Adventures out of the Valley

Over the past 15 years I've considered myself somewhat of a wanderer. My friends in Los Angeles, Oregon and DC knew during any given weekend or tiniest of breaks I might be off visiting Vegas, San Diego, Seattle, New York, North Carolina, Philly, the eastern shore of Maryland or wherever I could manage to get to by train, plane or automobile. Last year my around the world trip was probably the pinnacle of it all. So, I was a bit surprised to discover that after almost 4 months of living in the Teton Valley I had not left. The furthest I had ventured from my home base was 50 miles north to Yellowstone. In some ways it was reassuring. I assumed since I hadn't felt a big urge to venture out too far it must mean I was content in my own home. I spent my weekends climbing and hiking and hanging out in Jackson. My week days were spent within a 3 mile radius of my own cabin in the woods. The realization that I hadn't left the valley in awhile coincided with my climbing friends deciding it was time to visit City of Rocks, Idaho. What I discovered was a group of people who like to travel the same way I do...no real plan, no lists made ahead of time about what to pack or maps showing how we will get there, just get in the car and go. Since November 1st I have managed to leave the Valley 4 times...here are my stories.


CAMPING AND CLIMBING IN IDAHO
My first planned trip out of the valley was an adventure across the Teton Pass to the beautiful state of Idaho. I've actually been to Idaho a few times. I wandered somewhere through there with my family at the age of 12 and recall virtually nothing since my nose was buried in Gone With the Wind the entire time. My second trip to Idaho was a quick stop over on my drive from Portland, Oregon to Baltimore, Maryland. My traveling companion, Lori, and I decided to spend about an hour in Wallace, Idaho. We mainly just shopped for Wallace paraphernalia to give to our friend Kathleen Wallace. Sometime in the early 2000s I hit Idaho again. This time with the actual intention of GOING to Idaho. Some good friends from DC moved to Mountain Home, Idaho and I went to visit them. The original plan was to hit Sun Valley and snowboard and ski our little hearts out. Sadly, I'd broken my wrist not long before the trip so they skied, I read and then we wandered around the little touristy town. Now, living at the border of Wyoming and Idaho, going to Idaho is really quite easy. I hiked through some canyons and a basin from Wyoming to Idaho in early September and celebrated the journey with a huckleberry milkshake in Victor, ID. I'd also been over the pass to Driggs to hear some tunes at the weekly music in the park. But this time would be different. This time 4 of us were headed not just over the pass and into Driggs but actually past Driggs, past Idaho Falls and to the City of Rocks. This adventure definitely warrants its own play by play.

On a cold Thursday night in November Elizabeth, Laura, our fearless driver and leader, Paul, and I loaded up our climbing gear, tents and some food from the kitchen and left Kelly, Wyoming. As we watched the sun set behind the Tetons, we knew we still had a long adventure across the pass and through Idaho to our destination. Utilizing Paul's memory and a general idea of where we were going we finally made it through the snow and down the dirt road to the Breadloaves area of the City of Rocks. We set up our tents in the blowing snow at 2am and crashed out for the night as the sound of the wind howling through our tents rocked us to sleep.

The next morning we awoke to drizzling skies but with the hope that the weather would clear up and warm up so we could get in some good climbs. Elizabeth and I explored the area, Paul cooked up some breakfast and then Laura and I took off to find some water. Sadly, all of the water pumps in the park were on lock down. As the skies cleared we decided we could make do with what water we had so we loaded our packs with our climbing gear and some snacks and set out for the day. With Paul's trusty guide to the area and a vague recollection of where he had climbed before we wandered through the amazing rock formations searching for a good beginning 5.8 climb. Though it didn't occur to us before, trusting Paul's memory and map reading skills might not have been the best plan. We ended up having a great long tour of the City of Rocks including bushwacking our way up a creek bed; however, we only ended up with one climb in by the time the sun was sinking low on the horizon. We made our way back to our campsite, attempted to get in a quick climb before the sun set completely but didn't quite make it. We cooked up some good grub (quesadillas! YUM!), drank some of our Fish Eye boxed wine and made a fire. The night was clear and calm and we had a good time sitting by the fire.

DAY 1 PHOTOS-no water, hiking through City of Rocks, climbing, rapelling, nighttime drinks with the Fish Eye, moon over Breadloaves





I have a completely irrational fear of the dark and the quiet and calm night was the perfect setting for hearing strange noises in the night. I think I woke Elizabeth up at least twice with "Did you hear that?" One time I thought someone's headlamp was shining into our tent but it turned out to be the moon. Despite my worrying, I actually had a pretty good night's sleep and we woke up to a sunny day. There were definitely some tracks around our tent, I knew something was sniffing around out there, I think it was a coyote!

With schoolwork still to be done back in Wyoming we had planned to leave on that Saturday so despite the welcoming warm sunshine our climbing in this beautiful place was limited. Laura scouted out some climbing options nearby while Paul cooked us a scramble of everything left over for breakfast. We set up our ropes and got in another climb that morning and then decided we needed a photo shoot on the rocks before we left. After our photo session we loaded up our stuff vowing to return soon and spend a lot more time climbing in the City of Rocks. On our way back we made a quick stop at the burrito truck outside of Idaho Falls and made it to the pass from Idaho to Wyoming just after dark. I couldn't have asked for a better first adventure out of the valley.

DAY 2-me climbing, me rapelling, breakfast, photo shoot pic, the burrito truck, Sweet Home Wyoming!





ENCOUNTERS WITH A JACKALOPE
My second trip out of the valley was actually required for school. The final week of my first teaching track was to be spent teaching elementary students in Riverton, Wyoming. Riverton is in the middle of Shoshone country and is over the hills and through the woods from the Teton Valley. As soon as you head east and then southeast from the Teton Valley and are nearing the rock climbing and NOLS mecca of Lander you reach rolling hills and flatlands and then you are in Riverton. Our trip to Riverton was fairly uneventful. We drove, we stayed in a hotel (where we had cable for the first time in 4 months-Laura and I ended up watching some TV show about cat shows...except for Top Chef I don't think there is anything worthwhile on TV), we taught some students, we saw a Shoshone cemetery, we went out to dinner in Lander at a brewpub that had $2 beers! and then we returned home. The highlight of the trip for me was the little country store where we stopped.

At the country store we had our pictures taken with the mythical Jackalope and loaded up on tasty treats, including huckleberry ice cream. Needless to say, my second trip out of the valley was not a huge adventure but, nonetheless, provided different scenery for a short amount of time.

THE NEVER ENDING ROAD TRIP
After my trip to Riverton I stuck around the Jackson area for awhile. My parents, brother, sister-in-law and new, very cool niece came for Thanksgiving and then I had Winter Ecology class for a couple of weeks where I learned about snowpack from Exum guide Ron Matous and did a research project tracking animals in the snow. During our class we had a three day weekend so my friend Molly and I decided to take a trip to Estes Park, Colorado. Estes Park was beautiful and the school, Eagle Rock, that I visited there was inspiring. However, the road trip there and back was something that could only be experienced to truly understand but I will attempt to do it justice here.

The trip there wasn't too eventful. We left on a Thursday, after class and dinner were over. We headed out on what was to be an 8 hour trip around 6pm. We picked up a teacher from Journeys Schools, John, who, like Molly, used to work at Eagle Rock School. We headed south into the dark Wyoming night. Sometime around 8 or 9pm we realized we had taken a wrong turn and, in fact, had gone about an hour or so out of our way. Once we finally got back on track we were off on the long drive to Estes Park. We hit Ft. Collins around 2am and found the road Molly thought we were to take was closed. We finally got ourselves headed the right direction and rolled into Eagle Rock at 4am. Luckily, we had comfy beds waiting for us and a few hours sleep before breakfast at 7:30am. Breakfast was great! We took a little nap and listened to a students P.O.L. (Project of Learning) which was so moving I found myself crying. The next day we went to graduation and wandered around the town of Estes Park before heading off on our 8 hour trip back home. We had some work to do for school and were eager to get back.

We made it through Colorado, had just passed Laramie and were headed towards Rawlins, Wyoming when the weather started getting nasty. We swerved left and then right, missed all signs and posts on the side of the road and wound up in a ditch with a flat tire. The police were there pretty quickly. They told us we were the luckiest of the bunch as there were three cars that rolled over ahead of us. They also told us to call AAA, because we had it, and to get off of the side of the road and up to the nearby gas station to keep warm and stay out of the way of other vehicles which could also slide into us. We spent the next hour or so in the convenience store. I looked at the amazing tape collection and listened to the police scanner while Molly called AAA and John tried to find a tire place that was open since we really didn't want to drive the 6 hours back to Jackson on a spare. Sadly, all of the tire places were closing in the next hour and there was no way we could make it to one before it closed. On the up side, AAA was going to come and tow us out of the ditch in an hour or so and the convenience store had a very cool Barry Manilow and Stars of Nashville tapes. I resisted the temptation to buy them and we trudged through the blowing snow back to the car to wait for AAA to show up.

AAA came around 7:30, towed us out, changed our tire and sent us on our way down the icy road. Unfortunately, the spare was a little flat so, until we could find some air, we could only drive 35mph. We made it about 20 miles down the road, with no service station in sight, when we encountered traffic that was stopped on the freeway. As it turned out there was a major accident, which we didn't get to see any evidence of, on the road ahead. It took them about 3 hours to clear the accident and so we sat in the car, called some people back in Jackson on the phone, called some other people on the phone, tried to name all of the state capitals, tried to memorize all of the state capitals, listened to some music, tried to figure out what was going on ahead of us, talked about pizza (because there was a Little Caesar's pizza truck next to us and we hadn't eaten dinner), talked about how we could possibly get some pizza out of the pizza truck and, occasionally, sat in silence. By 10 or so we started moving again but since we had not gotten to an air pump yet we could still only go 35mph. Our next 2 goals were air and food. We found the air at a very sketchy truck stop where the people in the convenience store actually told us not to stop but at this point we really had no choice. Despite being really hungry we decided not to eat there instead we headed on down the road towards Rawlins.

As we drove into Rawlins we discovered the hospitality of Penny's Diner. It was open 24 hours, had nice people serving us and best of all they had food! I remembered Penny's from my brief stop in Rawlins on my move out to Jackson. I had gone running by it, thought of my friend Penny who lives on the eastern shore of Maryland and hoped I would one day eat there. Not only did I finally get to eat a Penny's Diner but it was probably one of the brightest spots on our trip from Estes Park to Jackson. The people at Penny's even printed us a map for our trip back that showed the road conditions for our entire trip. We loved them for it.

Once we were refueled we headed on down the road. We could now drive 55mph thanks to our inflated tire. However, it was around 1am and we'd been on the road for 13 hours. We were tired and weary and decided to stop at a rest area and get a few hours of sleep before driving the remaining 5 hours back to Jackson. It was cold in the car and I didn't get a whole lot of sleep but felt pretty awake once we started driving again. I ended up driving the last leg of the trip. The night was clear, shooting stars were everywhere and the moon reflecting on the snow made the Wyoming grasslands look like a winter wonderland. I loved driving in the middle of the night and then having the chance to watch the sunrise over the snowy wilderness. I had to drive slowly over the pass into Jackson since the road was covered with snow and ice but the scenery was so beautiful I didn't mind the time it took. We finally pulled into Jackson around 9am, dropped off John and headed back to Kelly. I was happy I went to Colorado and Molly and John were two of the best people to share such a crazy trip with but it was nice to be home. I buried myself under my covers and slept until 1. I always love a good road trip...you never know what might happen.

A NOT SO WHITE CHRISTMAS
I spent 2 more fun-filled weeks hanging out in Jackson (which will have to be discussed at a later date) before boarding my first plane since May! I paid the 15 dollars to check my bag assuming, of course, that paying to check a bag should mean it would be more likely to make it to its destination. That assumption, as we all know, was completely WRONG! My journey from Jackson to Cleveland was fairly uneventful. I experienced the delays that are inevitable when traveling from one snowy place to another snowy place with a lay-over in Chicago. I did land in Cleveland at 2am but was, along with half of the other passengers on the plane, bagless. Here is the great thing about your bag not showing up when you show up...the airlines will actually deliver your bag to you and you don't have to lug in anywhere but into your house, which, I think, is a pretty nice deal. I told the woman working in the Cleveland lost luggage section that as long as I got my bag before Christmas day I was pretty satisfied. She assured me it would actually be there the next day, the 22nd. Of course, it wasn't...my parents live 4 hours from Cleveland, who in the world was going to drive my bag down there? They ended up sending it Fed Ex Overnight! Really! That's crazy! It definitely cost more than the 15 bucks I paid to check my bag. Anyway, the whole bag thing was just part of my Christmas adventure and really wasn't even much of an adventure since a) it happens to the bulk of people who fly at some point and b) I actually expect it to happen so it never really comes as a shock that my bag isn't there when I am. I am always excited to end up getting it at some point!

So, I made it back to my small hometown in Ohio to spend Christmas in what, turned out to be, 50-60 degree balmy weather. Definitely no white Christmas here. Meanwhile, back in Jackson, I was receiving facebook messages and phone calls from people who stayed for the holidays telling me about the snow over their knees and hearing news reports of avalanches. The biggest adventure of my Christmas was my mom's small accident. She ended up hitting her head and cutting it a bit. Luckily, one of our dinner guests, Jonathan, is in med school and had the equipment to stitch her up. Apparently, he'd been trying to get people to let him stitch them up all week. His sisters said even when someone had something as small as a paper cut he'd offer to stitch it for the injured. For him, my mom's cut was a golden opportunity to use his mad stitching skills. So, on Christmas night Jonathan gave my mom a great Christmas present, she avoided a trip to the emergency room and instead wound up lying on the couch getting her head stitched up by a 28 year old doctor she has known since he was born.

My original plan was to drive east the day after Christmas to catch up with some friends and maybe even get in some climbing, which I'd definitely been missing. I woke up on the 26th with a feeling deep in the pit of my stomach that I shouldn't go east. Have you ever had one of those feelings that you really shouldn't do something, so much so that it makes your stomach churn? Well, I've been getting them for the past couple of years and I've learned to follow that instinct. Anyway, I thought it would probably be best for me to stay in Ohio and hang out with my mom. Not only did she have a newly stitched up head but this was also her first day off of work, without the chaos of the holidays, since I'd been back. It was nice just to sit and talk with her and start delving into one of the several new books I received for Christmas. I was sad that I didn't get to see several people that I'd been really looking forward to catching up with and talking to in person back east; however, I knew, deep down inside that Ohio was exactly where I was supposed to be. Since it was 70 degrees outside I also couldn't resist the urge to get out and do something so I went for a long run and hike through the woods. It was exactly what I needed to feel reconnected to my hometown and to have a chance to reflect on what I'd experienced the past 5 months. I was overcome with the feeling that I am doing exactly what I should be doing and this next year is going to be a great one!

DON'T KNOCK L.A.
On December 29th I left Ohio and headed for Los Angeles, the first big city I'd been to since I left my brother's house in Chicago back in August. I was excited, I could feel the city vibe. Though I had a love/hate relationship with L.A. when I lived there I was happy to be back for a visit. There was still smog and traffic and crazy amounts people but there was also the beach and the sun and the hikes and the great friends. I walked out of LAX, took a good deep breath of smoggy warm air and thought, I'm happy to be here. I was also very excited to stay with my friend Lori whom I hadn't seen since she and Mike visited New York City in July. I spent my first day there going for a run and a walk around Los Feliz and then meeting up with my friend, Eric, who works at Warner Brothers, for some lunch. We wandered around the WB lot and then grabbed some Thai food. The next day I had a chance to see my friend Kathleen and visit my friend, Lori's, dad.

I wound up spending my New Year's Eve in a great bar in Koreatown. It's called the Barcade but is a bit divier than the Barcade in Brooklyn. In Koreatown's Barcade most of the video games don't work, it's small and the free pizza was pretty crappy. There were, however, working pinball machines, good beer and punk music on the jukebox. Most importantly, it wasn't crowded at all. It was the perfect way to spend a New Year's Eve. The next morning I went on a long walk to Griffith Park observatory to look out over the city and see what I could see. Then, I went back to Lori's to watch football all day and watch USC whip up on Penn State. Sorry Nittany Lions fans, just had to cheer for the team that paid me for 4 years plus, who doesn't love Pete Carroll?

On January 3rd I had a magical day at Disneyland. OK, I realize that there are some of you out there who will scoff at my excitement over Disneyland...you have clearly never ridden on the Matterhorn or Space Mountain. To me, the Matterhorn is Disneyland's shining glory...it is what sets Disneyland apart from Disney World. Plus, I heard a really cool Dirtbag Diaries podcast about guys who used to get paid to wear lederhosen and climb around on the Matterhorn, not a bad gig. Of course, since it was still a school holiday, we did have to wait in line for tickets for an hour and a half AND most of the ride lines were at least 45 minutes long BUT it was well worth it to see Disneyland decorated for Christmas, get to experience the Haunted Mansion decorated as the Nightmare Before Christmas, spend some quality time with Lori and bask in the thrill of Space Mountain and the Matterhorn. Additionally, there was the pure joy of seeing thousands of excited amusement park goers in all of their amusement park glory. Screaming children, arguing parents, overweight tourists, newlyweds or wanna-be newlyweds in their bride and groom mouse ears, and teenagers sticking their tongues down each others throats in line may have been some of the low points but it gave us something to gawk at and talk about; however, the lights, the rides, the smiling kids and the extremely happy employees (what do they give those guys?...Mary Poppins, especially, seemed way too happy) are just a few of the highlights Disneyland has to offer. It was a very fantastic Christmas present...thanks Lori!

My final day in Los Angeles was spent eating breakfast at Venice Beach and then wandering around looking at all of the great Venice Beach sights. Venice is one of my favorite spots in L.A. mainly because of the people watching. I have not found another place in the various cities I've called home where I can sit and watch all walks of life run, skateboard, rollerblade, bike and meander by all while I'm hanging out drinking a beer. If I wanted to I could also have my fortune told, get a henna tattoo or a real tattoo, buy an airplane made of tin cans, see some crazy artwork, jump in the Pacific Ocean, support the legalization of marijuana, support vegans and vegetarians, buy an Obama t-shirt, participate in a drum circle, learn to juggle and get a free hug. It's almost as good as Disneyland and doesn't have the hefty price tag. Throw a roller coaster down there somewhere and I think I'd be in heaven.

After my exciting morning at Venice Beach Lori and I headed to the Burbank airport. Luckily, along the way I called to check on my flight and found out it was canceled. One quick call to United and I was rebooked on a flight out of LAX. It worked out well and I made it to Denver in time to catch up with my friends from Jackson and fly back home. Not only were 2 of my 21 classmates on my flight but so was Ron Matous, the aforementioned Exum guide, on his way back from Patagonia. Jackson is a small town filled with interesting people and I was happy to be going back.

BACK HOME AGAIN
There is a song by a woman named Kathy Mohr. I have no idea what the title of the song is as the CD was given to me by a friend at school. However, the song talks about being back home where the air is clear and the buffalo roam and seeing the setting sun from a mountaintop. The song lyrics were running through my head as our plane descended into the valley and I could see the snow on the Tetons glowing in the moonlight. All of a sudden a sense a calm overtook me and I was so happy to be back in the land of snow and headed home to my small cabin in the wilderness. My friends picked me up from the airport, we headed into town to get some food and hear a great bluegrass band and as I lay in bed that night I thought of all of the adventures 2009 has in store for me...I have a feeling that it's going to be even better than 2008 and if that's true there should be many more stories ahead.

Wilderness Workouts

I'm slowly realizing that I actually stink at writing a blog. Mainly because I never update it and by the time I find some time and energy to write it there's so much to tell that I feel it will take forever. Well, my New Year's resolution is to do a better job on this thing so those people who I don't talk to on the phone (don't feel left out...I don't really talk to anyone on the phone because I don't have service most of the time and I really don't like talking on the phone) or write long emails to (don't feel left out of that one either because it only seems to happen if I dream something crazy about someone and need to tell about the dream or if I'm trying to retrieve some left items or acquire some new ones OR if people are planning on visiting, which you are all more than welcome)

So, here is what I wrote sometime at the beginning of November and never quite finished...

I spend my mornings staring out the breakfast window at the Teton Range. During my days I wander through the Gros Ventre mountains behind my cabin, sit by the creek and listen to the water flow as it winds it's way to the Snake River and watch the buffalo and moose roam the sage flats. At night the moon lights the way to my cabin door and if there is not a moon the sky seems filled with more stars than I ever imagined existed. I realize that I could not have chosen a more perfect place to study place-based education. Every day the environment around me inspires me, overwhelms me and affects my daily activities.


As I reflect on the steps that brought me here I recognize that my surroundings have impacted my moods, my activities, and my decisions throughout my life. From a childhood roaming the woods behind my house, high school days spent on the water rowing, camping in the woods, and having bonfires down by the river to college days watching the sun rise over the Chester River as the geese flew in formation overhead to hikes above the freeways and in the canyons of LA to wanders along the Potomac River I have continually experienced the environment around me. However, I think the days of looking carefully at the world around has diminished. Now that I'm immersed in nature daily I am experiencing a connection I haven't felt since I was that child wandering the woods. I find myself not just admiring pretty views and hiking and climbing to get a workout but I am actually getting back into nature, getting dirty, exploring and reconnecting not only to the Earth but also to the wonder that I held as a child. I don't just look at the creek, I get in it and peek into beaver lodges. I collect insects and try to identify them. I smell flowers, I pick up crickets and stare into their eyes, I pause to look at rock formations and try to figure out how they got that way. I can recognize bird calls and I know what time of night the bison will most likely be crossing the road.

As much as I like the grasses and berries that grow right outside my cabin door, I am most intrigued by the wildlife that roams the mountains, conifer and aspen forests and sage flats of the Teton Valley. Daily my life is impacted by the wildlife that surrounds me. I'd like to introduce you to a few of the animals who share my home.

UNGULUTE INTERRUPTIONS


First, there are the bison (American buffalo). They are the biggest animal around and they'll stick around throughout the winter since they are able to use their heads like shovels to clear the snow from their path. They munch on the grasses that grow in the sage flats but occasionally they'll wander through the forests. As I walk through the woods I'll find bits of bison hair stuck in the bark of a tree. Apparently a bison decided that the tree was the perfect place to give himself a back rub. Right now the bison are very prevalent on Ditch Creek Rd. which is about a mile or so stretch of road and is our way in and out of Teton Science Schools. I've had a few runs and bike rides interrupted because the bison were roaming on or near the road. Bison can actually jump 6 feet from a standing position and they really don't like bikes. So, if you are riding your bike along and see a bison herd crossing the road you have two choices, stop and let the bison pass or wait for a car to come along and ride your bike right next to it. I still like watching the bison but I'm definitely to the point that the bison are also a little bit annoying when I'm trying to get to/from somewhere.

The pronghorn (antelope) and the deer also like to stare at me while I'm riding my bike. I went on a bike ride one day from campus down the road towards the national forest service roads. As I whizzed past the bison they kept their heads down and ignored me but as soon as the mule deer saw me they turned their heads and stared. I had the same reaction from the pronghorn and the white-tailed deer. They looked at me, waiting to see what I would do and as I simply rode past them their heads turned to watch me pass. I loved it! What a great way to see these beautiful animals! Just a little bit about the pronghorn, which is my favorite. Also known as an antelope, they are the fastest animal living here. They can run 75 miles per hour. No other animal can even come close to catching the pronghorn. They can run so fast because a very long time ago cheetahs used to roam North America and were a predator of the pronghorn. Now, the pronghorn uses its long legs and quickness to migrate south for the winter. Since their legs are not adapted to live in deep snow they head south, 150 miles, through the Green River Valley to live near Pinedale, Wyoming, until the snow melts.

MOOSE COMMUNICATION
So, one day I was walking down the road in front of our dining lodge. I heard a grunt behind and saw a large bull moose walking down the road right behind me. Despite looking like a pretty cool guy I decided the moose probably didn't want to talk to me. I headed into the Main Lodge and watched through the window as he munched on some willows. I guessed this was the same guy who had been wandering around our grad circle of cabins a few days before and perhaps he was connected to the cow moose and calf that I had seen roaming around in the sage flats in front of the school. I think it's kind of funny that the moose really seem to like my friend Maggie. One of the first nights we were here she ran into one as she was heading back to her cabin. The scary part was that Maggie didn't have a headlamp with her and the moose kind of came out of the dark. I guess he just grunted at her, maybe she grunted back, and then she went on her way. Moose like to eat willow, bitterbrush (I think they are the only animal that eats bitterbrush), and green grasses. As I look around campus at the willow bushes I can see our local moose has been feasting away. Moose can also swim, since they also eat aquatic vegetation, and they have really long legs for walking around in the deep snow. Maybe, one day, you too will get to reenact a scene from Northern Exposure and walk down the road with a moose.

BUGLES IN THE NIGHT
In the early to mid-fall we take the students who come to Teton Science Schools further into the park to hear the elk bugle. The last time I took students out there they were so quiet we didn't just hear the elk bugle we also heard the "clackety-clack" or elk fighting with their antlers. The elk bugle and fight during mating season. The bulk of the bull elk will not get to mate but the strongest and best buglers will end up mating. Now, mating season is over and the elk are the easiest ungulate to track down. The elk cannot find food in the deep snow so they migrate for the winter. Most of the elk around here migrate to the Elk Refuge. The Refuge is a bit strange because not only are the elk fed by humans in the refuge but it is also possible to hunt the elk in the northern end of the refuge. It makes me think that "refuge" might not be the right word to describe the wintering grounds of the elk around here.

HIKING WITH BEARS
Going for a hike means being on the lookout for bears. All of those brave enough to wander into the depths of the forest do so armed with bear spray and trained to use it. However, one doesn't have to wander too far to find a bear. A rustling in the bushes is usually a good sign that a bear might be nearby and bear scat (usually filled with berries) is an even better indication to be on the lookout, especially when the bear scat is on the porch of the cook's cabin. I have been lucky enough to see two bears since I have been here. Both of them were black bears and both were eating when I saw them. The first was a young black bear spotted gnawing on a bison carcass near the creek that runs through our campus. I was with a group of students and though we were tempted to get out our cameras and start taking pictures we slowly backed away and kept a close eye on that bear.

My second bear sighting was a fun one. Half of our graduate class was at the Murie Ranch (I'll have to tell more about this beautiful and inspiring place in another post) listening to friends give a talk about the book Wapiti Wilderness. As we hiked towards the river we heard a rustling in the bushes and we turned to see a black bear seated upon a bush munching on some berries. We abandoned our hike to the river and instead moved to a clearing where we could listen to the Wapiti Wilderness presentation AND spy on the bear through binoculars at the same time. I could have watched that bear struggling to reach berries all day. I think he even fell a couple of times.

There isn't too much bear worry right now. It's winter and the bears have loaded up on food and are resting for the winter. I say "resting" rather than "hibernating" because most scientists don't consider what bears do in winter true hibernation. Their heart rates equal that of sleeping whereas hibernating animals have extremely low heart rates, much lower than sleeping heart rates. Also, female bears are active enough in winter to give birth. Whatever the case hiking can now be done without bear spray as long as you don't plan on wandering into a bear den.

LOOK CLOSER
There are many more animals to be found around the area and some are very hard to spot. I have discovered some while walking, running, hiking and climbing. The forest is filled with squirrels, chipmunks and snowshoe hares. My latest research project was tracking animals in the snow and we saw signs of squirrels everywhere. Even when you can't see their tracks you can hear them chattering away in the trees. Squirrels and chipmunks will live in a subnivean (under the snow) environment for the winter where they will be warm and cozy.

Some of the insects around here are amazing. I had to throw in this picture of a caterpillar that I found while walking along Ditch Creek Rd. We looked him up online and found out he will turn into a moth. I spent one day in the creek researching the macroinvertebrates that live there. I pulled out mayflies, caddis flies, weird worms, tiny red spiders and other insects that indicate the stream that runs through our campus is a healthy one. I also had to put in a picture of a Mormon cricket that I found while hiking. There are a lot of crickets around here. In the fall our graduate circle and one of our climbing spots (Hoback Shield) were filled with crickets flying around.


Well, I think that's quite enough about the animals around here for now. Winter is slowly descending upon us and it's time for me to head to do some schoolwork so I can get in some cross-country skiing later today. In the spring, when it is rumored that I have to learn bird calls, I'll discuss the birds of the area. For now, I've given you a bit of the natural history of this place and hopefully encouraged you to come and visit some of these characters up close. Consider this education part of your holiday gift from me!

Next up...something a bit more exciting...Winter and Adventures out of the Valley. The times I've left have been few but when I leave something fun and a little crazy always happens.

For now...Happy HOLIDAYS!!! Pray for snow, we sure could use some.

Snow falling on Aspens

Today was the FIRST snowfall in Kelly, Wyoming. I woke up to flurries and as the 5th graders, Laura Beebe and I sat and talked about our day we watched the flurries turn to showers. It was pretty awesome. So, we donned our gear and headed out into the white stuff.

So, it's here, it has finally arrived, the really amazing powder that could be here to stay until April or even May. I have to say that I'm very very very excited. I've been wandering around in it and driving in it and just have a grand 'ol time. I'm curious if I'll get sick of it by December. I'm thinking I won't. My opinion is snow makes everything pretty and bright. Most people here are excited to see it. Pretty soon I'll learn how to cross country ski and then the ski resorts will open and that will be exciting.

This early snowfall inspired my to write a list...YOU KNOW YOU ARE LIVING IN A CABIN IN THE MOUNTAINS OF WESTERN WYOMING WHEN... So here it goes

YOU KNOW YOU ARE LIVING IN A CABIN IN THE MOUNTAINS OF WESTERN WYOMING WHEN...

1. It starts snowing on October 9 and continues to snow for the next three days.

2. Your excuses for being late meeting someone in town are: The blowing snow held me up; I had to wait for 20 minutes while the bison crossed the road; I had to wait for 20 minutes while the tourist, who parked his car in the middle of the road, took the perfect shot of a moose; I ran out of gas driving the 40 minutes to town; I got pulled over by the park police on my way to town (no this hasn't happened to me yet but it has happened to people I know); I was on my way but so-and-so wanted a lift to the bar and I had to wait for him/her to get ready; I spent 20 minutes looking for my car keys/wallet cuz I haven't needed them for a week

3. Your social activities include: rock climbing, chopping wood, biking, going for hikes on trails that are right outside your front door, wandering through the creek looking for beaver dams, sledding, snowboarding, doing the country swing at the Stagecoach on Sunday nights, listening to the latest singer to pass through at the Center for Performing Arts, catching the latest bluegrass band at the Wort on Tuesday nights, going to the Hootenanny at Dornans on Monday nights, driving over the pass to Driggs, Idaho to get huckleberry milkshakes or check out the Knotty Pine, playing Apples to Apples in the commons, watching 10 Things I Hate About You for the 10th time because it's one of the few videos you have for your cableless common's TV, planning Thursday night shindigs with themes like-Dress As A Biblical Character or 70s and 80s ski clothes night, going garage-saleing and coming home with sweet Patagonia gear and practically never been used skis and snowboards all at garage sale prices, and bonfires in the National Forest. Most of the time your social activity is walking 50 feet to the cabins next door to hang out.

4. Your going out during the day clothing includes jeans/Carhartts/pants which will get dirty and covered with sap and snow, rain gear, hiking boots, winter hat, baseball cap, orange vest during hunting season, a down jacket and some gloves. Your going out during the night clothing is exactly the same minus the orange vest

5. You go to a sick ski movie (Under the Influence) and the audience cheers, claps, oohs and aahs throughout the entire film.

6. You start using words like "sick" and "wicked" to describe everything (yes, there are many Vermont/New Hampshire/the rest of New England transplants here)

7. Your neighbors are mainly ranchers.

8. The students who come to your outdoor school have a lot of outdoor experience hunting.

9. Topics of conversation include the park's "Let It Burn" policy, fishing licenses, how to deal with kids and snow, the best gear to stay warm, who's playing at the Wort, when hunting season begins and ends, what deals are at the Browse and Buy, how to install a pull up bar in the Commons, backcountry skiing and which ski resort has the best powder.

10. You only know 30 people where you live but at least one owns a banjo, one owns a mandolin, 4 or 5 own guitars and one owns a fiddle. You're pretty sure a bluegrass band will form in the wintertime.

11. You go to a "Harvest Party" in a log cabin where you eat soup out of a pumpkin, walk on a slack line and sit around a bonfire.

12. You are constantly reminded you should never go anywhere without a raincoat and a headlamp.

13. Lunch with your students was interrupted because a bear showed up on the scene.

14. Your grocery list includes a snow scraper, a broom and some cheese.

15. You couldn't go running because you couldn't find your bear spray.

16. Bear spray is sold at the local knife store.

17. There is a local knife store.

I'm sure more could be added to this list but that's it for now.

On a sad note tragedy struck the Teton Science Schools grad students in various ways this week. Just wanted to say, Sara C., I hope this blog somehow keeps you smiling I'm thinking about you always and already miss you a lot, Sarah W. I hope you make it home and Laura I hope you get in touch with your friend.

To end on a happier note...Just wanted to add a quick Happy Birthday to my dad, Billy, Jonathan, Allison and my new friend Karen who all turned somewhere in their 20s, 30s, and 60s this week. I hope you had a great time!

Let me know if you want to hear about anything specific.
:) Amy

The Beginning

So, here I am, ready to write my first blog entry. It feels a bit silly but, at the same time, unless you are a regular user of facebook you probably have no idea what I've been up to and might even be wondering if I've been gored by a buffalo. No, I have not been gored by a buffalo nor trampled by a moose, eaten by a bear nor buried in an avalanche. I have, in fact, been super busy studying up on the ecology of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and getting used to the ins and outs of living in a cabin in the woods. After a few requests for regular updates on my life here in the Teton Valley I figured I'd get on with this whole blog writing thing. I guess the great thing about a blog is you can look at it whenever you want to and I can just send an email saying, "Hey, I wrote something new on my blog. Check it out." Plus, I think I can put some pictures on here which should be pretty cool.

OK, let's get on with it then.


WHAT THE HECK AM I DOING LIVING IN WYOMING?

I wound up living in this cabin near Jackson,Wyoming because I decided to attend the Teton Science Schools graduate program. Don't worry if you've not heard of this place before because it is not some big well known school. Instead, the Teton Science Schools is a collection of really cool science based education programs which happens to include a pretty awesome graduate program that focuses on place-based education. The Teton Science Schools also has a private school called Journeys School which is located in Jackson and a tour operator called Wildlife Expeditions which offers wildlife viewing tours for people who want to sit and watch the buffalo and other wildlife from the safety of a van.

So far, in school, I have studied the Ecology of the Greater Yellowstone area which includes geological history (namely, how and when the Tetons showed up) and information about the communities/habitats/biospheres that are in this area. I'm learning a lot of great information about aspens, conifers and sagebrush. I'm also taking a course called Place-Based Education which uses the surrounding environment to teach children science. I LOVE it. Right now, I'm teaching 5th graders from Wyoming about the communities in the area. Next week 5th graders from Utah will visit and then it's back into the classroom for 2 more weeks before I travel to the Reservation to teach in the schools there. The grad program here works like this...2 weeks of class, 2 weeks of residential education (that means students from 5th grade to high school who come here and we teach them on our campus), one week of seminar and planning, 2 weeks of class and then 2 weeks of outreach (we go out and teach students at their schools-I'm going to a reservation in Wyoming and teaching 5th graders). There are 24 people in my program and we are divided into 4 tracks. Each track takes the same classes but their outreach and residential education is different. For example, one group is doing their outreach by teaching fire ecology to students in Montana, another group worked as park rangers in Teton National Park. We will be in our current tracks until Thanksgiving. Then, there will be new options and we will switch tracks. Also, once winter comes our classes will change. I know we will have a class about winter ecology then. Anyway, that's the way it works.

I'm having a great time and am very very excited to be here. I'm meeting amazing people, have incredible views every day and am outside all of the time. I love it! We'll see what happens when the snow starts to pile up.


Now some basic facts:

1. WHERE I LIVE: I live in a cabin in Kelly, Wyoming and it is on Ditch Creek Rd. Hence the blog name "Tales from 1 Ditch Creek Rd."

2. WHERE IN THE WORLD IS KELLY? There is a town of Kelly which is in Teton National Park about 10 miles north of Jackson, Wyoming close to the border of Idaho and about 50 miles south of Yellowstone National Park. It has a coffee shop/cafe/store/place to buy beer and wood AND it has a separate, though quite small-you have to duck to get in the door, post office. The coffee shop/cafe/store/place to buy beer and wood apparently has really good sandwiches, according to a guy I met in Driggs, Idaho but their hours are sketchy. They close when they want to so I'm not exactly sure when I can go and try the awesome sandwiches. There are also some houses and a yurt community in Kelly. There was a great yurt for sale for $8,000 but since I already have a cabin to live in and I don't have $8,000 I figured someone else can buy the yurt for now.
I do not actually live in the town of Kelly. I live about 4 miles on down the road near a ranch called Let 'Er Buck. This is really funny because I met a skier named Sammy who signed a poster for me and he wrote "Let 'Er Buck" on it. I guess this is a phrase that I need to use a lot. I actually do live in a national park so that means if you come and visit me we can't build fires and you can't take anything you find near my cabin home with you. This national park does, however, have an airport which will be loaded with crazy skiers and boarders looking for sweet sweet powder in the wintertime and hunters, fishermen, cowboys and tourists the rest of the year. Yep, you can hunt in this national park and elk season is upon us so you'll see a lot of science school students in bright orange vests.

4. UH, WHAT ABOUT PEEING IN THE WOODS My cabin does not have a bathroom so I do have to walk outside to find a toilet and a shower. Not so bad right now but once the temps drop below zero it should be interesting. The bathroom/showers are located in the Commons which turns into a gathering place around bedtime and on Thursday nights for our Thursday night shindigs. This also means that brushing my teeth at bedtime can turn into an hour long conversation with another grad student about challenging students, crazy wildlife sightings, or just the latest campus gossip.

5. MY 'HOOD: I have some cool neighbors from all over the country. They are all going to school with me and teaching with me and hanging out with me on the weekends. Needless to say we see A LOT of each other. It's pretty good right now. My next door neighbors are Molly, to the right of me, and Frank, to the left. Molly lived in Bellingham, Washington and since FindYourSpot.com told me I should live there I quiz her a lot about Bellingham. Frank is from Georgia and he is Frank Carter IV. Any relation to Jimmy? Who knows but he is a direct descendant of Robert E. Lee. He also lets me pick around on his banjo and is a superfan of the Avett Brothers. So is Molly so I guess the Avetts have a pretty solid hold on my hood.

6. ENERGY: The FOOD IS AMAZING!! Food is included with my stay here and our cooks, Tim and Sarah, are incredible. They cook food that kids will like but we love it too. Each week there is yummy pasta, bison burgers, organic chicken, a delicious soup Sarah concocted, salad and other tasty treats. I'm anxiously awaiting snowboarding season so I can start working off the the food I pack in.

7. COMMUNICATION- It's difficult. Most cell phones don't work on campus. I can get reception if I walk down the road or go to the playfield. Email is really the best way to communicate.

8. WILDLIFE- It's all over. My friend Khale just saw a cow and a bull moose. I saw a black bear one day while studying the riparian area with students. There are bison who roam and block traffic on the roads to Moose, Kelly and Jackson-one was out there licking down her calf the other day (hey lady, don't wash your baby in the middle of the road!) There are also antelope (aka pronghorns), mule deer and then a bunch of little animals like beavers, squirrels, chipmunks and field mice. The other day we went creek walking to try to see the beavers making their dams. It was pretty cool.

WHAT'S NEXT
I think this is enough for now. I'll put some pics up too.
Feel free to email me questions and I'll try to answer them.
I'm going to try to write every 2-3 weeks. No idea if that will happen.
I finished editing this on October 9th which also marked our first snowfall so I'm pretty sure I'll talk a bit about the weather next time.