First Post!

Hey all,

I would like to introduce myself and give a short background of my work. My name is Jeremy Sykes and I have lived in Wyoming all of my life. I graduated from the University of Wyoming with a bachelor’s degree in Range Ecology and Watershed Management with a Minor in Forestry.  I have always had an interest in the natural resources of Wyoming. It has been my career dream to work with a Government agency such as the Bureau of Land Management or the U.S.  Forest Service, as a Range Specialist. 

My first seasonal job was with the BLM in Rock Springs Wyoming.  It was a job filled with hard work mending fence. Last summer I worked as a BLM Range Technician at the Kemmerer Wyoming field office. This job was important on the basis of working on a cattle and sheep allotment conducting monitoring and compliance that will be used in litigation. I took it upon myself to gain respect from the permitees on this particular allotment, which did not trust government employees. I was also able to work with Anna Moller. She was a CLM intern working in Wildlife. She helped me on the Smithsfork allotment, monitoring riparian areas for move on use indicators. She was a valuable and knowledgeable resource, helping me when it was needed. We also spent many hours working on her CLM project, mapping springs, seeps, and reservoirs. The data we collected will be used in the future, for habitat improvement projects, as well as range improvement projects for wildlife, cattle and sheep.    

So here I am, back in Kemmerer, but this time I’m the CLM intern, working in Wildlife. So far it has been great but nothing too exiting happening in the dead of winter.  With a foot of snow on the ground it’s hard to get out into the field. I have been working on NEPA documents, using some of the information we gathered over the summer.  It will be another two months until field season starts, with the onset of sage-grouse lek surveys.  I am hoping to gain more experience with the CLM internship program, to help guide me in my career path.

Kind Regards,

Jeremy Sykes

Kemmerer Feild office, Wy

 Bureau of Land Management