Monday started rainy and wet. Jace and I began the week by surveying streams on the North Fork Alsea tree farm.
In our first survey, we walked through lots of blow down, which made the going difficult when measuring the distances from the fish streams. We had to climb over and under log piles that were all through the stream system.
Anthony Cafferata
Look closely at this photo and you can find Jace, after he made it through a difficult section.
At our second unit of that day, we saw two bucks that ran away shortly after we arrived. By the time we got back to the office, we were pretty soaking wet but it was a good day regardless.
Tuesday morning, I was greeted at the office by Blue the dog and then worked with Daniel and Wyatt on stream surveys for the rest of the day in the North Fork Alsea tree farm.
We saw lots of slugs, a few snails and even a praying mantis. This was very cool but he did end up pooping on me, which was less than ideal. At one of our units, we surveyed a stream that had a very defined bed and bank and plenty of water running through it, but there was no brush to wade through. It was a nice break and very interesting to see.
Wednesday and Thursday I did different things. On Wednesday, Jace, Gus and I, helped Riley replace beams on an old wooden bridge that was starting to rot. We removed the planks and added two new cross members and then added new decking on the surface of the bridge. On Thursday, I worked with Corinne, who was working on laying out a new road. I got to practice and think through the process of this important engineering skill. After that, we went to look at a bridge that is out of commission and needs a new solution. We looked at a few different possibilities and discussed the pros and cons of each. I learned a lot that day and am very excited to be able to follow some of these projects through to completion.
On Friday, it was back to stream surveys. I worked with Jace and Jamie. We went up the Eddyville-Blodgett Highway and worked on Starker land there. For one of our units, there were lots of fallen trees on the road, so we had to park a way away and hike in on foot.
At the end of the day, we stopped at a gate and found a yellow jacket nest. Very nasty business, but none of us got stung. This was a very fun week of learning and hard work; I am always glad to be working at Starker Forests.
— Anthony Cafferata