Day 19, June 21

Today was a day full of taking points and pictures. Hundreds of pictures. I have started collecting photos that I hope to use in Photoscan to render a 3d model to aid the visualization of the sites. It’s just so hard to really get a good idea what’s there from 2d images or aerial photography. The vegetation is just so dense and the color palate is very monochromatic, green plants and grey stones. Jessica stayed back and worked at the barn doing data processing. I was able to cover a good portion of the south wall. The newer Trimble which I used today is quite nice. I think the interface is much more user friendly than the older ones and more ergonomic than the Yuma’s. They also have built in cameras which is a super cool feature even though I never used it personally. I didn’t particularly care for the Yuma’s due to their bulky size and awkward layout. It is quite a hike and very precarious so I was very grateful for the lift to the site by the grad students. They’re always so helpful. I was stopped by one of the tour guides asking if I had a permit but luckily she was very friendly and let me pass as soon as I told her I was with the universities. I still can’t get over how the tourists will take pictures or videos of us as they pass as if we’re part of the scenery. I made it a half day of sorts, coming back earlier than usual. The rest of the day was spent data processing. It was a late night.