back to the lab to clean-up and rest for the following days activities.


Sarah and Laura showing off the cool new algae we're learning about at Boiler Bay!


Annette teaching us how to identify algae species in the field.

Tuesday:

To start off the day, we had two lectures featuring the topics of the life history and reproduction types of algae and green algae (Chlorophyta). Since we were unable to collect a large number of green algae from our field trip to Boiler Bay Monday night, we had our lab on the brown algae (Ochrophyta) and worked on determining the species in front of us. A dichotomous key, glossary, book on algae, and algae guide were given to us. In the evening, we geared up for our field trip to Seal Rock. Luckily, the path to the site was paved saving us the scrapes and bruises going down the cliff face.  Once at the site, we learned the different rock names, such as Elephant Rock, and determined which ones were the oldest vs. youngest. Half the groups went with Annette and half with Sarah to learn about the various algae species at Seal Rock. Everyone had fun climbing on the rocks surrounding the tide pools and finding our species. It was amazing to see harbor seals and sea lions swimming in the water. Also, a few sea lions slept on a rock with the water level being around 5 feet below the top. 

A sea anemone eating market squid eggs (Doryteuthis opalescens) in a patch of Neorhodomela larix at Seal Rock.

Megan's group thought they found Gloiopeltis furcata, but it turned out to be a Fucus spp. in its diplontic reproductive stage!

Annette showing us how to identify algae at Seal Rock!

Wednesday:

Today we spent several hours in the lab learning to use dichotomous keys to identify different algae species!  Even though it was difficult at times, Miram and Sarah definitely helped steer us in the right direction.  We had to use both compound and dissecting scopes, so we were also developing those skills.  We also met with Sarah to go over our group project ideas for our treasure taxon before we collect our data on Friday.  Miram also showed us how to press algae, and we had a lot of fun arranging and pressing algae for our projects as well as pressing local flowers and leaves.  With our treasure taxon study proposal due at 9 pm, many groups met up in the library to wrap up that assignment. 

Thursday:

Thursday was the first day this week that the sun was not fully obscured by the clouds and it set a great precedent for today. We finished the last two labs for the section in the morning before attending two lectures. Lunch was two hours which allowed enough time for groups to finish any of their remaining labs and enjoy the sunshine outside. Everyone met back at the lab to review their lab demos for tomorrow’s early morning fieldtrip. Because of the 5:30 a.m. start, each group put together their materials bucket and headed home by 5:00 p.m. The rest of the night was filled with studying for the upcoming finals and the early day to come.

Friday:

Today we woke up before the sun did!  We needed to get to our study sites at Seal Rock and Boiler Bay around low tide, which just so happened to be at 7 a.m.  Factoring in travel time and having enough time to gather data for our studies, we set out from the lab to our respective areas at 5:30 a.m.  We had a lot of fun, though!  Some groups measured pH, some measured the presence of certain invertebrates, and some measured the length of their treasure taxon.  After cleaning up and getting a bite to eat, we went to lecture.  We learned about the effects algae have on the environment and the other plants and critters within it.  Different algae species will be present in different areas depending on the biotic (i.e. herbivore presence) and abiotic factors (i.e. light) present.  Did you know that some sea urchins (like Strongylocentrotus purpuratus) eat algae?  After lecture, each team presented five of the species they collected for their algae type!  Some were long and slimy, some were iridescent, and some were bright, vivid colors!  Sarah and Miram also brought in some delicious snacks, so we celebrated the work of our friends and ourselves in addition to studying for our second batch of section finals.  In the upcoming days, we studied, finished up our treasure taxon projects, and slept in!

Charlie and Haley measuring the blade length of Mazzaella parksii at Seal Rock.

Eric, Emily, and Ashley measuring the invertebrates present near Callithamnion pikeanum groups at Seal Rock.

Week 1- Hello Hatfield!

Monday

Monday was the first day of our term here at Hatfield! There are 27 of us starting our journey to becoming scientists and we are the largest class size in the history of this course being taught. It’s crazy! It was a long day, starting with an orientation to the course and a tour of the facilities. We got to see the lab that we will be calling our second home for the next ten weeks and we learned about life at Hatfield and in Newport. That included learning about Donut Wednesdays, Sailing Wednesdays, Tiki Tuesday, and all the cools spots around town. Then we had our first two lectures of the term about the history of the Oregon coast and why studying marine biology is important. Later in the night we took a “Tsunami walk” going along the tsunami evacuation route to Safe Haven Hill, where a shipping container of supplies sits ready for when “ the Big One” happens. It rained the whole walk and we were soaked when we came back… and the forecast for the rest of the week says it’s supposed to rain. Our night ended with sharing pies and getting to know our classmates who we will be spending a lot of time with and living next to for the next ten weeks. We learned where everyone’s from, their majors, and their dream jobs some of which included being the next Steve Irwin, a racecar driver, and a food critic/geneticist. All in all it was a good (though very wet) first day.

Tuesday

Our second day at Hatfield was the day of our first field trip! In the past years that this course has been taught the field trip days typically meant early mornings catching low tides, but this week our field trips meant late (not that late but still) nights as low tide was forecast for between 5:00 pm and 7:00 pm. So, lucky us because we didn’t have to be at class until 9:00 am every day this week. Our day started off with two lectures, one introducing us to marine invertebrates and the other about phylum Porifera. After lunch our first assignment was already due, and it’s only day two! We then all got dressed in our rain gear and boots not knowing what to expect from our first field trip. We got to Tokatee Klootchman and thankfully it wasn’t raining. We made our way down to the tidepools and got to work searching for any and all invertebrates we could find. We quickly spread out searching for cool inverts. We found many Nucella ostrina (stripped dogwinkle), Anthopleura elegantissima (aggregating anemone), Anthopleura xanthogrammica (giant green anemone), and Pagurus spp. (hermit crab) right off the bat. After a little while the nudies (nudibranchs) began to show up left and right; we found many Hermissenda crassicornis and Rostanga pulchra, which are both very brightly colored species, there were also some Aeolidia papillosa. Some people (Allison) waded up to their waist to get a look at some Pisaster ochraceus. We ended the trip slightly wet, with a large haul of many chitons, snails, hermit crabs, and nudies.

Wednesday

On Wednesday we started our day with a lecture about Cnidarians and Ctenophores which was very interesting. We then headed to the staff lounge at Hatfield for Donut Wednesday. We got to talk to many researchers, NOAA officers, and other professionals in the marine biology field over coffee and donuts. It was awesome! We then went to the lab to work on identifying the many animals we collected the night before at Tokatee. We spent a large portion of our day in lab IDing organisms and starting to work on our notebooks, drawing species. That afternoon we headed for Boiler Bay all geared up for what was supposed to be another rainy day. Luckily when we got there it wasn’t raining anymore. We made the steep climb down to the tide pools and were off searching again for new invertebrate species. We found the glorious Cryptochiton stelleri, which is a GIGANTIC chiton, and people took turns passing around one that was rolled into a ball. We found some new species we didn’t previously have like Tonicella lineata (lined chiton), Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis (green urchin), and a few really cool sea stars. We made our way back up the steep cliff side, at least a few of us were a little sore after the climb. Then we ended our day by bringing our finds back to the lab and putting them into a tank.

Thursday

The day started out with two lectures all about worms. We learned about the many different kinds of worms and their different morphologies and life styles. After lunch we were back in the lab IDing our species we found at Boiler Bay and working more on our notebooks which were due at the end of the week. We worked on drawing species, classifying them and writing descriptions about them. After a few hours of lab work we got geared up for a field trip to the tide flats. We had to be ready to get muddy, so those of us that weren’t wearing proper waders duct taped our rain pants to our boots to keep our boots on and the mud out. Unfortunately, our good luck with the weather came to an end, and it rained while we were out in the field. We made our way out to look for worms, clams, shrimp, and whatever else we could find living deep in the mud. It didn’t take long for people to get stuck and start getting covered in mud. We found a few burrowing shrimp, Upogebia pugettensis and Neotrypaea californiensis. Most of the Upogebia we found had a parasitic isopod under their carapace (Orthione griffensis). When we made our way back to shore some of us opted to wash off in the stream that led into the bay while the rest of us waited until we go back to clean up. When we got back Ashley and Grace's boots were stuck on their feet because there was a lot mud in them! They finally got them off with the help of Eric, Megan, and a hose. We put our specimens in the lab and quickly went home to shower, clean up and rest.

Friday

On Friday we started the day off with a lecture about the phyla Arthropoda (crustaceans and insects) and Tardigrada (tardigrades). Did you know tardigrades can survive in space and maybe even originated there?! After lecture we unfortunately had 25+ mph wind, so instead of our planned trip to Cascade Head we switched a few days around and went to Newport Docks instead. We collected a variety of jellyfish and captured a couple of ctenophores, one of which was one of my favorite invertebrates, the sea gooseberries (Pleurobrachia bachei)! After spending a very, very long time staring at our beautiful, nearly invisible finds we got to work finishing up our scientific drawings and characteristic definitions that were due at 5:00 pm.

Saturday/Sunday

Dr. Sylvia Yamada, a researcher studying the invasive European Green Crab, worked with some volunteers from our class to set up a variety of crab traps. She taught them how to set up, bait, and put out the traps. With a total of about 25, the hope is we can catch some of the invasive crabs and take some measurements. We’ll be back with some of the results next week!

Week 4

Monday: The week began with finishing our trawl reports and turning them in by 9:00. After that we had our final lectures and discussion for the fishes section. At 13:30 study time began and between working on lab notebooks and studying for the section final exam everyone was busily scurrying between the library and the lab.

Tuesday: In the morning there was some time for us to study before sitting down for the exam at 13:00. The general feeling in the room at 12:50 was that we were pretty well prepared yet chronically sleep-deprived. The test went well and afterward students headed to the lab for finishing touches on their lab notebooks due at 18:00

Wednesday: It was time to begin the section on marine macroalgae—after taking the morning off to catch some extra Zs, of course.  We met Allie Barner, the instructor for the section, who enthusiastically introduced us to the different phyla of marine macroalgae and presented their unique evolutionary history and plastid origins. The three phyla of algae evolved from three distinct endosymbiosis events.  The first (primary) endosymbiosis event produced the common ancestor to all eukaryotes.  The second of these events (a second primary endosymbiosis) caused this common ancestor to diverge producing the clade which contains chlorophytes (green algae), rhodophytes (red algae), and land plants. Finally, there was a secondary endosymbiosis event in which a eukaryotic cell engulfed a red algae cell forming the ochrophytes (brown algae).

After that we split into different teams, each tasked with a different set of algae, and prepared for going on a field trip the next morning.

Thursday: Most everyone seemed quite tired as we met up in the lab at 6:00 am to leave on our field trip.  We went to Boiler Bay where each team was tasked with finding a key species of algae and recording is distribution, as well as collecting samples. Upon returning to HMSC, we had a break for elevensies followed by an ID lab and some lectures.  In the lab we were introduced to both micro and macroscopic characteristics used to identify algae using a dichotomous key.  One of these lectures focused on the different life histories found in algae.  

 Identifying the red algae growing on a wall in Boiler Bay's protected intertidal zone.

There are three distinct life history strategies that are observed in algae.  Haplontic life cycles consist of a macroscopic haploid gametophyte, whereas diplontic life cycles consist of a macroscopic diploid sporophyte.  The gametophyte produces haploid gametes, and the sporophyte produces haploid spores.  Haplodiplontic life cycles alternate generations between a haploid gametophytes and diploid sporophytes.  Haploid stages are characterized by having a single copy of each chromosome, and diploid stages are characterized by having two copies of each chromosome.

After our lab and lectures, we learned to press algae for artistic purposes and to preserve specimens.

Friday: Once again we had to get up early in lab by 6:15.  From there we went to Tokatee Klootchman where we collected and took notes on at least two more species of algae in our group.  On this field trip we were shown examples of many of the important algae found in the intertidal.  The rest of the day consisted of one lecture followed by team meetings to design a field study.  These field studies will be conducted on Monday May 1st.

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The three phyla of algae evolved from three distinct endosymbiosis events.  The first (primary) endosymbiosis event produced the common ancestor to all eukaryotes.  The second of these events (a second primary endosymbiosis) caused this common ancestor to diverge producing the clade which contains chlorophytes (green algae), rhodophytes (red algae), and land plants. Finally, there was a secondary endosymbiosis event in which a eukaryotic cell engulfed a red algae cell forming the ochrophytes (brown algae).

The finely branched rhodophyte Ptilota, found by a student at Boiler Bay.

Feather boa kelp (Egregia menziesii), an ochrophyte, found at Boiler Bay.

There are three distinct life history strategies that are observed in algae.  Haplontic life cycles consist of a macroscopic haploid gametophyte, whereas diplontic life cycles consist of a macroscopic diploid sporophyte.  The gametophyte produces haploid gametes, and the sporophyte produces haploid spores.  Haplodiplontic life cycles alternate generations between a haploid gametophytes and diploid sporophytes.  Haploid stages are characterized by having a single copy of each chromosome, and diploid stages are characterized by having two copies of each chromosome.

Welcome to HMSC BI 450!

Today marks week one of our time here at Hatfield for BI 450, it has been very busy but extremely fun. 9 am Monday morning we all migrated the 500 feet from our apartments to the classroom for a tour of the campus and introduction to the staff. We later learned about the landscape of the Oregon coast and why marine biology is important (even though Sally was preaching to the choir).

Students collecting invertebrates at Boiler Bay. On the right is a
boiler from an old ship that crashed here 107 years ago, hence
the name: Boiler Bay. 

Tuesday was more eventful, we began learning marine invertebrate phylums, starting with Porifera -the sponges. We then went out for our first day of fieldwork to Boiler Bay. The tide pools were amazing and rich with biodiversity. Everyone clomped around in their raingear with little cups and sketchily rust scrappers collecting animals. This trip had probably the highest turnover rate of all our trips this week, collecting organisms from crabs to snails to nudibranchs to urchins to chitons and so much more.

Wednesday we learned about anemones, corals and jellies of the phylum Cnidaria then were inaugurated into the HMSC wide tradition of coffee and donut break. Of course free donuts were great, but it was also nice to talk to staff at Hatfield that we otherwise wouldn’t interact with. We learned about their research and helpful hints about the town -such as where to find agates, chanterelles and good hikes. After some lab work and lunch we drove out to Tokatee Klootchman for more fieldwork. This intertidal was harder to find organisms in -especially since we had already collected so many the previous day- but we were able to expand our inventory, including many Aeolidia papillosa and a Hermissenda crassicornis!

Right: Anthopleura xanthogrammica
Left: Chrytochiton stelleri

Thursday was probably the most exciting day of the week. We started the morning off with some awesome worm lectures and then headed off to the mudflats to collect more invertebrates. Before leaving, Sally surprised everyone with some chocolate cake for Miranda’s twenty-first and Sammy’s twenty-second birthdays (thanks Sally!). The mudflats were a blast. The mud was extremely hard to walk through because it was so soft and deep. Almost everyone took a fall or two! The most adventurous of us managed to get all the way to the water’s edge where we were waist deep in mud and had to resort to crawling on our hands and knees to keep from sinking. Despite the challenge, we found tons of worms, crabs, and shrimp that we took back to the lab, along with lots of mud!

Alanna digging for worms!

Friday went a little differently than we had planned. We were supposed to go on a fun hike up to Cascade Head, but the strong winds and heavy rain forced us to change our schedule around. Instead, we had some interesting lectures on Molluscs and Lophophorates, and then lots of lab time to finish up the three notebook entries that were due at the end of the day.

Saturday was Marine Science Day at Hatfield. The education building was packed with booths and exhibits showing off scientists’ research and educating the public about the wonders of the ocean. We took turns telling guests about all of the invertebrates that we had collected in the field this week, which turned out to be a pretty handy study tool for our final next Friday! It was really fun to see everyone so excited about marine biology. David also turned twenty one and got to share his day with Marine Science Day!

While walking on the beach this weekend we found hundreds of stranded Velella velellas due to the high winds on Friday. This was especially interesting because we had just learned about this species in lecture on Wednesday. These jellies have clear ‘sails’ that project out of the water and catch winds to locomote. 50% of the population is born with sails twisted to the right and the other 50% has sails twisted to the left. This means that large winds will separate the population in half to opposite sides of the Pacific ocean.

One Fish, Two Fish, Flatfish, Rockfish

Week 3
Fish
by Isaac Shepard and Levi Vasquez

After a brief introduction to our new (to us) professor Dr. Su Sponagule and TA Miram Gleiber we wasted no time diving into our hectic schedule for the week, full of field excursions, lab activities and lecutres...

Yaquina Bay Beach Seine
Using a large seine net we collected several species of estuary fishes from Yaquina Bay right in front of Hatfield on Monday afternoon.  Two people would carry the large net out into the water until they were nearly chest deep before spreading it out between them and dragging it back ashore, trapping fishes in the process.  Through the torrential downpour we got our first look at the organisms we would be up against for the rest of the week including several species of Cottids (sculpins), a Bay Pipefish (Syngnathus leptorhynchus) and even a juvenile salmon (Family Salmonidae).

                                                                  Beach Seining in Yaquina Bay

Boiler Bay Tidepool Collections
Our second field trip with Dr. Sponaugle consisted of collecting tidepool fishes with hand nets at Boiler Bay. We experienced some difficulties collecting the fishes due to their unwillingness to cooperate. There wasn't much fish diversity in the areas that we collected, so in the end we headed back with buckets full of sculpin.
                                                                      

Issie walks between tide pools at Boiler Bay in search of Sculpins

                                                                                      

                                                                                       Bottom Trawling Aboard the R/V Elakha

Landon, Heidi, Ashley, Rachel, Cat and Melanie aboard
the R/V Elakha

Wednesday we were given an opportunity to conduct a boat based survey from the R/V Elakha, one of OSU's small research vessels based at Hatfield.  With the assistance of Dr. Lorenzo Ciannelli we collected data on the distributions of the flatfish species Parophrys vetulus (English Sole) and Citharichthys stigmaeus (Speckled Sand Dab) within Yaquina Bay.  We were looking to see how size of the fish and density of fishes varied in relation to distance from the mouth of the bay.  This data became the basis for our report for the week.  We were unable to show if densities varied between near mouth and upstream sites due to small sample size.  However, we did detect a significant difference in size structure of English Sole flatfish between upstream and mouth sites in the estuary.  Larger fish were found further upstream while smaller ones were found more towards the mouth.  This excursion was probably one of the highlights of our time here at Hatfield so far.  The weather was beautiful and we all had an excellent time.



Field Trip to the Oregon Coast Aquarium
On Thursday we had a chance to visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium to gather information for our subtidal fish species report. For this report, we each chose a fish species and gathered information such as behavior, habitat, and anatomy, from observation at the aquarium.

A Rockfish (Sebastes caurinus) at the Oregon Coast Aquarium

David and Kat pulling up one of our light traps

Light and Minnow Traps
On Thursday night we deployed light and minnow traps from the dock below the pump house at Hatfield. The light traps were made to capture larval and juvenile fish, and are an original design by Dr. Sponaugle. We retrieved the traps bright and early Friday morning and found that we had captured a few juvenile salmon, sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus), plankton, and an abundance of shrimp.













Throughout the week we spent many hours learning about the anatomy, ecology, habitat, and life histories of many fish that are found in the Pacific Northwest. When not in lecture or the field we were spending time in the lab learning how to identify different fish species, examining plankton, or cataloging some of the different species we had collected from the field.  

During the week we also had three guest lecturers give talks.  On Wednesday Dr. Robert Cowen (the director of Hatfield) gave us a lecture on rocky reefs and kelp forest.  We learned how the fishes in these environments will inhabit different parts of the reef/kelp forest or feed at different times of day so as to avoid competition with each other.

Thursday, Dr. Laurie Weitkamp gave us a lecture on Lampreys.  These parasitic fish are very important to Northwest Native American Culture and are currently threatened with extinction.  We learned that very little is known about the life history and ecology of these fishes but that more research is currently underway to figure out how to save this important organism.

Our last guest lecturer was Dr. Kelly Robinson who taught us about plankton on Friday.  We learned all about how currents, depth, light and nutrient levels can alter plankton distributions.  The amount of biodiversity to be found in plankton is astounding and something that people don't often realize.  From fish larvae, to diatoms, to copepods, to jelly fish, plankton is quite incredible.

Lastly, we got to take a tour of the R/V Oceanus, OSU's large research vessel, on Friday.  We were able to see the main deck, the wheel house, and the big laboratory aboard the vessel.  The Oceanus will be leaving early next week for a four month research cruise down off the shore of California so it was lucky that we were able to squeeze in a tour before it leaves.

The R/V Oceanus heading out to sea a few weeks ago
for a short cruise 

This weekend is being spent catching up on sleep, exploring the coast, and studying for our upcoming exam next Tuesday.  The weather is beautiful here this weekend and we are greatly enjoying a change in pace from our jam-packed week.

Spring 2015 - First Week at Hatfield

Week 1: Welcome and Marine Invertebrates 

Saturday April 4, 2015

By Kaitlin Lebon and Issie Corvi 

Last weekend, after much anticipation, the new set of BI 450 students settled into their new homes.  Our first day consisted of a Hatfield crash course, including tours, orientations, and our first official lecture.  With the basics under our belts, we waited eagerly for our field and lab work to begin. 

Boiler Bay

Vanessa, Ari, and David identifying invertebrates at Boiler Bay

                  Despite the tides not being completely in our favor, we were able to venture out into the intertidal zones of Boiler Bay to explore its populations of invertebrates.  The class eagerly delved into the task of collecting specimens to bring back to our lab for further investigation and identification.  A class favorite was a large red chiton, Cryptochiton stelleri, fondly known as the wandering meatloaf because of its size and mottled color. Other species that were found included the purple sea urchin (Stronglyocentrotus purpuratus), the aggregating anemone (Anthopleura elegantissima), and the kelp crab (Pugettia producta). 

Kat looking for Sipunculids in the roots of seagrass at Boiler Bay  

Kaitlin recording her findings at Boiler Bay

Later that evening we gathered in the dining hall to discuss Oregon geology and to become more acquainted with one another.  We also we treated to pie courtesy of our instructor, Sally Hacker. 

Tokatee Klootchman

A purple Pisaster ochraceus at Tokatee Klootchman 

                  Our second field excursion took us out to Tokatee Klootchman, a site just south of Cape Perpetua.  We continued our task of collecting various intertidal invertebrates.  This site was a favorite for many in the class.  As with past BI 450 classes, we quickly discovered and fell in love with the various species of colorful nudibranchs.  We were also pleased to find that there was a significant population of healthy looking sea stars—encouraging news in wake of the sea star wasting sickness that has been prevalent along the Oregon Coast.

In lecture we learned about sponges, anemones, corals, and jellies. 

The population density at Tokatee Klootchman was incredible - countless Mytilus californianus (mussles), Balanus glandula (acorn barnacle), and Pollicipes polymerus (gooseneck barnacle) (among others) occupied the intertidal. 

Mud Flats of Yaquina Bay

                  Thursday morning we ventured our early in the morning to the local mudflats.  With some last minute words of advice from our instructor Sally Hacker, we were knee deep in mud before we knew it.  Some of us were able to navigate the sticky depths of mud better than others, but in the end we were all able to discover various shrimps and worms to bring back with us. 

Later in lecture we were told about the various types of worms, many of which we had collected that day.

The class after collecting on the Yaquina Bay mud flats. 

Cascade Head

                  By Friday, our good fortune with the weather had ran out.  Our hike up to Cascade Head to view coastal headlands and estuaries was a wet one.  The trail on the way up was very slick and muddy.  Upon arriving at the top of the trail, we quickly took a group photo, and clambered back down to the vans to escape the adverse weather.  Although it would have been better to have had more favorable weather, it was still an enjoyable hike.