Well it has been almost a month since I was able to post anything to the blog. Unfortunately our satcoms went down after leaving Palmyra and we just now were able to get them fixed. So how can i put almost the entire month of July into one blog post... After leaving Palmyra we headed for Apia, Samoa for a crew change and to pick up anoth load of bait. After loading two containers of bait we departed for the Phoenix Islands Protected Area, a major marine refuge covering more than 400,000 square kilometers. While the refuge covers eight islands, we only treated two islands, Bernie and Enderbury. Unlike Palmyra, the entire operation was based from the back deck of the boat. While everyone had their doubts, loading the bait buckets with the deck crane worked flawlessly. Sometimes rare for a project like this, we finished the job ahead of schedule, under budget, and with no injuries. SWEET!! we were able to take a couple days to explore the other islands there, including Rawaki, Manra, and Kanton. Looks like i'll have to finish this up later as were heading to American Samoa tonight but stay tuned! and many thanks to the great hospitality of the Samoan Junior Development group! I had a great time and hope to see everyone again soon!

Southern Hemisphere!!

Well, like all good things, our time in Palmyra had to come to an end. The Aquila left Palmyra the evening of the first, bound for Samoa. As I write this we are two (TWO!!!) miles north of the Equator, about to cross into the southern hemisphere. Time to partayyy!