Well it finally happened; the NV-RES crew went on its final hitch and is closing out the season. The crew spent 12 days out in the Desetoya Mountains building check dams. The dams are the very first part of a 10-year project the BLM has going that will turn that area back into a brood ground for Sage Grouse. Before that can happen, the water table has to be raised and we built the check dams to do that.
The project let the NV-ES crew get creative in how they built their dams. Some were elaborate dams for stone and logs, designed to let only a small trickle through, others were made of felled trees and rabbit brush with the hope that it would slow down the water flow and prevent erosion. Some areas were artistically rock lined. All of the dams should be useful in the future.
Outside of the great project, the crew loved the Desetoyas. The temperature during the day only got into the low 90s, and at night, it got down right cold, a nice switch from 104 degrees every day all day. Likewise, the mountains were beautiful and the crew got to camp in a stand of Aspens next to a stream. Yes a stream, real running water. It is amazing how different the desert can be just from a change in elevation.
The crewmembers took full advantage of their down time after work. Wade went on daily nature walks and Gabriel and Nick spent a lot of time practicing songs on the guitar and harmonica. The author of this blog (that is to say, Charlie) managed to read two books in the 12 days he was there. Even our crew leader Leigh got to relax a bit.
As far as last hitches go the NV-RES crew could not have asked for a better one, but now it is time to say goodbye. We are all heading our separate ways, some back to back their homes and others to other trail crews. No matter where we go though, none of us is going to forget the summer we all spent in the Nevada Resource Stewardship Corps.