This post continues the tale of my AmeriCorps term in Boulder, Colorado in 2020. The rest of this series can be found here. Pretty much the size of the rock that we were trying to move. Okay, not really. Image found on PIxabay. My previous entry in this AmeriCorps series detailed events that took place on August 26, 2020. On that day, my coworker Clay and I tried to move a large rock with rock bars: thin, iron poles that could act as levers when used intelligently. Since intelligence was something that neither Clay nor I excelled at, we failed at moving our rock to the designated spot. Thus, o ..read more

This post continues the story of my AmeriCorps service term in Boulder, Colorado in 2020. The rest of this series can be found here. Three of my fellow AmeriCorps members: Clay, Sarah, and Maggie, hiking on August 25, 2020. There are moments in life – rare ones – when you feel like you’ve made progress. Brief feelings of mastery, like when Anakin Skywalker believed he’d surpassed Obi-Wan, only to have all of his remaining limbs severed and to be burned alive. August 26, 2020 was one of those moments for me. Back on August 11, 2020, our dictator leader Jo had me “crown” a section of trail that ..read more

This post continues the story of my AmeriCorps service term in Boulder, Colorado in 2020. The rest of this series can be found here. A mule deer near the Joder house on August 23, 2020. August 24, 2020 was an unusual day during my AmeriCorps term in Colorado. It began normally enough, but in the afternoon we went on a field trip. The morning started the same as always: we made our way to the Fern-Mesa reroute project, and then got to work. For me, this meant backsloping, which involved cleaning up the backside of the trail and giving it a nice, gentle angle. After I’d finished backslapping one ..read more

This post continues the story of my AmeriCorps service term in Boulder, Colorado in 2020. The rest of this series is located here. A praying mantis that I saw on the Joder Ranch Trail around the time that the events in this post took place. Until this point, the majority of my time working with the City of Boulder’s Open Spaces and Mountain Parks (OSMP) department had been spent on the Fern-Mesa reroute project. We had been building a new section of trail; but, like I said in the last post, we were nearly done. Perhaps that’s why we received a visit from two of Boulder’s “big wigs” on August 1 ..read more

This post continues the story of my AmeriCorps term in Boulder, Colorado in 2020. It details events that took place on August 17 and 18, 2020 , and the rest of this series can be found here. A dragonfly that I encountered at the Joder homestead on August 16, 2020.August 17, 2020 As I indicated in my last post, August 13, 2020 was rough. I spent the whole morning sitting in wildfire smoke, and then felt terrible for the rest of the day. August 17 was better, except that one of our crew leaders, Bonesteel, said that we might have as little as two weeks left on the Fern-Mesa reroute project. This ..read more

This is the latest post about my 2020 AmeriCorps term in Boulder, Colorado. The rest of this series is located here. The view from my patio on August 13, 2020. Notice anything different?August 13, 2020 When I arose on August 13, 2020, something had changed. While the morning air at the Joder homestead usually had a slight chill to it, today it was downright cold. As I sat on the stone patio of the Joder house enjoying my morning coffee, I had to wear a t-shirt, a flannel, a fleece, and a beanie. But there was another change in the air that would prove to be more significant. The air on the mor ..read more

Intro This Q&A is with a biologist, photojournalist, and photographer who’s supported this blog since its early days. She’s travelled to many countries and had adventures throughout the world, which you can see from her extensive photo gallery. This person is Malini Pittet, and I’m thrilled to be able to feature her. Wildlife photographer, photojournalist, and conservationist Malini Pittet. Image © Malini Pittet.Q&A These first three questions will focus on how you became “you.” As I understand it, you were born in India, but you’ve lived in Switzerland for many years. What’s the story ..read more

This post continues the series about my AmeriCorps term in Boulder, Colorado in 2020. The rest of this series can be found here. Looking out from the hilltop house at the Joder homestead on the evening of August 12, 2020. In case anyone’s forgotten, we had a bit of a pandemic in 2020. As I’ve said before, though, my fellow AmeriCorps members and I were strangely isolated from the COVID chaos: we were living in a hilltop house outside of Boulder, Colorado, and spending our days working in picturesque landscapes. However, there were a few days when we felt the effects of the pandemic more strong ..read more

This is another guest post from Dan Coconate about conservation in a specific region: the Florida Everglades. In it, Dan talks about the things that ordinary citizens can do to help restore that incredible ecoregion. Big Gator by Sajith T S, found on Flickr. CC BY-SA 2.0Intro Anyone who lives in or has visited Florida can tell you how much has changed within the last 10 to 15 years. As the population continues to boom, Florida’s natural habitats take a hit – especially the Florida Everglades. Due to human activity, the natural flow of water in the Everglades has changed, which can result in an ..read more

After a long wait, we have another guest post from Dan Coconate. This one of how to behave ethically around wildlife, but it focuses on a specific location: the Grand Canyon. The following post contains tips for responsible wildlife viewing, safety precautions, and species-specific information. Intro Did you know that Grand Canyon National Park is home to over 1,500 plant species, 355 bird species, 89 mammal species, and 47 reptile species? That’s right—this park’s diverse habitats are teeming with unique and fascinating wildlife just waiting for nature enthusiasts like you to discover. To gua ..read more