Visiting the Northeast Region of the United States was a mixture of some of the oldest historic cities in the nation as well as beautiful outdoor sceneries. Team Bravo was made up of Katie Auer and Ryan Bernardi. While on hitch, Katie and Ryan visited 17 refuges in a total of 9 states.
The team flew from Boise, Idaho to Bangor, Maine a trip that took up the entire day. From Bangor, Katie and Ryan made their way north to Aroostook National Wildlife Refuge which was near the Canadian border. The team then traveled to Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, and finally to North Carolina; finishing their trails inventory a day early in the Outer Banks in the North Carolina. They then traveled back up to Washington D.C. in order to fly back to Boise.
While in this amazing region of the country, they encountered many different kinds of wildlife and interesting sites. Some of the wildlife the team saw included a black bear, a barred owl, wild turkeys, chipmunks, turtles, fresh water mussels and a variety of fish. While inventorying trails they had the opportunity to learn some of the history that surrounded the refuges they were in. They visited refuges that had once housed nuclear bombs during the cold war (Aroostook NWR, ME), been a burial site for civil war soldiers (Harrison Lake NFH, VA) and had suffered damage from recent hurricanes and were in the process of rebuilding (White River NFH, VT). The team was also able to see the Red Socks play the Braves in Boston, visit Times Square in New York City, had cheese steaks in Philadelphia, spend the 4th of July in Virginia Beach and saw many of the monuments, memorials, and museums at the National Mall in Washington D.C.
Overall the trip was a great success. There were many interesting stories, photos, and videos but nothing will ever compare to actually visiting these sites for yourself and seeing the wonders of the Northeastern United States.
