2002 November Picture Archive

27Oct2002 View from atop Ofu island. Olosega and the Village of Olosega in the near-ground and the Island of Tau in the distance. Another peak with a great but inaccessible view due to the overgrowth. Should be a easy trail; less than 2 miles, 1600ft elevation gain. I fought heat stroke most of the way. On the trail I drank most of 3L and another 3L of water upon return and it was another hour before I felt the need to relieve myself. My hiking partners though hot and on less water, fared much better. I think I need to get more exercise, but the heat makes me loath to do so. On 30 October the sun passed directly overhead at solar noon. The hot season is upon us.

Aug2002

This was at a friends 40th birthday party (6 months after my 40th). I'll leave the rest up to the viewer. Thank you to Catherine Buchanan for the picture.

Oct2002

This is a Samoan Fruit Bat, a.k.a. Flying Fox, from our October Ofu trip. Note the lack of napkin use. There was a ripe Breadfruit nearby that they were eating. Eating may not be there proper word as they masticate the fruit, press out the juices/sugars and then spit out the pulp. One can find their pellets under the trees and see the shape of their palates. This one is probably about a foot tall from feet to head. The other local fruit bat is the very similar Tongan Fruit Bat. The major differences are; the Samoan gets a little larger, the Samoan has more wing webbing near the feet, the Samoan is active in the daytime and the Samoan mostly roosts individually.

Nov2002

It is November and the heat is already on. The Sun was straight over-head at noon on October 30. Even the dogs in Amerika Samoa know what a fale o'o is for. Aunuu Island is in the background. This is on the East end of the island, one village west of Tula. The village is Alao.