Wednesday, October 21, 2009

LASERING THE FOREST

Uganda Log: Wednesday 21 October 2009

Nate hasn't met a forest he hasn't lasered. Here P.J. helps Nate mount up a portable laser that will be used to measure the forest height and density as he walks along the transect.













We arrived at the clinic at 11 am and entered forest at about 11:30 to complete the transect. We finished transect and took a lunch break at 12:30 pm. Nate measured the forest with the laser from 1:34 pm to 2:07 pm for a total of 33 minutes, Nate doing all the work.


The park is located at the edge of the Western Rift Valley in the highest parts of the Kigezi Highlands, which were created by up-warping of the Western Rift Valley. Its topography is very rugged, with narrow valleys intersected by rivers and steep hills. Altitudes in the park range from 1,190 m to 2,607 m above sea level, and 60% of the park has an elevation of over 2,000 metres (6500 ft). The highest elevation in the park is Rwamunyonyi hill at the eastern edge of the park. The lowest part of the park is located at its most northern tip. READ MORE

So its no wonder we were sweaty and huffing and puffing. We just left San Jose, California where the elevation is 85 feet above sea level. Now we're somewhere between 4,000 and 8000 feet!

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