Sunshine On My Shoulders

Songs of the Week: “Bad Habit” by Steve Lacy and “True Blue” by Mark Ronson (feat. Angel Olsen)

Hi, hello! How are you? In this blog post, I will be talking about the things I’ve learned over the course of my internship so far. I would say it’s a mix of the technical and social aspects of being a natural resources manager. I’ve learned how connectively a lot of systems within the park function. Everybody needs to be able to support each other so that we can all achieve the same goal of protecting and preserving the park’s natural resources. Connections with each other and the ability to learn from each other is the first step to accomplishing that. I’ve met some really great people who have inspired me and reminded me of why I am in this industry. The friends I have made here are some of the funniest and coolest people I’ve met. I’m really grateful for the experience to be at the Rockies with other interns, seasonals, leads, and supervisors. 

Just a quick update on what I have been up to since my last blog post! I finally got the chance to explore the tundra and was able to set up two trail counters for my project. I was able to go with Paige and Mackenzie to hike up Mount Ida. I have never hiked up that high of an elevation before so I was stunned by the views I was able to experience. There was still snow up there! I’m surprised that in the middle of the summer there are still areas where there is still snow! This is very surprising for me as somebody who’s grown up in Texas where even in the winter months we are lucky if we see some snow. I learned how to set up the trail counters and was able to gain a better understanding of their inner workings. We did a bit of experimenting trying to set up a trail counter at Rock Cut Trail in the tundra but were able to successfully set it up. Later that week the intern cohort got the opportunity to meet the director of NPS, Director Chuck Sams. It was a really great experience to meet an NPS celebrity and to get to hear about his background and how he came to the park service. His Indigenous background and how closely he holds that in his life were very moving for me. 

In conclusion, this next week I think I’ll finally be able to go out into the tundra and explore! The tundra has melted enough to where I can work safely and collect the data for my project! I can’t wait to let you all know about the interesting data I collect over the next few weeks! Thank you so much for reading through my blog post and I’ll see you again soon!