It’s been a busy summer and hard to believe it’s mid-August. Life in Buffalo has dramatically changed in my eyes since first moving here in June. Most of the snow melt from the mountains is gone and the rivers are lower. A town I didn’t think had much to offer is filled with outdoor recreation opportunities that makes me think that I could be here awhile.

Myself and the 3 other CLM interns just got offered an extension till end of December. Some of us may stay and some may go. It’s hard to choose but there is just so much to do at work! I’ve participated in seed collections, rangeland health assessments, habitat restoration, the cutting of Juniper trees, fish surveys, parks and recreation field work, weeding, mapping fence, and so much more to come! I particularly am working on the Powder River Basin Restorations program objective of visiting historic wildfire sites and visually estimating the ecosystem health. Thankfully this project is just kicking off so I will have plenty of field work till the beginning of October. Many CLM blogs written in the fall season mention having limited field work and some desk work. Less work=time slowing down and I am not a fan. I like to go, go, go and do, do, do. This project is just what I need. Buffalo is just what I need.

Other than work, our group of CLM interns went to Thermopolis mineral hot springs and white water rafted a section of the wind river canyon. Great experiences! I won a grill from our local grocery store and am looking forward to hooking that up this weekend, along with a color run, horseback riding, and possibly a 8-mile hike in the Big Horn mountains. Trying to be a busy bee in a small town of Wyoming is easily achievable! (***Get at me if you’re having difficulty in your respective small towns!)

“When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world.”
― John Muir

As my internship wraps up I want to give gratitude to Central Oregon in terms of its landscape and its people. Both personally and professionally I feel like I have taken as much advantage of Central Oregon as I possibly could. No evening was wasted and no time was spent wondering what was next on my plate. And what is next on my plate can only be described in one word: epic. I’ll be backpacking the 211 mile long John Muir Trail, which will give me some focus on what I should take on next in my life. I’m interested in the intersection of teaching and science, but there are so many places to wrestle with this nexus that the trail will hopefully give me some direction in which to go.

Focusing on the past, I’d like to highlight some parts of this internship that expanded who I am today. Though I’ve had previous botany jobs, there was always a mentor who knew all the species so my keying skills were not as sharp. My mentor Kristin is new to this area so I spent hours under a microscope looking at the fascinating features of taxonomy. Due to its minute flowers and complex Asteraceae terminology, my proudest moment was keying to species a Solidago canadensis. As part of keying to species, I learned how a herbarium is a valuable resource in verifying my ID skills and I feel much more confident in explaining the importance of them.

Enjoying and protecting nature’s beauty was a large part of this internship for me. From Forest Hills Natural Resource Area, to vast sagebrush ‘oceans’, to the paleontological wonders of the John Day region, there is a large amount of stunning landscape at the Prineville Field Office. I am blessed to have been part of the Seeds of Success program and the weeds infestation program in the Forest Hills NRA because this year a large portion of it was burned. Our data on both the biodiversity and the noxious weed populations allowed this fire to receive extra funding for restoration. The restoration of this gorgeous wilderness area would not have been possible without CLM interns on the ground.

Another project I worked on was organizing the monitoring of a rare plant in the mustard family called Thelypodium eucosmum. It lives on steep, rocky slopes and its monitoring program is governed by multiple agencies with different databases. These two challenges pushed me both physically and mentally which resulted in visiting species that had not been seen for decades. Hopefully the more organized paperwork will enable ranchers and land managers to have a better understanding of this species needs.

Overall I’d like to thank my mentor Kristin Williams, my co-worker Tiffany Druba, the CLM/CBG program manager Krissa Skogen, the staff and the guest speakers that put on the week-long conference in Chicago, and Megan Haidet who coordinates the Seeds of Success program in DC. It’s phenomenal how much coordination is put into this program and I am very proud to be part of it.

Best of success,
Debbie Pattison
Prineville, OR Field Office

Thelypodium eucosmum

TeatersForestHillNRA

Lichen it!

“The Island”

Chicago Botanic Garden Bonsai exhibit

Criterion

Herbarium verification

ATV training

Forest Hills Natural Resource Area

1. Be ready to work hard.

An eight hour work day is a privilege. Be prepared for long, hot, rough terrain work days. Water in mass quantities is a must. Wear long sleeves, not because you think you will be cold, but for sun protection. Smell bacon?

2. Danger is your new middle name.

You will be given 4X4 training. Pay attention, you will need it. Uneven, up a rocky cliff terrain is just the beginning of many unexpected things you will encounter in the field.

3. Be Social.

Don’t get along with others? Have a bad attitude? Take life for granted? Hermit Crab is your spirit animal? This internship may not be for you. Take the time to enjoy and learn from your fellow interns if you are lucky enough to have others with you. Talk with the people in your office. They can teach you lots, not only professionally but for things to do locally.

We listen as a soil scientist explains what the soil indicates for this particular section of land.

Buffalo, Wy is the inspiration for the book and TV series Longmire. Once a year they have “Longmire Days” when the stars of the show visit with the locals.