6/18/2013

I am well into my second month as a range technician with the Dillon, Montana field office and things are finally starting to pick up. The sun has begun to shine more frequently, the temperatures are warming up, and the plants have begun to grow. The other range technicians and I completed our task of checking spring and wildlife exclosures, which proved to be a fun way to get to know the district and its surrounding areas. I was able to help out in restoring an old cabin that will serve as an awesome recreation and fishing spot for locals, visitors, and BLM employees.

We had a week of seasonal orientation that was filled with safety training, first-aid classes, defensive driving courses, and much more. I am definitely more confident in my trailer backing skills now! After orientation week, there was a week of training where we learned the vegetation monitoring techniques that we will use for completing upland and riparian trend studies. Some of the training served as a great refresher and also provided supplemental knowledge to what I learned as a CLM intern last year. One of the most important tasks that we learned was how to complete an MRWA (Montana Riparian Wetland Inventory). MRWAs will be relevant in completing district watershed assessments and for updating Environmental Assessments related to grazing allotments. I am so stoked to be able to walk over 200 miles of stream while looking at the diversity of plants and condition of the streams. I have already learned a lot about the botany of the Rock Mountains with help from the great crew here.

My time has also been filled by studying for the GRE and applying to graduate school. What a stressful process…whew. I think that I may have some leads though! Wish me luck! I’m having a great summer so far! I hope everyone else is too!

Grace