End of July

 

(a picture from last year at CHV)

    So July is already over; somehow, I thought this month would be longer.  For the past month at all access, we've caught only crabs. Like last time they were green crabs.  A fun fact about green crabs is that they are not all green some are red. The way you can tell is the number of spikes on their shells.  There are 5 on each side so you can spell out the word green.  They don't really grow very big and most of them are so small their claws are tiny.  However, occasionally there is one that is larger.  you can find them in Europe because that's in their name the European Green Crab.  Also, in Boston Harbor, because they are invasive to the area, that's why we catch so many.  They eat squid which is great for us because that's what we use for bait!

    Now something else we caught a skate, wait no we never actually caught it it fell off the hook. Since I didn't catch the skate we did catch some spider crabs and if this sounds like all the other times I write about what we catch because that's really all we catch, however everything we catch excites the public because it gives them a chance to interact with the water differently.  Spider crabs look like a spider because they have very long legs and claws. They can get really big compared to a green crab. They're huge but, their claws are really weak.  They can't even hold on to the bait if they're on the hook they'll just fall off when they reach the surface.  

    My favorite part about all access is just everything you get to enjoy working on an island. When we're at Spectacle we can go swimming after we finish with the fishing.  There's usually some wind so when it was supposed to be almost 100 degrees outside it wasn't as bad; it was still really hot but at least it wasn't 100 degrees. Getting to explore these islands with my co-workers and teach the public really makes the summer so much fun!

    Next week I'm going to be working at CHV so the one thing I'm excited about is the food that they give to us and meeting the new campers!  They always have something good at breakfast and lunch and the campers are super enthusiastic.  Also, it's just really fun to work here.  

well, that's about all I can think of so see you next time.