Top 10 Things I'll miss about the Refuge

#9. Working Outdoors

I consider myself very lucky to be where I am now. I worked all year long outdoors on a large, native grassland prairie (who can often say that?!). I got more than my fair share of sunshine and fresh air. Even with all the sunscreen applied, I got the most tan that I have ever gotten this summer working in the field. I've  conquered my pollen and cedar allergies. I often reminisce about nesting season, when I lugged large bales of 50ft chicken wire and buckets full of bent stakes across the prairie to build fences around a hen and her eggs. Ahh, summer months spent riding around in the ATV or Polaris- listening to music, singing loudly (there's no one around for miles) and spraying herbicide on invasive rose. I loved doing the wildlife surveys, GPSing areas and just tromping across vast fields of little bluestem and switchgrass. It was great experiencing all of the seasons outside on the prairie- springtime bloom, summer heat, fall leaves and winter's bitter cold. After this, it'll be very tough transitioning to an indoor job.

It was a very long ordeal but I secretly enjoyed feeding the chicks.

 It gave me a chance to see them everyday

Checking traps for the small mammal survey

Finally! A picture of me and an APC

Holding and changing the radiocollar of a newly released bird