March 17. Eskhar, Continuation of the Field Season
Last time the frogs were very hard to catch, but we need them for our work. We had to go again. The weather was not much different from last time — only it was cloudier, and the mud on the approach to the warm water canal had become more waterlogged. But some underlying movement toward spring can be felt in many details...
Last time the frogs were very hard to catch, but we need them for our work. We had to go again. The weather was not much different from last time - only it was cloudier, and the mud on the approach to the warm water canal had become more waterlogged. But some underlying movement toward spring can be felt in many details. In many places where snow lay last time, today it had melted. Sap began to flow in cut and broken trees. The frogs became much more cautious - they had warmed up a bit more. Well, once again we spent some time on the bank of the Siverskyi Donets. We caught frogs in the warm water, and we ourselves swam in the cold. We improved our skills - both in winter frog catching and in cooking meat. [IMG_1] [IMG_2] These are just patterns in the mud [IMG_3] The mud alternately freezes and thaws, and ice needles leave their imprints on it [IMG_4] [IMG_5] Barrier gate [IMG_6] Probably remained under the snow all winter [IMG_7] There is little greenery: duckweed on the warm water, grass and moss emerging from under the snow, and mistletoe on the branches [IMG_8] [IMG_9] The green plants in the water near the frog are not something local, but Vallisneria! [IMG_10] On the steep bank, the "net operator" often needs to be held so they don't fall into the water. I hardly caught any today [IMG_11] There is no ice left at all on the warm water [IMG_12] The edge of the bank in a small inlet. The surface rock formation is a crumble of Styrofoam from fishing tackle. When the frogs caught last time cleared their digestive tract, it turned out they systematically swallow these Styrofoam beads [IMG_13] This is where we walked last time! Trampled snow melts faster [IMG_14] [IMG_15] A dark leaf grows into the snow [IMG_16] Sap drops fall from tree cuts... [IMG_17] ...and from natural breaks. In the cold, they form icicles - slightly sweet to the taste [IMG_18] [IMG_19] Use of female labor [IMG_20] [IMG_21] [IMG_22] Just a bracket fungus on a fallen trunk [IMG_23] And this is the bank of the Donets (where we swam). The ice ledges are still holding [IMG_24] [IMG_25] [IMG_26] Here a layer of ice is raised above the water and reflected in it. Where the waves reach it from below, it has melted [IMG_27] While the fire is burning down... [IMG_28] ...you can dry your boots [IMG_29] [IMG_30] [IMG_31] [IMG_32] [IMG_33] [IMG_34] There is a lot of windfall in the forest [IMG_35] Archipelago [IMG_36] [IMG_37] [IMG_38] [IMG_39] Even a thin mesh left from rotted leaves melts the snow [IMG_40] The ice above a forest pool is turning yellowish [IMG_41] [IMG_42] [IMG_43] [IMG_44] The technique has been refined. Probably thousands of years ago people did almost the same thing (only instead of metal skewers they used wooden ones for threading the meat) [IMG_45] [IMG_46] Perhaps one really does need to eat less [IMG_47] [IMG_48] If winter swimming went well, after getting out of the water a person should turn red. Everything was just right for us [IMG_49] Patriot [IMG_50] [IMG_51] [IMG_52] [IMG_53] [IMG_54] On the way back we caught a few more [IMG_55] I never managed to photograph how steam drifts over the warm water. Here it is barely visible [IMG_56] And this is the cold water discharge from one of the ponds [IMG_57] That's it. We reached the highway