Day 1 (May 28, 2008)--------------------------Sunny

In the morning I worked on my NSF CAREER proposal at the hotel of the Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve. After having lunch with several local friends, Mr. Xiaoping Lei drove a van and we headed towards Zhangjiaba (Photo 1). Zhangjiaba is the headquarter of Yinjiang Management Station (Photo 2), one of the three similar stations under the Reserve.

                             

Photo 1: The entrance to Fanjingshan Tourist Area at Zhangjiaba             Photo 2: Zhangjiaba Management Station

Mr. Lei is the head of the Research and Education Department, a very nice and hardworking person. My other team members are Yang Wei (I call him Xiao Yang), Vannessa, and Tingbiao Liu (from Zhangjiaba Station; Photo 3). Yang Wei is a staff in Mr. Lei's department, who went to Guizhou Normal University for his B.S. degree in Computer Science. Vanessa, Li Luming in Chinese, is a doctoral student from Purdue University, who came to Fanjingshan to study the behavior of Guizhou golden monkeys with support from Dr. Chia Tan (Zoological Society of San Diego). Vannessa joins us because she is interested in knowing my research and geting familiar with the local coworkers.

                      

Photo 3: Vanessa, Mr. Lei, Xiao Yang, and Mr. Liu (from left to right)

Somehow I had a bit carsickness during the 5-hour travel. We arrived at Zhangjiaba around 7:30 pm. Mr. Wu Jiafa, director of the Station, welcomed us. I gave him the note from Mr. Yang, his boss. Mr. Yang is the director of Fanjingshan National Nature Reserve, a friendly and humorous guy who greeted us with Maotai in March. Maotai is one of the three top alcohol brands in China, very expensive--about 800 Yuan or $117 per bottle (500 grams). The note is important for my fieldwork because the network (Guan1xi4) would quite often determine whether we can get work permission and logistic support. We had a nice dinner together, and I checked email afterwards--Zhangjiaba is the last place with Internet. We stay at Jixiang Mountain Manor.

Day 2 (May 29, 2008)--------------------------Sunny / cloudy

I got up at 7:10 am, and ate noodles with an egg-- a traditional breakfast in northeastern Guizhou. We set out to Mianxuling (Ridge of Cotton Wool) after I paid 260 Yuan (1 $ = 6.88 Yuan) for lodging and food of my team. Mr. Wu accompanied us, driving one of his police patrol cars ahead, along with Mr. Liu Tingbiao and Mr. Yang from his station.

                           

Photo 4: Mianxuling Guest House                                                              Photo 5: On-site training for how to use the cameras

We stay at Mianxuling Guest House (Photo 4). After a home-style lunch, I gave a 1-hour training to my coworkers about how to use the digital cameras (Photo 5). After hiking along the trail to Jinding (Golden Peak) for about 1.5 hours, we got to Heixiangzi (Black Alley), where I decided to mount the first camera. Its location is N27-54-58 and E108-40-23.8, and the elevation is 2116 m based on the GPS unit from Mr. Lei. This camera is for monitoring tourists, and monkeys (if any).

                         

Photo 6: Mounting the 1st camera at Heixiangzi (Tingbiao)             Photo 7: Mounting the 2nd camera outside the hotel (Tingbiao)

After talking to several local people, I have realized that there is little opportunity to see monkeys on the trail. So I suggest that the team break into two: One led by Mr. Lei, including Mr. Liu and Vannessa, who will stay at Mianxuling; the other led by myself, including Xiao Yang and Laoji who will go to Yangaoping tomorrow (Laoji is on the way from Yangaoping to meet us at Jingding). Mr. Wu and Yang went back to Zhangjiaba around 3 pm, but left Mr. Liu to work with us. Up to today, I have no idea about the reliability of the cameras, unaware of the battery life and whether they can resist storms or the very high moisture...

We returned to Mianxuling Guest House in the evening, and mounted my second camera outside the hotel kitchen (Photo 7). My purpose so far for this camera is to test its reliability.

Day 3 (May 30, 2008)--------------------------Overcast then rainy

It rained hard in the morning, and we had to stay in the hotel, i.e., Mianxuling Guest House, for the entire morning. Before our late lunch around 2 pm, the storm stopped. "Thanks to God, it survived the storm without even a tiny problem!" I said to myself after we checked the camera outside the hotel.

We packed our stuff, and headed towards Jinding. We checked the camera that had been mounted there yesterday: It also works well there, having taken about 60 photos that occupy about 7% of the space in the camera (64 MB). We all stay in the Mogushi (Mushroom-like stone) Hotel that is near Jinding (Photo 8). I paid 30 Yuan per person for the lodging.

Photo 8: Jinding (Gold Peak)                                                                

Laoji, my friend, arrived at the hotel around 6 pm--I am so happy to see him again! He is one of the two persons who stay at Yanggaoping Camp around the year, helping visiting researchers (like me in 2007 summer and 2008 spring) and recording monkey activities nearby. Last year, he and his nephew Laocai helped me as the cook and guide for a few days.

Day 4 (May 31, 2008)--------------------------Drizzle / overcast

We got up near 6:30 am. Because Mianxuling is a tourist spot, the hotel and food are expensive: 650 Yuan for five people's dinner, hotel, and breakfast! Mr. Lei, Liu, and Vanessa, the first team, went back along the train we came yesterday. The other team, Laoji, Xiao Yang, and I, started to walk towards Yanggaoping around 7:45 am.

It was a long-time and tiresome journey. At the beginning, we could see the trail, though it is seldom used by people. Later the bushes cover the trail, and we had to set our feet on the ground without seeing it (Photo 9). Also, we were afraid of snake attacks as this is the seasom when various snakes may occur. We walked slowly, using a wood cane to strike the bushes or tree branches to scare away the snakes. We mounted two cameras on trees along the trail (Photo 10): One at N27-58-34.9, E108-44-52.4, and 1903 m (asl), and the other at N27-58-45.8, E108-45-17.4, and 1752 m (asl).

                           

Photo 9: The bushes within which we are hiking                            Photo 10: Mounting another camera on the tree by Xiao Yang

We arrived at Yangaoping near 6:00 pm. Laocai (Laoji's nephew; Photo 11) was cooking for us--I am so happy to see a friend after this long journey! Xiao Nie (Photo 11), a graduate student from Mid-south Forestry Science and Technology University, has been here for over two months. He goes out daily, if the weather allows, to observe and record monkey activities for his thesis. I had one of my most unforgettable dinners that evening: We sat on benches encircling a shabby table in the open air, each drinking a little local alcohol made from corn (bai2jiu3) and toasting with each other...What a relief!

                             

 Photo 11: Laocai, Xiao Yang, Laoji, and Xiao Nie at Yanggaoping (2008)               Photo 12:The camp at Yangaoping

The camp has two tents, each with the words "Disaster Relief" on its side (Photo 12)--they were donated a few years ago after a big landslide. There are several simple beds within each tent. Laoji and Laocai made the beds, and put quilts on them. We surely feel good enough after a whole day's hiking. There is no electricity, and we use candles and flashlights in the evening. Relieved from things like papers and class teaching, I feel so enjoyable here! Our minds are so relaxed, and we talk about whatever topics: Olympic games, various anecdotes in the downhill and nearby villages, spiritual beings, what is behind the door of death (think about the past and still ongoing earthquakes in China that has resulted in more than 120,000 dealths and millions of homeless people!), God, and the competition between Obama and Clintion...