Back in Bozeman

Well I have returned to Bozeman for a few days off and am finally able to make another post, much later than I had planned. We had internet in the park for a little while, but our neighbor took it away after someone (not us) downloaded when they weren't supposed to. So again I am completely cut off when in the park, but I am starting to like it.

The research is moving along pretty well. We are still running into a few snags here and there, but overall we are working through a lot of things and making some good progress. The weather was splendid this trip! Hopefully the full days spent in the rain gear are gone for the rest of the summer. It has been warm and sunny, with a few early morning or late afternoon thunderstorms, which are pretty nice at times. I would say that the only condition that could have been better this last week would be the mosquitoes. They are absolutely horrendous. Sometimes I find myself basically drenching myself in bug spray, and that doesn't seem to work for very long. They are so bad if you stop moving you soon find yourself engulfed in a cloud of them, and no matter how many you smash and squish, there are still always more! One day I got so fed up with it that I just started running through the woods, yelling the whole way, to try and get away from them. Unfortunately I couldn't keep this up very long and they soon caught up and surrounded me again. They are extremely frustrating and distracting. You can't even focus on looking at a map to figure out where you are when they are all buzzing around your head. And I think that's all for my rant on mosquitoes.

I am really enjoying doing field research. But it isn't always that fun. Boss told me early on that field work is a love-hate relationship, sometimes you are miserable and other times you feel like you have the greatest job in the world. I think I am starting to see what he means. When I am hiking through the lodgepole pine saplings that are pressing in on me from all sides and constantly hitting my shins on stobs and logs as I climb over deadfall, it's torturous. Yet even after all this, I usually get to see something that just makes it all worth it. Sometimes it isn't even anything big, but I still find myself able to appreciate it. It's the things like hiking through a meadow and hearing a red-tailed hawk scream as it soars above you. Or having a bird fly from a tree right infront of you and pushing apart some branches to find a little nest full of eggs. It's hiking along and following a set of wolf tracks in the mud as they circle around a lake. I think another part that makes these experiences so special is the fact that I am out there away from everyone else, seeing the things that no one else ever sees. Most people in Yellowstone see it from the car and the boardwalks. Some people see it from trails, a little further from the road. I am seeing it away from roads, boardwalks, trails, and just about everything. And I think that is pretty amazing.

I have some more stories and stuff to post on my next few days off, which will happen this time. I also have some pictures which for some reason I can't upload right now... so hopefully I can get that figure out soon.