Heading North

“Parting is such sweet sorrow”.  These words from William Shakespeare, immortalized in the play Romeo and Juliet, come to mind as we prepare to depart Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge leaving behind people we have met and become friends with. Sweet in the sense that we have forged new relationships with a few and already have plans to see them again down the road, some sooner than others but we will meet again for sure and possibly work together again.  Sad in that, like all other chapters in life, this one is coming to a fast end.

[caption id="attachment_228" align="alignright" width="300"] Packing up[/caption]

 

As I reflect on our 14 weeks here, my thoughts turn back to the expectations and apprehensions I felt as we embarked on our first RV Volunteer assignment. My only fear of being in this wild place was an encounter with a scorpion.  I never saw one, maybe we were here the wrong time of year.  Fortunately, unlike my husband I have no fear of snakes.  I did see several this winter and was not concerned but more curious and a little disappointed that they moved away so quickly that I didn’t get a long look at them.  The encounter with the Rattlesnake was, well, ‘rattling’. It was my first encounter with a snake that could harm me. He was quite docile, having recently emerged from hibernation but scary none the less.  Two things happened after that. I became quite vigilant when walking around knowing they were lurking about and much to my surprise don’t feel the need to rattle at humans, giving them stealth. Not the two that were encountered around the RV’s anyway. The other result was the sudden influx of field mice into the underbelly of our camper. They got inside the camper living space by way of the louvers in the stairs going to the bedroom.  The cats caught the first one. We caught 6 more, in short order, with traps and can only imagine how many ate the Decon that we provided for their dining pleasure. A few hours from departure I am happy to announce, that Champ did not succumb to sudden heart failure, when our reptile friends came out of hibernation, as he predicted he might and the mice are under control.

The work we did for Balcones was a far reach from the job descriptions we applied for but was very rewarding.  My cousin recalled an adage her grandmother used to repeat often “Bloom where you are. “ That fit so perfectly.  The cardinal rule of RV Volunteering is to be flexible to the needs of your host.  "Other duties as assigned" a phrase I uttered frequently in my professional career, was the phrase of the season.  In our case, especially mine, because of our sudden job description evolution, I was privileged to get involved in the refuge mission in ways I never imagined I would be able to. This has been such a rewarding experience for this nature loving corporate burn out. Instead of working in the Visitors Center every day, I got out, got dirty and sweaty, learned a lot and got a great tan!  I still got to do 1 day a week in the Visitors Center which I also loved.  Champ could satisfy his love of ‘piddling’ as he calls it doing various handyman type jobs for the refuge as well as mowing. Our once a week duty of cleaning the trail head public areas, a morning spent working together each Monday was something to look forward to each week.

[caption id="attachment_230" align="alignright" width="300"] Texas Bluebonnet[/caption]

It has been a treat to watch the Texas wildflowers awaken. The best part for me is that most of them are not familiar to me, so it is exciting not knowing what is going to bloom next and what it will look and smell like.  I marvel at the astonishing array of butterflies here. Being from a part of the country that is ag intensive and saturated in pesticides, butterflies and other pollinators are becoming rarer each year. I have also discovered the pleasure of birding ( something that I'm sure will make my mother smile) and plan to continue with what I have learned from our friend John, and hopefully find a new bird mentor who can continue to teach me when I return to Iowa.

In less than two weeks we will be at Saylorville Lake experiencing our favorite campground and part time summer home the past 15 years, in a very different way. There will be new volunteers to meet and become friends with. A new job to do and new rangers to work for. The web that is the Full Time Rv’ers network will grow a bit more and we’ll be at home with our family and friends.  Not in our brick and mortar home but our RV home in Volunteer Village. For the cats’ sake, I wish sometimes I could do a Samantha Stevens trick and wiggle my nose to transport us the 1200 miles home. The road trip is a pleasure for Champ and me.  The cats, well let’s just say, they will be glad when it is over.

Several family members asked me over the winter if I missed anything since selling the house. Or story as yet, reads much like the blogs I read of those who have gone before us.  The angst of selling all our possessions and foundation, morphed quickly into a feeling of liberation and we haven’t looked back.

[caption id="attachment_229" align="alignnone" width="300"] Farewell Volunteer Lunch[/caption]

We’ll pull out of the refuge and head for the Interstate in less than 24 hours and take with us some great memories, new people in our hearts, and maybe a stowaway field mouse.

Till next time…

Enjoy pictures of some of the wildlife I photographed while here. It has been a great experience.

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Wardrobe Change

I love watching spring colors transform the drab grays and browns of winter into a kaleidoscope of color.  For this northerner it was really strange to watch the refuge undergo this change beginning in late February, when my home state of Iowa is typically still buried in a foot of snow pack and the ground is till frozen several feet deep.  It occurred to me the other day, the best part of being a snow bird is going to be able to witness this remarkable transformation twice each year. When we arrive home in April the flowers and trees of Iowa will just be starting to wake up and poke their heads through the barely warm soil. What an unexpected bonus!

One of my favorite colors in the world is the fresh, light bright green of new leaves. Nowhere in nature is this color reproduced and as far as I'm concerned attempts to reproduce new leaf green by man made means fall far short of Mother Natures.  Perhaps it is knowing that the color is associated with a new birth and the promise of another growing season that holds its appeal to me.

I think I'll stop gushing and let the reader enjoy the pictures.

Until next time...

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Until We Meet Again

We are in the final countdown to the day we will depart from Balcones and head back home to Iowa. I am so excited to get back home and spoil the grandkids, get caught up with friends we haven’t seen since October and connect with our three kids again. Through the magic of social media and video chat, we have been much more connected than we could have been just 10 years ago, and for that I am thankful.

As with any adventure we are counting down the times we will do certain things before we leave.  Three more Taco Tuesday’s with our group, two more Monday’s of PUA duty, two more Tuesday’s working the Visitors Center talking to visitors about what there is to see and do here. Seven more total work days and two weekends. When we leave, we will take some time going home and visit Shreveport, Hot Springs, Mark Twain National Forest and stop for a quick overnight visit with a cousin in Kansas.

I marvel at the fast friends we have made in Hill Country.  We had the good fortune to be in the company of very dynamic people who love this lifestyle as much as we do.  John & Cathy lived in the area for 17 years before taking the plunge and selling their home last year to go full time. They introduced us to their friends from the area and we have had a wonderful 3 months here socializing with them and making new friends.  Like everything else in life, people are what make the experience heartfelt and worthwhile.

[caption id="attachment_204" align="alignnone" width="300"] The Great 8[/caption]

The refuge staff have been so generous with their knowledge and willing to let us roll up our sleeves and get involved in projects that contribute to the mission of the refuge. I have been able to experience things I never dreamed I could be a part of and will take these experiences with me along with my photographic record of this beautiful place. Being RV volunteers has given us the opportunity to experience the refuge in a way that would not have been possible any other way.  I will miss this place and the people get to call Balcones Canyonlands NWR their ‘office’.

[caption id="attachment_110" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Refuge Entrance[/caption]

There will be tears for sure.  The day we leave will be tough. It’s amazing how quickly one can grow fond of people and how hard it is to part ways.  When I imagine the perfect version of this lifestyle I see us meeting people over the years and reconnect with some of them periodically as we return to different regions of the country.  That is certainly true of our feelings for the folks we have met here this year.  We hope to return to Balcones in the future for another stint and most definitely will make it a point to come to the area on the way to or from somewhere and see our Lago Vista friends.  We are already talking about how and when we may see each other again.  Fortunately, Saylorville is centrally located and a beautiful campground.  Beth has reservations there a couple of times this summer so we know we will see her again.  John & Cathy are talking about making it a destination for a couple of days on their way to their summer gig in Northern Minnesota and a couple we met in Kerrville stay at Saylorville each year on their way to Minnesota and will let us know when they pass through so we can visit them again.   We met Central U.S. snowbirds at Kerrville earlier in the winter who plan a summer reunion in South Dakota, where one of the couples volunteers in the summer. If things work out we may have the opportunity to see them again for a long weekend.

In 30 days we will be back in Iowa nestled away at Volunteer Village. Saylorville holds a special place in our hearts.  It is the place where we met and our life began together some 16 years ago. We will be home in time for our oldest son’s birthday, Easter and the procession of summer holidays and family traditions that will take place over the next 7 months, until we head out again, in late October, to escape the winter months and return to Texas.

Next winter will bring a new opportunity working and staying at Goliad State Park south of San Antonio. I can’t wait to see how many more people we will have met by then. The end of this month will be our first of many times we will say ‘Until we meet again”

Until next time…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fun Times

Of all the things we are getting to do we're having the most fun being able to create a new display for the Visitor's Center.

Most of the people who visit here are coming from out of town and aren't familiar with the native plants that they will see here.  The refuge is currently undergoing a dramatic wardrobe change as the wildflowers begin to bloom and dormant trees leaf out in the bright green only new leaves can produce.

John and Cathy showed me a picture of a thing called a blooming tree that they had displayed in a refuge where they volunteered in UP Michigan last summer and asked me to build one.

[caption id="attachment_196" align="alignnone" width="300"] Beth Lindquist- fellow Iowan[/caption]

Champ, Beth and I worked on it together. We made the tree and an accompanying pedistal style book stand to hold a binder I began assembling with pictures and descriptions of native flowers, trees  and grasses that can be found along the refuge trails and public areas. Our primary goal was to create the display out of existing resources here at the refuge.

We selected a small Cedar growing behind my camper.  A member of the firecrew agreed it would be ecologically good for the tree stand to cut it down and create light and space for the other trees.  So with chainsaw in hand, ( you have to have a very official US Fish and Wildlife Certificate to operate one) Kathleen cut it down. No easy task since the top was intertwined to the canopy with grapevine the size of my forearm!

[caption id="attachment_115" align="alignnone" width="300"] Getting ready to transform our Cedar Trunk[/caption]

After that adventure Champ and I set to work mounting it to a base and drilling holes that will hold small viles of water to display cuttings of what is currently flourishing on the refuge.

[caption id="attachment_201" align="alignright" width="200"] Blooming Tree[/caption]

The base was the bottom of an old wrought iron hall tree that was no longer being used.  I chose a dead branch from a tree we trimmed along a roadway and made a sign hanger. We got it moved to the Visitors Center but something was still missing. The top looked quite bare.  John looked around and spied a Kestral mount above the water fountain that went largly unnoticed. We attached it on top and everything  came together.

Beth and John harvested a decades old cedar fence post and used it as the support pedistal for the book stand. Some more lumber from the scrap pile, sanding and stain and a beautiful podium was born. A product of Beth's woodworking skills.

[caption id="attachment_202" align="alignright" width="200"] Bookstand[/caption]

The Blooming Tree is a nice center piece in the Visitors Center now and we're all having fun as something  new blooms nearly everyday at Balcones NWR adding things to the display.
The visitors are enjoying it and best of all we got to do something fun, creative, collaberative and satisfy my love of up-cycling in the process.  Just another reason to love this group of people I am with this winter and this little slice of heaven called Texas Hill Country.

Until Next Time...

 

 

 

Mist Netting

When we were offered the gig here at Balcones the job descriptions were garden variety stuff that one could do most anywhere. Doing maintenance around the Refuge Headquarters, maintaining public use areas and office work in the Visitors Center, stuff like that.  In my heart, I fantasized a bit that I might get to do some more interesting Wildlife Refuge type things.

[caption id="attachment_181" align="alignright" width="300"] Scott Rowin- Refuge Biologist[/caption]

I wasn’t sure what that might look like but I can say the Balcones has not disappointed. The Biologist Scott Rowin has been more than willing to share his knowledge and allow me to participate in a hands-on way from time to time.

Today was truly one of the coolest mornings of my life.  Not only was I allowed to accompany Scott, John Harrington and two interns, Brian & Michael, to do what is called Mist Netting, but they very patiently let me actually do some of it which included being able to take birds from the net and learn the proper way to hold them in different ways and release them when we were done.

[caption id="attachment_185" align="alignnone" width="300"] Scott teaching me how to hold the bird for banding, and photographing.[/caption]

The first thing I learned is what a mist net is.  It looks a little like a tall badminton net with a loose honeycomb style weave. It stretches from about 2 feet off the ground to about 7 feet and was around  20 feet wide.

[caption id="attachment_187" align="alignnone" width="300"] Brian and Scott at the net[/caption]

The netting is very thin and as Scott explained it looks a bit like mist to the birds as they fly into it. They use these to net birds so they can band them and in some cases, put very small GPS tracking device harnesses on them to track their migration routes.

We set up two mist nets 300 or so yards apart, one near a creek and another in a low area out of the wind.  Once the netting started we simply moved back and forth between the nets.  Every few minutes one would fly into a net and the work began.

Brian proved to be a very patient teacher to me.

[caption id="attachment_186" align="alignnone" width="300"] Brian Cole[/caption]

After watching several times, I was allowed to handle the birds and remove them.

[caption id="attachment_191" align="alignright" width="300"] Freeing a Goldfinch from the net[/caption]

The first two tries I was unable to free the bird in a reasonable amount of time, so for the bird’s sake I let Brian take over and quickly free it so as not to cause any more stress than necessary.  I did successfully free two on my own before the morning was over.

They taught me the proper way to handle them when removing netting from different parts of their body to prevent injury to them. I was taught the proper way to hold them for banding, and photographing and finally how to properly release them.

I grew up in a timbered area heavily populated with birds and have watched them from a distance my entire life. Up till this morning, close was considered close enough to take a good photograph or perhaps one landing on the deck railing briefly. After a career in retail and banking,  I never dreamed I would one day hold a wild bird in my hand and feel it’s heart beating against my finger, know how soft they are and look directly into its eye as I worked with it. To hold something so small and fragile was indeed humbling.

I learned today that Cardinals will bite and bite hard.

[caption id="attachment_188" align="alignright" width="300"] Scott and Michael working with a Chickadee.[/caption]

Chickadees are quite hyper and fight the net, pecking the handler the entire time. I watched with amazement as the guys very patiently worked it free without harming it as his companion flew about scolding us the whole time.

[caption id="attachment_183" align="alignright" width="300"] Me with the Chipping Sparrow[/caption]

The Chipping Sparrow I held was so passive that when I set it on my hand to release it he just sat there for a moment, almost  like he was happy there in my hand. Realistically he was probably to scared to move, I know I would be if something 100 times bigger than me had me in it's hand. I worked with a Field Sparrow a Chipping Sparrow and 2 American Goldfinches before the morning was over.

What was just another work day in the life of a biologist was a real treat for this nature loving RV Volunteer who stumbled into a great gig with people willing to share their knowledge and let this rookie tag along. I’m not sure yet, but in terms of experiences, Balcones may have set the bar high for future places we volunteer. I didn't specifically seek out a Refuge opportunity this time around it just kind of worked out that way. In the future however, I think I may have found a niche of RV Volunteering that will feed my soul. Something tells me this won't be the last time I come to a refuge to volunteer.  My heart is happy here this winter.

We have four weeks left, I wonder what else I will get to be a part of?

Until next time…