By ASB Group 2 – March 26, 2009 – Grand Canyon
We woke up today with sore bodies but energized spirits. With the memories of our varied hikes and canyon experiences fresh in our mind from yesterday, we spent the morning stretching, refueling, and preparing to get back to our conservation work for the park. The morning was brisk; cool winds greeted us and warned us of the possibility of snow for the afternoon. Bundled up, we prepared for the day—the plan was to remove invasive plant species at various areas in the park.
After a briefing on the various invasives we were meant to remove, we split into our respective teams, armed ourselves with shovels and geo-picks, and began our day’s work.
After working for several hours the group took a lunch break in the maintenance office of the park. During this time we listened to a lecture on the geology of the park as well as the endangerment of California condors and other animals. Following lunch we broke off in our separate groups once again and focused on removing Russian Thistle as well as other invasive species. The weather during our work time was very frigid and it snowed a little bit as we removed invasive plants from the park’s entrance area.
After we completed our day’s work, we decided to explore the Tuscyan Ruins museum located near the Desert View lookout point. The museum was very interesting and included both an indoor and an outdoor portion. The outdoor portion consisted of actual ruins as well as reconstructions of Tuscyan living quarters, kivas, and storage areas. The indoor portion included some artifacts from the Indian civilization such as weapons, farming tools, pots, and other historical pieces of equipment.
As the day came to a close, we all returned to camp satisfied, knowing that despite the harsh weather, we were still able to accomplish a good bit of work within the park—works that will benefit the canyon by maintaining its ecological integrity and protecting the native species. Once again, the SCA’ers have made a difference inside the Grand Canyon. Although our journey is nearing its end, we still look forward to our last day of work, enjoying the company of each other, and experiencing the beauty of the canyon.
And now…
The Adventures of Weed
Weeds, White Stuff, and Sleepy Presentations
Today Grace’s brain stopped working.
Presentation about the geology of the Grand Canyon.
Stumbled wearily out of the tents after a whole day of hiking
Weeded at Desert View
It started snowing and was quite the blustery day.
SCA snow day and ended early at around 4 PM.
Now we’re trying to think of what to write for this blog Blah Blogs
Took the group picture with the possibility of falling into the canyon
Went to the Tuscayan Museum and discovered yucca plants have fruit. Whoa.
We left people behind.
This is also the seventeenth entry in our ongoing series, Photograph Fantastique, in which we count down 50 days until the Unofficial Official Start of High Season for conservation programs.