One of the most remarkable aspects of the crater (after the moai of
course) is the rapidly eroding red soils. The red soils are diagnostic
of volcanic terrains in the tropic and subtropics. The erosion here is
interesting, because it is relatively rare to see such pronounced
erosion on the island -- despite the reputation Easter Island has for
erosion, I remain unconvinced the problem is as serious as in many
other parts of the world. In Rano Raraku however, I'm amazed by he
energetic herds of wild horses with dust flying behind them. They must
be both drawn and energized by the water source. As Mark puts it, they
are "just horsing around."
For us, Rano Raraku meant a contrast from working in the open on a
floating vegetation mat. We were cooped up on a very small raft for
the entire day. Today's photo shows a silhouette of David efficiently
operating the corer. In the background, you can see the open 9-10m
core and 9m of core neatly stacked in boxes.
In honor of the "day off", there is no photo for today.
