As I was driving back from Vegas on Sunday, I realized I was looking forward to going home to Death Valley. Right on cue too-- I had just passed the three-week mark of living here. I suppose the list of places that I can call home will only grow now-- it’s looking like I’ll lead a pretty seasonal life for the next couple years. The magical thing about living a seasonal lifestyle in a park is that everyone who I live with is doing the exact same thing. I don’t get the same quizzical reaction here when I discuss future plans, or lack thereof. No one here quite knows what is coming next in their career, but they know that they’ll end up in a beautiful place with a solid community of people who are pursuing similar national park dreams. That’s the mentality I was chasing when I left DC. It’s good to be here.
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
a week in the life
I've been here for about three weeks, and I can safely say that this is the most unpredictable job I have ever had. Things I have control over/ can predict:
-my lunch and snacks for the day (alllll of the beef jerky)
-how much water I bring/drink
-I'll probably have to drive the truck to the site
-I'll always have to grab the sat phone, my radio, and work gloves
-it's going to be sunny
Aaaaand that's about it. Every day here is completely different. I'll write out my past week to give you a sense of how I spend my days. A bit of background: My boss and I work with a group of 12 Americorps members pretty much every day. Sometimes the numbers fluctuate, sometimes I'm "in charge," and sometimes we're working with random other park people who need assistance for the day.
Monday: 7:30 am, I drive us on very windy roads with crazy drop-offs, down a dirt road with beautiful Joshua Trees, onto a 4WD road, and then switch with my boss and he takes over for the intense last bit of the 4WD road. One conservation I had with Charlie, my boss goes as follows:
Here is a portion of the aluminum debris we collected.
Tuesday: Organized the aluminum and other metal recycling with Charlie, then loaded up 2 trucks and drove them to Pahrump, NV to weigh and recycle the metal. We went out for Japanese food and then drove back.
Wednesday: Drove out an hour to a hillside in the south part of the park to cull invasive Sahara mustard with a couple of invasive management employees. Transect the hillside all day long and pull out any Sahara mustard we find (our group won!), see lots of lizards!
Thursday: I'm kinda in charge, so I lead the group to work with pulaskis and McClouds to hack up some burm on the roadside that we're trying to turn into a trail. Then we get a tour of Scotty's Castle, a big tourist attraction in the park. We drive to Ubehebe Crater and pick up trash along the edges, then drive the hour back home.
Friday: Big day-- we're off at 7:30 to meet up with a large group of Sierra Club volunteers. Drive up a pretty rocky 4WD road to the mouth of a side canyon where at an undisclosed location a couple of miles up, there is a marijuana grow site for us to clean up. I radio in with a law enforcement ranger who is at the site for directions, as I am in the lead with three Sierra Club volunteers. I almost lost one of them, and I learn how to use my radio in the process. We pack out a lot of irrigation tape and hike it back out, and drive back. I get invited to the Sierra Club potluck afterwards, where they feed me and ask lots of questions about my life in front of the whole group (my favorite pastime).
Weekend: Backpacking trip with friends from the dorms! We hiked up a beautiful canyon that turned into a smooth slot canyon. Played frisbee, ate chocolate, and slept under the moon. And got back in time for the halftime show, of course.
-my lunch and snacks for the day (alllll of the beef jerky)
-how much water I bring/drink
-I'll probably have to drive the truck to the site
-I'll always have to grab the sat phone, my radio, and work gloves
-it's going to be sunny
Aaaaand that's about it. Every day here is completely different. I'll write out my past week to give you a sense of how I spend my days. A bit of background: My boss and I work with a group of 12 Americorps members pretty much every day. Sometimes the numbers fluctuate, sometimes I'm "in charge," and sometimes we're working with random other park people who need assistance for the day.
Monday: 7:30 am, I drive us on very windy roads with crazy drop-offs, down a dirt road with beautiful Joshua Trees, onto a 4WD road, and then switch with my boss and he takes over for the intense last bit of the 4WD road. One conservation I had with Charlie, my boss goes as follows:
Charlie: How did that driving go for you?
Me: Pretty well, I think! Uhhhh how do you think it went for me?
Charlie: I think it went well, but you drove like a 90-year-old grandma!Despite my driving, we made it to our worksite for the day: a plane crash clean-up! The plane crashed in the 80's, and we were tasked with picking up the bits of aluminum that were scattered a huge distance along the hillside. We carted it out in backpacks and buckets and sorted out the trash, then drove back.
Here is a portion of the aluminum debris we collected.
Tuesday: Organized the aluminum and other metal recycling with Charlie, then loaded up 2 trucks and drove them to Pahrump, NV to weigh and recycle the metal. We went out for Japanese food and then drove back.
Wednesday: Drove out an hour to a hillside in the south part of the park to cull invasive Sahara mustard with a couple of invasive management employees. Transect the hillside all day long and pull out any Sahara mustard we find (our group won!), see lots of lizards!
Thursday: I'm kinda in charge, so I lead the group to work with pulaskis and McClouds to hack up some burm on the roadside that we're trying to turn into a trail. Then we get a tour of Scotty's Castle, a big tourist attraction in the park. We drive to Ubehebe Crater and pick up trash along the edges, then drive the hour back home.
Friday: Big day-- we're off at 7:30 to meet up with a large group of Sierra Club volunteers. Drive up a pretty rocky 4WD road to the mouth of a side canyon where at an undisclosed location a couple of miles up, there is a marijuana grow site for us to clean up. I radio in with a law enforcement ranger who is at the site for directions, as I am in the lead with three Sierra Club volunteers. I almost lost one of them, and I learn how to use my radio in the process. We pack out a lot of irrigation tape and hike it back out, and drive back. I get invited to the Sierra Club potluck afterwards, where they feed me and ask lots of questions about my life in front of the whole group (my favorite pastime).
Weekend: Backpacking trip with friends from the dorms! We hiked up a beautiful canyon that turned into a smooth slot canyon. Played frisbee, ate chocolate, and slept under the moon. And got back in time for the halftime show, of course.
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