Here in Jawbone we have hot days, windy nights, and bumpy drives. We survive by lathering on sunscreen, putting lots of rocks on our tarps and tents, and using other people’s bodies as cushions when the road gets a little rough. Even with the blazing sun and howling wind we had a very productive, fun hitch. By the end of our second work day we had already restored over 1000m2 (that’s A LOT!).
On our third day of hitch we got to go back into Ridgecrest to attend our long awaited ATV training classroom session. We learned the basic procedures to load an ATV on to a trailer and what the important gears, but we do not get hands-on practice until next hitch. After we finished our training we spent the rest of the afternoon getting culturally enriched at the Maturango Museum. Our crew especially enjoyed the plant exhibits, the petroglyph display, the children’s activity area, and our introductory talk about community involvement.
Back in the field again the days seemed to fly by as we finished incursion after incursion. Midway through our hitch we traveled to Jawbone Station to have an environmental education program on the Desert Tortoise. Unfortunately we did not get to see Mister Bob (the Jawbone Stations resident tortoise), but there was a plate of food out for him so he has been out recently. On top of our beautiful drive through Red Rock Canyon State Park on our way to the station we got to enjoy scenic drives every morning on the way to our work sites.
Out of all of the places we have restored in Jawbone I believe that we encountered the most majestic area this hitch. It was an area brimming with life; cottonwoods, riparian grasses, and enormous Grape Soda Lupines. This area revitalized everyone’s spirits and even kept them a little higher for the rest of our time in the field. With an incredible crew, a beautiful area to work in, and great food (including a surprise ice cream cake) I would say that we have been pretty happy campers out here in Jawbone this time around regardless of the wind and heat.
We collected and planted 542 plants, did 4 erosion control structures, and restored 2,398m2.
