{"id":71213,"date":"2016-08-08T12:54:07","date_gmt":"2016-08-08T19:54:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev-clm-blog.pantheonsite.io\/?p=71213"},"modified":"2016-08-08T12:54:07","modified_gmt":"2016-08-08T19:54:07","slug":"3-months-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.clminternship.org\/?p=71213","title":{"rendered":"3 Months In"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am falling more in love with this part of the country each day, and believe that anyone who enjoys the outdoors would. My appreciation for BLM\/public lands continues to evolve as I discover the hidden gems of the vast landscapes. I felt this gratitude especially on our trip to Canyonlands National Park, UT (see other post). Just outside of a state park lies a chunk of BLM land. The views were breathtaking, we were the only two people within miles, and it was\u00a0free.\u00a0<\/em>I hope that those kinds of places will continue to be untouched by development for posterity to enjoy.<\/p>\n

We are just about finished with our amphibian habitat project and will soon be assigned to a new one — Pygmy Rabbit and Lynx Surveys are\u00a0in our imminent future. I also have had the chance to work with the rangeland management team, completing utilization forms and meeting with the ranchers that are permitted cattle grazing on BLM land. These utilization forms are a way for the range specialists to see whether or not an area is being overgrazed or, over utilized. This process is coordinated with the ranchers or their contractors, and is a cooperative effort to manage the grazed land in a more sustainable way. Our rangeland technician was calling out a dozen species of grasses with ease, and\u00a0I felt fortunate to have learned a few of them. Slowly but surely, the flora of the West is becoming familiar.<\/p>\n\n\t\t