Landfall in Nova Scotia!

Good morning from Digby, Nova Scotia! We made the ferry crossing during the night last night and have awakened to a quiet, still, foggy morning here in Digby. Nova Scotia is just as I might have imagined it. Rocky shores, rugged, foggy, and cool.

Today's plans: Wake up in Digby, Nova Scotia and drive to Grand Pre'...an important village in the Grand Dérangement - Acadian Exodus - and a UNESCO World Heritage site. The village is also made famous by the Longfellow epic poem "Evangeline."

Having a great time in the Bay of Fundy and New Brunswick!

Hello all, wanted to update you on our progress. We arrived Monday night and woke to a foggy Bay of Fundy morning. We slept in and set sail for Grand Manan Island on the ferry and enjoyed the day whale watching and exploring. We had a wonderful time and saw many whales. Stayed the night at Anchorage Provincial Park. The NF Mountain 25 kept us plenty warm and we got a great night's sleep. This morning we continued exploring and found lots of beach glass and flower specimens. Went up to the lighthouse and heard the foghorn UP CLOSE. Very foggy day. We took the ferry back across and moved north to Saint Johns where we are waiting for the midnight ferry to Nova Scotia! We're having a great time!

2012 Bay of Fundy Expedition is ready to go!

We are all packed up and ready to head north to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia for some whale-watching, beach combing, and exploring. The microscope, telescope, scooters, and gear are all ready to go. We will keep you posted on our progress. Stay tuned!

Beachcombing

Walking along the shore. 
Senses peaked, flooded. 

Eyes in the sand, 
Treasure to be found. Once discarded. 

Sea grass giving voice to the wind. 
Waves the soundtrack. 
Dubbed in by high pressure and low, 
Someplace else. 

Hot sand, 
Pockets of seaglass. 

Children following, searching for treasure. 
Feathers, sharks teeth,
Sticks and stones. 

I keep it all in jars and bottles so that they will remember,
Beachcombing. 
The soundtrack of water. 
The hot sand. 

The treasure. 

Easy solar still science experiment you can do with your children: Free Water!

     Often as parents we get asked the curious "why" question that we don't quite know how to answer. One of the possible solutions is to conduct a small, and very easy, experiment and let them see for themselves the direct result of evaporation. At the same time you both will learn a valuable outdoor skill. Creating pure drinking water from nothing.
     Ideally the experiment should begin in the morning or late morning in order to give the sun the best opportunity to demonstrate evaporation clearly. Before you start, there are some supplies you will need:

• A small cup, any cup. Even in the forest you should be able to find something someone threw out like a soda can or plastic water bottle that you can form into a cup. 
• A sheet of plastic from a hardware store or home supply store. This is the stuff you usually would use to protect your furniture from paint splatter. Look for at least 1 mil thickness up to 3.5 mil thickness. 
• Something to dig with. Anything will work, even your hands. 
• Rocks. You'll need a handful of decent sized rocks to support the and one small rock about 1 inch in diameter. 

Now you'll need to find an open area that is in direct sunlight most of the day. Be sure to make sure you have permission to use whichever area you choose.
Now for the fun part! (See attached photos for a visual description)
Step 1: Dig a hole about 2 feet wide and 2 feet long and 6-8 inches deep (or deeper if you can)
Step 2: Place the cup in the center of the hole and cover the entire hole with the plastic sheet.
Step 3: Place rocks/soil on the sheet edges to keep in place then place ONE small rock DIRECTLY over the cup in the center of the plastic.
The last step is the hardest part. It's been really easy up until now...
Step 4: Wait, wait, wait. You may as well go enjoy your day doing something else because the experiment will take a good part of the day.
     At about five o'clock in the afternoon go back to your solar still site. Take a look at the plastic. This is a good time for parents to have their child describe what they see or maybe jot it all down in a journal. What they will be looking at is a hole that earlier had been dry...or looked like it was dry. The sheet will have a fair amount of condensation on it...and the cup will have WATER! Carefully remove the plastic sheet and voila! There is your fresh, pure, clean drinking water.
     Explain to your child that water was present in the soil before and they simply couldn't see it. The sun had attempted to evaporate the moisture in the soil but the moisture was blocked by the plastic before it could get up into the sky. The trick of putting the cup in the center and weighing down the plastic used gravity to allow the evaporated water, which then condensates, to drip into the cup to create pure drinking water.
     I hope you have enjoyed the experiment. I'm sure your child enjoyed spending time with you and learning something in the meantime.

Helpful hints:

• This is a great survival skill and can work in any climate except Arctic, where the water will freeze and you may as well melt snow to drink. 
• Make sure the hole is dark colored inside to promote heat buildup and evaporation. Dark colored leaves can help if the soil is lightly colored. Just line the hole with the freshly picked leaves from nearby trees. 
• Use an old food tin to place a piece of plastic in and keep it in your backpack when camping. You never know when you might need it. Plus you will already have a cup (the tin) when you need it!

Remembering a First Ascent - Our 4 year old explorer!

Blast from the past! Here's another look at Expedition 12-01 where we reached the highest point in Maryland - Backbone Mountain! I am moving this post over from another website so that I can share it here on the dAdventure blog. This climb was great. It was a very cold day and we did it anyways. Great motivation to keep climbing through all of the snow which was thigh deep sometimes for a 4 year old!

Post from January 2012 -- Youngest member (RKW) of Expedition 12-01 summits Maryland's highest peak unassisted, Official time of summit 1427 (2:27pm)! Youngest climber of 2012 and possibly EVER to climb the peak unassisted at four (4) years old! ----January 14th, 2012, Near Silver Lake, Maryland, Hoye Crest, Backbone Mountain: Dadventure Expedition and Science Club's first expedition of 2012 resulted in great success today with the youngest of the two-explorer group reaching the summit first. Thigh deep snow and 15 degree weather gave the climb an additional edge of adventure. Congratulations to Expedition 12-01! NOTE: This is also RKW's first lifetime summit.

Lake Superior boulder

Lake Superior boulder, a photo by dAdventure Expedition Club on Flickr.

Another gorgeous Lake Superior day in the Upper Peninsula! May 2012

Those magical carabiners...

What item can transform the average person into the "outdoorsy" type when used as a keychain? What item can be used to suspend yourself from a rocky ledge with...clip your waterproof bag to your kayak...hang your duffel bag from your tank...keep your shoes together?

     The carabiner just might have changed our lives for the better. I use mine to attach my car keys to the deck rigging of my kayak when I'm out (that's how much I trust it) and I have suspended myself from a cliff several times with only an eight foot length of line, a carabiner, and a rappelling line to keep me from a perilous tumble.

     Wikipedia defines a carabiner as: A carabiner (/kærəˈbiːnər/) or karabiner is a metal loop with a sprung or screwed gate that is used to quickly and reversibly connect components in safety-critical systems. The word comes from "Karabinerhaken", meaning "hook for a carbine" in German. There all many types: non-locking, bent gate, straight gate, wire gate, locking gate, screw-type gate, and twist-lock. You can purchase them at your local hardware store, marine supply store, discount store, dollar store, you name it. My favorite colors for a carabiner are orange and green but they come in just about any color you can imagine.

     So for about a buck for a simple carabiner...just grab one in your favorite color next time you are in the store. You never know when you'll need it or when you will find a new use for it. To use the old cliche it's better to have and not need than need and not have. I'd definitely rather have a few around just in case (and the kids will love them). Bonus: the blue or red will go nicely with your favorite cargo pants and Keens.

    TIP: Encourage problem solving and resourcefulness. Pick up a few of those 1$ carabiners next time you stop into the dollar store for your kids. Next time you head out on an adventure have them simply hook them to their belt loops...and wait...before you know it they will find all sorts of ways to utilize their new carabiner!

    NOTE: Please remember to use properly certified carabiners if you are using them for climbing or any other task that might be safety related (Occupational Safety and Health Administration standard 1910.66 App C Personal Fall Arrest System which specifies "drop forged, pressed or formed steel" construction and a minimum breaking strength of 5,000 lbf (22 kN)).

    SAFETY NOTE: When diving a non-locking carabiner is never, ever recommended due to it's potential for snagging.

Earth Day paddle and river clean up on the Anacostia River - Washington D.C. Metro Area

Spring paddle on the Anacostia River, Metro D.C. Area:

The solitude, wildlife, and fresh air on the Anacostia River seemed surreal considering that we were paddling inside of the beltway of Washington D.C.  Only the New York Avenue bridge and railway bridge, relics of the old port towns, and distant sounds of soccer games being played on the warm spring Saturday afternoon gave away our proximity to the nation’s capital.

We set off from Bladensburg Waterfront Park (http://www.pgparks.com/Things_To_Do/Nature/Bladensburg_Waterfront_Park.htm) with a destination of the U.S. National Arboretum (http://www.usna.usda.gov/) for a picnic with a cool breeze and clear skies. Less than an hour later we reached the Arboretum – where they have provided a nice floating pier for visitors choosing the river as a route – and its waterfront picnic area. It’s really not so much a picnic area as a grassy, gentle slope to the river with a single picnic table, but that makes it all the more attractive as it maintains its solitude.  It’s truly a perfect destination for a quick afternoon paddle close to home for those of you living in the metro D.C. area.  Be sure to tie off your kayak or canoe securely to the pier and leave room for other paddlers before you explore the arboretum!

As a special bonus to our trip we were able to participate in the Anacostia River clean up for Earth Day weekend.  We beached just upstream of the arboretum near a nesting pair of geese (they even let us get close enough to see their eggs!) and easily filled three large bags of recycling and one bag of garbage for a total of four bags of waste pulled out of the river.. We even found a few interesting things while cleaning up all of the recycling: a Lego man, several balls, and antlers from a SEVEN POINT buck!  After tying off the bags behind our kayaks we began our SLOW (ever tried towing with a kayak?!) trip back UPSTREAM to Bladensburg Waterfront Park. What a great workout! We got a special treat on the way back as the local rowing teams were participating in a meet just as we returned. One of the races passed right beside us. The kids all were working very hard and looked great.

So, if you have a few hours to spare and you live in the D.C. area take a scenic paddle  down the surprisingly serene (and now rather clean) Anacostia River!

Earth Day SURPRISE: Guess what the most common item was as we cleaned up the river this weekend (garbage and recycling). STORE PURCHASED WATER BOTTLES. Imagine how much less pollution we would have in our rivers if we all used refillable water bottles!

Note: You will have cellular service the entire trip for emergencies but remember that your phone won’t work when it gets wet. Either get a good waterproof radio, EPIRB (Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon), or a waterproof case for your phone. Always WEAR a life preserver and be sure to bring along enough water for the trip.