Today we finished stream 12, the last stream we plan on completing here in the North Slope! Stream 12 is very beaded, and it was great weather today, we didn’t need our heavy clothes at all. We had the chance to use our pack-raft today because the beads were very round and deep. It was very interesting to try and probe permafrost while sitting on the raft.

The next few days will be us visiting Teds’ sites to collect data, visiting a site to walk shorelines for Merritt, collecting all of Teds equipment off the Sag river, and lastly cleaning, drying, and packing all of our gear. It has been quite a great experience so far and we’re excited to finish out the season and get back on campus to analyze our data!

On Monday, we visited stream 9 and completed all 3 reaches! We made record time in our last reach, averaging 4-5 minutes per cross section. It was a bit cold and drizzly but overall we’ve lucked out with the weather. We’d like to personally thank HotHands for supporting us on our colder and longer days in the field. While stream 9 was a bit further North on the Dalton, we were glad to push through and finish all three reaches instead of coming back another day to finish.

On Tuesday, we visited stream 11, which was located very close to Toolik, a big contrast to the 1.5 hour drive to stream 9 the day before ! We were able to do 1.5 reaches before lunch and grab some hot lunch in between the second 1.5 reaches! We experienced some super foggy weather and were once again grateful for our hand warmers. Both of these streams were full of a lot of transition points, and were generally pretty rocky. Some of the beads we observed were much deeper than they looked, and we were very grateful for our waders!

Tomorrow we hope to survey stream 10, which is even further north than stream 9. It will most likely be a long day but hopefully good weather will prevail for us once again!

This weekend our team was blessed with two good weather days. We took advantage of the weather by traveling to Streams 6 and 7, completing 3 reaches at each. Reaches are a stretch of stream where a possible transition or spot of interest is located. With only some light passing rain on both days, we were grateful to get to explore large stretches of both streams, even though our legs got tired from scrambling on the tundra.

We all got a chance to use the waders and step into some of these deep and very muddy pools in both streams. Stream 6 seemed like it was once a deeper stream, but had dried up somewhat from lack of precipitation. Both stream 6 and 7 showcased transitions from beaded to alluvial, and vice versa, something we are all eager to study. All of Group 2 is getting very skilled at using the total station and as a group we came up with a way to expedite the probing process on steep banks by allowing one person to stay in the stream with waders and not have to get out of the water (a real issue at Stream 6 where the banks sank almost up to Merritt’s waist!). Both of our sites this weekend were beautiful and we got to see some 360 views, owls, muskox, caribou, and we were told by a pair of hunters that we just missed a grizzly bear who had passed before we got to our parking site. We have 3 more important streams left to cover before we leave and we are all excited to get to explore more!

Some other highlights:

Saturday we even made it back in time for Pizza night!

Brian, Alanna and Faye came in second to last in Toolik Trivia Night!

Today was Group 2’s second day in the field! It was a beautiful day after yesterday’s snow and we finally got to see some sunshine. We took a rather long walk to Stream 4 and completed all three reaches today. The stream we studied was one of the most beautiful and unique that we’ve seen so far, with some rocky steep sections and lots of deep beads. Everyone got to use the waders and we even had to cross a small alluvial stream section to get to our reaches.

This stream began as an alluvial stream intersecting another closer to the road, then transitioned to a beaded section, and then back to alluvial. We got lots of total station points but struggled using the ADV due to variations in flow in the first reach. However, we did end up getting ADV data for the second two reaches, and we all got lots of practice using all the gear, especially Group 2.

We appreciated the sunshine while it lasted, since it looks like it will be raining and gloomy for the next week or so. Ted and Merritt will be taking a hard earned day off tomorrow!

On the way home, we saw a baby caribou crossing the road! Overall a very productive day on the North slope.

Yesterday, our second group arrived at TFS (Toolik Field Station) after a long 8 hours of driving (without radio). They left at 9 AM and met group 1 at 6 PM, just in time for dinner! After dinner (burrito night, what-what!?), group 2 had orientation and then moved into their assigned dorms.

This morning both groups ate breakfast together, shared any final thoughts and said their goodbyes before Liam, Brady and Noah left for Fairbanks. Group 2 then packed the truck to head out for a cold and snowy day of field work.

Today we worked on finalizing data collection for stream 3 and completed the third reach. It was a very productive day adjusting to using all of the gear in the field. It was very cloudy and took a few hours before we were able to notice the mountains behind us. Everyone was bundled up pretty well, and so we were able to push through the tough weather conditions. Ted and Merritt were real troopers for putting on the waders to get total station points within and along the streams. It was very much appreciated!!

Because our goal today was to get some practice using the gear and adjust to the data notation, we had only planned on finalizing the data collection for stream 3 and so we had a short day and returned around 3PM with plenty of time to relax before dinner 🙂

This morning we awoke to frosted mountains surrounding Toolik Lake, and snow lightly falling. Our plans today consisted of visiting the Sag and measuring water quality and collecting water samples, as well as collecting GNSS data at each site. We allow the GNSS to sit for about an hour in order to create an adequately precise location, and today we didn’t have surveying to fill that hour. 

Some days in the field are slower than others, but we kept busy with music, card games, and talking about life. Meanwhile, the rest of our team was on the Dalton traveling from Fairbanks to Toolik Field Station. Upon our return to Toolik, we met up with the rest of our team. We had dinner together (fajitas!), the first time being all together before. We excitedly showed off our lab (we tried to clean some of the mud), and proceeded to get some rest. Those of us leaving in the morning will definitely miss being in the field.

It has officially been a full week since Group 1 arrived at Toolik and much has been learned. We are so much more efficient in our research than we were a week ago and are really starting to get into a groove. Today we visited Toolik river and studied two different reaches along the river; one of the areas that we studied had a waterfall connecting two pools and we centered our study area around that interesting point. Today we were also able to test out a new piece of gear that we are borrowing from Toolik. The YSI Professional Plus Instrument measures several different water quality parameters and is better calibrated than the water quality probe that we had been using. It was exciting to use a new piece of gear and see the data that it tells us!

It is hard to imagine that Group 1’s last day in the field is tomorrow. Tomorrow Group 2 (Alanna, Brian, and Faye) come up to Toolik and the two groups will have a chance to catch up and pass on knowledge to each other. Then on Wednesday morning, Group 2 (Brady, Noah, and Liam) will take a shuttle to Fairbanks and head off on their separate ways. It has been a very valuable experience for the three of us undergraduates who have been at Toolik, we have learned a lot about ourselves, each other, the Arctic, and how to conduct research. We are all pretty tired after a week of non-stop fieldwork, but are still sad that tomorrow is our last full day.

Today began with a trek up the Dalton Highway for a little over an hour. Nothing but the pipeline, mountains, and truckers. Driving past a dangerous section of the road called Ice Cut, we call in on the CB radio that we’re coming over the hill, so other truckers know to be careful. 

Arriving at our site, we hoped to investigate a section of the beaded stream where it transitions to an alluvial channel. A large culvert allows the stream to cross the highway. One section appears to be adequate for surveying, despite the tall brush and light rain. 

Two hours later, we’ve completed surveying the section, and navigate to our next site. 

Our next site reminds us of how desolate the Arctic can be. Standing next to the beaded stream, we look around and see nothing but rolling hills of moss, and our equipment scattered around. We continue to survey this site until the rain picks up, thankfully when we were nearly done. 

A long but exciting drive is what stands between our team and dinner. On the way back, we stop by the Sagavanirktok River (Sag for short), to collect water samples. 

Our last stop wasn’t for science, but rather to appreciate this environment we attempt to preserve through research. A lone muskox stands grazing, and we pull over to get a better look. We debate whether or not it’s a bear or muskox, and decide to bring out the total station to use as a sight. 

All in all, we’re delighted we could collect data on a rainy day, and agree that we should invest in a pair of binoculars.

The North Slope has blessed IGEA with some beautiful weather the past couple of days. After the cold and rain from earlier this week, the sunny 40-50 degree days today and yesterday were very much welcomed. We took full advantage of the warm weather yesterday; we left Toolik at 8:30 in the morning and didn’t get back until 9:30. We surveyed three different reaches of one of our highest priority sights, and also travelled to two of Ted’s sights to collect water quality samples. It was a very long day but everyone was very happy with the hard work that was done. We decided to push data entry off until the next morning and gave everyone the night off so that they would have a chance to rest.

Today we started our day a little later, meeting for breakfast at 7:30. Following breakfast, we entered the data from the previous day and then went out to the stream that we had gone to two days before. Despite getting a later start than usual we were still able to see two different sights at the stream and conduct a detailed survey on them. We even made it back in time for dinner at Toolik, and we all enjoyed lasagna together!

As we have spent more and more time in the field we have gotten better and more efficient at taking measurements and entering data. We were not expecting everything to go perfect, but we have made adjustments to our research plan, and we believe we are still on track to hit our goals for success which we outlined last semester.

The tundra may bring us more cold weather and rain (Snow? Precipitation verdict is unclear), but also has brought us more interesting data about another beaded stream. Imnavait Creek is one of the most researched beaded streams in Arctic Alaska, so we hope to contribute more to what is already known. The terrain was less treacherous compared to yesterday’s site, so it was easier to navigate to collect our measurements. In the Imnavait Creek, we were able to record a velocity discharge using Acoustic Doppler Velocimetry, or an ADV. This instrument allows us to approximate the velocity along the cross section of a stream using the Doppler effect by creating acoustic waves and using very delicate sensors to record the result. We hope to be able to detect velocity discharge in some more beaded streams as well.

Upon returning to the lab, we were able to upload some data from the GNSS to NOAA’s Online Positioning User Service (OPUS), which can compare the data uploaded from our GNSS point to a known reference station. This allows us to determine exactly how accurate our data is; and the results were pleasantly surprising. Our elevation was within 0.4 cm compared to the reference station! As scientists, we witness beautiful precision from intricate pieces of technology frequently, but today we were delightfully taken aback. 

After two days of working in slightly hostile weather, but very exciting results, we look forward to the warmth (relative) that tomorrow is expected to bring, and seeing our third beaded stream.