Biologist Account: Heather:
"Today I was leading a class from Damien High School to the islet for their first visit. After a brief tour and introduction to the unique history of Mokauea, we set off to destroy some pickleweed. With its woody roots and stems, it was deceptively tricky to remove, but who better to work on it than a group of high school-aged boys? With a sense of accomplishment from clearing a large area, we set off to the second part of our trip - a preliminary survey of the surrounding reef flats. Armed with identification cards and books, the group spread out. We were so deeply engrossed in our explorations, that we were almost left behind on the islet. We hadn't even realized that the 40 other volunteers had already been ferried back to shore! We made it back in the end and it turned out the Damien group enjoyed it so much, that they made monthly trips part of their curriculum."