Nina Frant
Amherst, Mass

My name is Nina Frant. I am entering my senior year in High school at Amherst Regional. Earth watch shipped myself and seven other teenagers to Alaska for fourteen days. This has been the toughest experience of my life, physically and emotionally. When I stepped off the plane in Fairbanks I knew nothing of GPS systems or had even thought of the way gravity was measured. After shoving GPS and Gravimeter 101 deep into the recesses of our brains it was off to the wilderness. For eight days and seven nights the Grizzly Bear camp site boarding Denali National Park was our home. Field work was taxing, but benefits were reaped. Our day began at 5:30 am when we roused, put on our rain gear and headed to breakfast. Once full, which took a substantial amount of food for the boys, we all piled into various cars heading in various directions to perform various tasks. I learned very early that the harder the sight to reach the more spectacular the view. (In another EW web page was a guy who liked rock climbing, you would have thoroughly enjoyed scaling the rock face to reach the marker at one site named Carl) Our work days were an average of ten hours, including lunch. At the end of the day you could count on a few constants:

1.you were completely soaked from the rain

2.you were dirty from the mud and tundra

3. you were tired

4. a warm sleeping bag, leaky tent, and gravel bed were waiting for you.

Despite all the rain and long hours I looked forward to each day in the field. The Alaska range loomed around on all sides. The mountains climbed in severe corners and jagged edges coated with lush green brush and royal forest spruce trees. The tops of the mountains rose above the tree line, leaving bare areas of ash-gray. Some peaks exploded in an orange-brownness too brilliant to be described as rust. ( The deer mountain range was the most beautiful. Suspended thousands of feet from the gravel river beds snaking through the marshy-tundra is an ancient valley floor which levels the mountains before they spike vertical, ascending into crest.)

Nights at the Grizzly Bear were highlighted by Brandy's gourmet cooking. Once again sufficiently stuffed, Janie and I would head to the river to pretend to skip stones. The gray water of the Nenana cascaded past in an immense streak of freezing water. Clay banks on either side matched the opaque water perfectly, except were small white crests formed as water pounded a stubborn rock or two.

I spent hours talking with the EW girls as I watched the constant cloud cover spread every so often to reveal blue sky. That has been one of the most difficult aspects of Alaska to adjust to; the lack of night time and stars. I saw darkness for the first time last night at 2:00 am in the morning. However, it wasn't the pitch black color, but rather a intense Navy.You can't fathom the mind boggling reaction one has to being able to read a book at 12:30 by the natural light in the sky. (I brought a flash light for the camping trip, I did not need to use it!!!)

After the eight days of camping our group swam in the rivers of insanity. We had gone from intellectual humans to primitive beasts. Jerry predicted from the start that our expedition would parallel Lord of The Flies. As much as it was difficult to leave the true wilderness untouched by human hands but grasped with human imaginations, a warm shower longer than two minuets and a rain resistant shelter were a welcome trade. (The promise of Clean cloths was definitely one reason why I packed super quick.)

We have spent the last few days back at the University of Alaska Fairbanks processing all the data we collected. The rain stops periodically throughout the day, flashing brilliant rainbows across the sky. I am not trying to be cheesy or anything its just that a lot of wounds acquired while camping have healed. I feared greatly that we would never become a group but stay eight individuals. As the expedition comes closer to ending the group has become a conglomerate force, powerful because we all contribute our own spirituality and inspirations.

In conclusion I would like to thank everyone who made this experience possible. Mom and Dad, you are the best spell checkers and support group I have ever had. Loren, my editor, I love you. Mrs. Kavanaugh, your faith warmed me. You have been a beacon leading me to personal goals, and without you High school could never have been possible. I will miss you so much next year, but know that I am forever grateful. Jeff, Doug, and Natasha you are really cool. These past two weeks were so much fun ( i was only pretending to complain). Thank you for feeding us food, life lessons, stores, knowledge and memories. Ingrid you are the best babysitter i have ever had. Earthwatch, you rock, you really rock!!!! Thank you for giving me an opportunity to see the world, to see science and to see who I was inside.

"Science is authority springing from the True. Man should be governed by science." Les Miserables;Victor Hugo.

Inspiration should not be contemplated but tasted.