West Coast Field Trip Aug 28-Sept 1

I managed to escape Dunedin for the West Coast field trip after being confined to the city for well over a month. It was good to get out and travel a little after working so hard without a break. The trip wasn't too noteworthy except for the impressive lightning/thunder storms that are a rarity in this country. We toured classic NZ geology, looking at sections through the Haast and Alpine Schists and visited the more accessible outcrops of the Alpine Fault. All the outcrops had deteriorated significantly since I last visited them in 2006- it really is amazing how dynamic the landscape is on the West Coast. The highlight of the trip was a talk I attended at Franz Josef educating the locals on the very real hazards of a large Alpine Fault earthquake. It was a beautiful moment of science with a purpose. I found an obscure trail at Franz Josef glacier I did not know existed before- cables and ladders to the best view of the glacier. Also saw a couple Fiordland Crested penguins (New Zealand's rarest) at a West Coast beach. It was particularly neat to watch one swim up the creek to its nesting site.