We are on our first hitch at Coronado National Memorial, about 2 hours south of Tucson. The border of Mexico is within sight, sometimes close enough to seem surreal.
Our field work at Coronado National Memorial consists of fuel reduction processes to prepare for a prescribed burn that we will help with in April. We are using chainsaws to limb or cut mesquite, manzanita and varieties of oak (depending on the location and size). The purpose of this removal is to create buffer zones to control the perimeters of the burn.
We arrived here on Tuesday to meet with the National Park Service Archeologist, who took us to the sites within the prescribed burn unit that are historically unique and sensitive. They have found Native Americans artifacts that date from 4 to 8 thousand years ago. We learned archaeological terms (is it a shert? a chert? a sherd?) and have developed trained eyes in spotting artifacts. Although sometimes, it really is just a rock.
It's an awesome bonus to field work knowing that we are not only conserving the land, but history as well.
Posted below are some pictures from our time here at Coronado so far...more to come!
