As summer has come to an end and Fall comes into full force, the field season is wrapping up.  As the leaves turn color from greens to dull yellows and reds (I am thoroughly unimpressed by fall out in Central Oregon, Fall in Ohio puts it to shame), so do the opportunities to head out to the field.  While I have been able to go out into the field sporadically, both the weather and lack of field opportunities have kept me in the office.  Recent storms that hit the Pacific have led to dreary rainy windy days and office work.  Due to this recent shift from primarily field work to more and more office work, I have changed my schedule from working 4 ten hours days, to 5 eight hour days.  I like the new schedule, it is really nice getting into the office later and leaving earlier, but when Friday rolls arounds, I regret not having the day off and all of the opportunities that a three-day weekend entails.

While the days in the office sometimes drag on, it is a nice change of pace and an opportunity to focus on another set of tasks and problems.  Another shift in the office is the slow but steady exodus of seasonal workers from the office.  Only this Friday I went to a going away party for another seasonal that I had spent quite a bit of time working with.  I too would have already left if I had not been extended, so it is starting to feel kind of quiet and almost empty in the office.  Hopefully, my time in the office will be broken up by some excursions out into the field to search for caves, survey pygmy rabbits, and other expeditions.

After an initial surge of momentum for surveying caves for bats, it has slowed to a crawl. Surprisingly, these caves that have been previously located, are extremely hard to find. Furthermore, many of these caves are simply erosional caves or shelters that are not able to support bats.  While it has been frustrating to not be able to locate these caves, the search is quite fun.  I spent most of my summer hiking through junipers and sagebrush, it is nice to have a change of pace and explore rocky ridge lines.  The hiking has been physically demanding, but has also been equally rewarding through extremely beautiful views.

View from a shelter cave on a ridge line.

Another shelter cave.

I cannot wait to see what the upcoming weeks have in store for me and I look forward to sharing that experience with everybody.