In approximately 279 BCE, the Roman empire, after invading vast swathes of Europe and the Mediterranean, set its sights on the island of Corsica off the French coast. Legions landed on the sandy beaches and the air swelled with the horns of battle and the beating of sandalled feet against the rocky ground. Again and …
I left the pavement behind and drove past a munitions testing and disposal range with a rather worrying sign that read “KEEP MOVING: DO NOT LEAVE ROAD SURFACE”. Whether I had to keep moving for my own safety or to provide a more challenging target to bored marksmen was unclear. My next survey was in …
It was very strange to be in a proper campground after wild camping by myself for several weeks. This was probably made even stranger by the fact that the only campground available was a KOA. It’s a bizarre place, slightly detached from reality. It can’t just be a campground; it has to be an experience. …
According to the binder, I should have been able to drive all the way to my next survey along Red Creek, a tributary to the Green River. The weather had other plans. Dark clouds built up while I drove north to Browns Park from Vernal, rumbling all the way. I drove past the dinosaur tracks …
After I finished my survey for the day, I drove north to the town of Vernal, Utah. The people of Vernal like two things: dinosaurs, and Jesus. A pink, long-necked dinosaur with prominent eyelashes holds a sign welcoming you to the dinosaur state. A 30-foot-tall t-rex with a bandana around its neck and a lasso …
If I had to pick a favorite vegetation community, and I hope I don’t, it might have to be sagebrush. I love the way the withered branches twist in on themselves and the fissures in the bark that make them look ancient. I love the delicate silver-green color of the leaves. Most of all though, …
The last time I drove to Utah had been in the heart of winter, when I went on a winter camping trip to the San Rafael Swell with a group of old friends. In December, white snow blanketed the ground to every horizon, only broken by the unending line of pavement that ran west, ever …
I was awake long before my alarm out of excitement at going out to do a bird survey. I got dressed in the dark and drank a full liter of water with electrolytes before starting my hike to the transect. I was embroiled in a long-standing feud with a Dutch pediatrician since childhood and never …
The field season was off to a fantastic start. Training had gone well, and I was feeling strong and confident. I had gone for a satisfying trail run on a new trail system and spent quality time with a lizard—an excellent day by any measure. It was a real shame I was going to die …
After everyone said their goodbyes, the training week was done, and my latest field season with the Bird Conservancy had finally started. I was a horse with the bit in my teeth, a sighthound let off the leash, a falcon launching myself off the wrist. It had been 6 years since I last worked as …