Weeks 7 & 8: Whoa...sandals. Right on

OK. So a lot has happened in the past couple of weeks. Let me think... So last week we were working on building a buck and rail fence, which was really fun actually. We utilized the wood we got from cutting down beetle kill trees and cut them into 5 foot long 'bucks'... then, at the work site, we used a jig to notch the bucks so they would fit together into Xs that we could use for the fence. The fence was built at North Sand Dunes Recreation Area...which is really awesome because you're in the middle of the mountains and then there's this big area of just sand. There used to be an inland sea there back in the day and then when the mountains formed the water evaporated and voila...SAND! The fence we built was put there to protect a plant that is suspected to be very endangered and is only found in this area...it's call the Boat Shaped Bug Seed...or something like that. A lot of the ATVers that use the sand dunes have been riding through the area that the plant occupies, so it was imperative that we establish a more distinct boundary with our fence. Now, hopefully the rogue riders will stick to the trails and this plant can be protected and studied securely.

This past week we did some more thinning... this next portion is also going to be posted on the RMYC website as our Saw 3 blog portion...but it explains moreso what we did.

Saw 3: The GoodFellers

Tree Thinning: Atkins Ain't Got Nothing on Us

We have spent 4 weeks up on Independence Mountain outside of Walden, CO. Our time has been occupied mostly by swatting away mosquitoes, but in our down time, we like to pick up a chainsaw or two and help out the BLM. One of the projects that we contributed to was tree thinning. The recent invasion of the pine beetle has left a great deal of Colorado forests in dismal condition. In an effort to prevent another influx of the devastating insect, we worked to make the trees more resilient. This new forest (planted back in the 60s& 70s) was pretty dense; therefore, the little trees that were trying to make it were battling it out in order to obtain the most resources. What we did was go in and cut down some of the trees in order to ensure that the dominant trees receive the highest amount of valuable resources and flourish. That way, if the beetles come around again, those dominant trees would be resilient enough to create enough sap to push out any unwanted visitors. We had about 27 acres allotted to us and worked on it for about 2 weeks. About 12 feet was to be left in between trees, give or take. The trees that we did cut down were then put into tipi-shaped slash piles, so they can be burned this coming winter. When you aren’t on the saw, you’re swamping- picking up the trees that didn’t make the cut. As a swamper, we developed some pretty exciting techniques when it came to getting tall trees up into a teepee shape. There’s the pole vautl; the heave ho; and the this is just too damn heavy. Buck it up!

The work site is about 15 minutes up the road from our marvelous campsite, which overlooks the Zirkle range. It also provides an awesome overlook to see storms a brewin. Stu, our resident weatherman, is never lost for words when it comes to predicting the projection of thunderheads or pressure systems. More often than not though, we just tug on Jake's ear and get a reading- it's a 50% chance of precipitation. Besides Lida’s breakfast song, one thing we on Saw 3 we like to remember daily is "Here on Independence Mountain, there aren't always mosquitoes ...sometimes it rains".

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This weekend is Rendezvous at Steamboat Lake. RMYC puts it together and it's basically a big gathering for all of the crews (11 i think all together) to mingle and participate in FUNTIVITIES and workshops. I'm hoping it's more like chill at the lake and less like Michael Scott's Beach Day (if it is shotty Team Voldemort)... which brings me to my next exciting news. HARRY POTTER 3D SUNDAY!!!! hopefully...unless my leader is a complete muggle about it :/... I'm trying to butter him up by going above and beyond the call of duty this weekend. Trying to rack up what I call Potter Points. So wish me luck!! Also, Stu and I are representing the GoodFellers in the cookoff this weekend. Gonna make Mushroom Risotto and Balsamic Pork Loin... hopefully the Iron Chef Chairman will do a back flip for us!

ooo and i have photos this week from Jake's camera!