Administration

Week 6! I can’t believe I’m over halfway done at this park. It’s going by way too quick. I got to start out this week with the fourth of July! We went as a group from the park to a soccer field to watch them. We were so close to the fireworks that when they turned on the lights after I realized we were surrounded by smoke. It was pretty impressive. 

This week I follow around people from Administration, they are a very important division because without those brainiacs nothing could run smoothly. I have full respect for them because I would never have the patience to do the work they do. They have to work with many different people and their work speed relies on them also. I was able to follow the chief of staff, budget, human resources, and concessions. Every person was very passionate about their job and incredibly knowledgeable. I got to sit in on a couple meetings which was interesting to see how decisions are made. I felt bad after some meetings because work kept being piled on people. The head chief of staff said, “if you can't multitask there is no point in trying to do this job.” She is always working on multiple jobs at one point. 

After this week I really appreciate the job I chose! I know there will be office days but I couldn’t do it every day! My favorite quote: 

Dumbledore; What Mr. Scamander fears above all else is...

Newt: Having to work in an office, sir.

    -Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

The week ended with following Ranger Walker, my supervisor. The weekend was a saturation, which means they were stuck to the roads and looking for DUIs. They even have a BATmobile stationed in the park. It stands for Breath Alcohol Testing but it’s still funny to hear “I’m heading to the BATMobile '' over the radio. This way they don’t have to go anywhere special once they find an intoxicated driver. They walk the person to the van and a specialist can run a test to confirm they are intoxicated or not. The specialist will check pupils, have them walk in a line, check their balance on one foot, and then do a breathalyzer. They even have a judge on duty if they need a warrant for anything. I didn’t see any DUIs but I did get to see a lot of traffic stops. 

We were an hour away from going home at midnight that night and then of course the county asked for help for a manhunt. A man ran away from one of the officers and he was on probation. It was interesting to see how it all plays out, definitely different from the movies. The officers said more often than not you can't find the guys and it’s incredibly dangerous because they are the ones hiding while the officers are out in the open looking. The county even brought in a drone that can sense heat. It was awesome but it was hard to decipher if they were looking at a deer, their own guys, or the runaway. Around 2am the county called it. I never found out if the guy was caught but if he ever is he is going straight to jail. It was a crazy weekend but the week ended great! A group of us got together for dinner in the middle district. It’s nice to get together and have fun with coworkers every now and then.  

Plant, Animals, and Petroglyphs

 Hello again everyone,

When I worked with the Department of Resources, I got to leave my mark on the recreation area by giving back to the landscape. Starting the week with vegetation, I got the chance to assist over at the Song Dong Native Plant Nursery. Here they grow native plants for the National Park Service use and other agencies (BLM, USGS, NDOW, etc.), also for other restoration projects in the region. They are usually given a list of plants and seeds in the winter so they can prepare by fall. Kelly Wallace, the biologist, and manager of the plant nursery, also assist LE by assessing the damage caused by those who go off-roading. Overton and Cottonwood East being commonly affected by this issue in the winter. Still, I helped out by transplanting some plots of creosote, watering plants, and sowing a bunch of Willow Baccharis. 

The next day I rode down to Cottonwood cove to remove invasive plant species with the Exotic Plant Management Team (EPMT). This includes plants such as fountain grass, Tribulus Terrestris, palm trees, and salt cedar. The goal of weed management is not eradication but control. So, the fact that Mr. Dambrosi of the EPMT and I only found a single plant of Tribulus Terrestris meaning their weed control was going pretty smoothly. See, taking care of both natural and cultural resources is a critical function of resource management. These resources, whether they be buildings, artifacts, petroglyphs, plants, animals, or fossils help us tell stories and share meanings, creating increased opportunities for visitors to connect with their respective parks. 

A close up on the rogue Tribulus Terrestris

At first, I thought the weed was the bush, but no.

Assisting me with archeological resources was Ms. Peeples, a contractor of the Great Basin Institute, while Ranger Juliane taught me about her role studying Aquatic Invasive Species. In a way, they both try to get people to change their attitudes towards the environment since the public’s actions affect the inherent value of LAKE. Sadly, I can not really show any of the petroglyphs or other artifacts since ARPA protects the disclosures of cultural sites from those who are not qualified to handle/study the artifacts. At least I finally learned how to use a compass. In Nevada, you need at least fifteen artifacts to be considered a cultural site, when you have less it becomes a local resource. On a serious note, whenever there is damage to a cultural site LE lets resource management know of the extent of what damage is done. From there they determine the severity of the violation. After we conducted several condition assessments on petroglyphs, I ended the day by helping with the accessioning process by logging some key mineral stones into their collection. 

                   

My last day was with wildlife management. I got the opportunity to help check up on the various water feeder stations throughout the recreation area. These feeders exist so that the bighorn sheep do not interact with the public. They also do not like being in flat land since it makes them vulnerable to their predators, like mountain lions. Hunting and trapping are permitted in designated areas of LAKE and are regulated by the state game agencies. Rangers and NDOW enforce game regulations and whenever there is an animal-related crime they contact wildlife management to access the damage. Similarly, the Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act of 1971 makes it a federal crime to harass or kill these "wild" animals, despite them both being invasive to LAKE. Still, it felt great to help out with resource management and give them a hand with their projects.

Endangered Relic Leopard Frog

Desert Big Horn sheep

Stay tuned for more ProRanger adventures as I talk about the program visit with the folks from out east!

Hard Work Shows Results

Week 5 is Division of Facilities Management! This was by far the hardest week I’ve had at this park. I’ve slept on a heating pad every night. Went to bed early every night and sadly got chiggers. But overall this was one of the best weeks I’ve had so far. I loved having a project, knowing that I have to get done, and seeing the end result. Working hard every day made me feel accomplished and I could skip the gym this week!

On the first day working with Maintenance I was able to do trail maintenance. The Buffalo river trail really needed to be defined so that visitors know where they are walking. I was given a heavy-duty weed wacker and a backpack strap to help hold it up. I felt it was light till we got on the hike. Very quickly that weed wacker started to make my shoulders and neck burn. We hiked a few miles total but we had to stop about every half mile. It took us all day just to complete three miles of the trail. We had to cut down all the weeds growing over the trail and the trees that were sprouting on the trail. Normally this is a winter job but I was lucky enough to do it in the dead of summer. We thought we could stop for lunch at noon but it quickly became 4:00. The one guy didn’t even bring water because he thought the trail had a few accesses to the road. Luckily the other guy brought extra Gatorade and we were able to fill the bottle without camel backwater. By the time we got back to the truck, I was digging in my lunchbox. I never had a ham and cheese sandwich that tasted so good.

The next two days we focused on fire pits. The goal is to replace all the fire pits in the park. My job was to go to each fire ring and dig out all the dust. I put it side by side and dumped the dust in a ditch next to the road. I thought it would be a quick and easy job but it took all day to do half the rings at the campground. It was a very slow job and super hot. Most of the rings were far from trees and I had the sun just baring down on me. We had a long lunch in the truck that day. The next day was even hotter but every now and then we got cloud coverage. I was surprised it took two days just for me to clean out only campsites worth of fire rings. He replaced 9 rings. He had to get rid of the old rings, weld on the new ones, and spray paint it black. I now understand why maintenance doesn’t clean out the fire rings very often. It takes a long time and when they are doing that they can’t work on other important jobs around the park. 

The second day cleaning out the rings I found a lost dog! She was wandering around the campsite begging for food and water. She was friendly enough that I was able to pick her up and drive her over to the ranger station. There was a cage where we were able to put her in. I hung out with her for a while because she was super upset about being in the cage. The staff was able to give her food and water. Everyone was offering to adopt her but the owner claimed her the next day. Apparently, neighboring dogs wander into the park a lot because of the smell of campfire food. 

On the last day, I rode around and checked on all the bathrooms. I got lucky and it was a slow rainy day so they weren't horrible. We replaced all the toilet paper, changed the trash bags, and picked up any trash on the floors. I was also shown how to check the cl level at all the water wells. Being a lifeguard for 6 years I was able to catch on to it quickly. That day since it was nice and cool I got to see a bunch of elk really close up! I didn't even think to take a picture and when we went back they weren't interested in us anymore so they were too far away for a good picture. The elk was huge and beautiful! I went back to the maintenance staff to get graded and just mentioned how my washer stopped working properly so that day they bought me a new one! I may have gotten chiggers from working with maintenance but I ended the week with a new washer! Overall it was a great week, very rewarding to see my work. 

Interpretation and the Stars

This past week I worked with the Interpretation Division. I spent a few days manning the information desk over at the Alan Bible Visitor Center, answering phone calls (the calls being questions pertaining to the Lake's water levels and launch ramps), and assisting visitors by telling them of many wonderful things they can do here in the summer. I also gave out programs and park maps to get visitors interested in seeing the park and attending ranger programs. Working at the information desk throughout the week was a wonderful way for me to learn as much as I could about the park since I needed to find out the answer to any and every question I was asked by visitors.

The Alan Bible Visitor Center overlooking Lake Mead

When I was not in the visitor center I roved the beaches of Cottonwood Cove, Boulder Beach, and Nelson's Landing to bring Interp. to them. Informing the public of the recreation area's rules and regulations, safety tips, and just striking up conversation alongside Interp. Ranger Kevin Garcia. The opportunity to meet with the public stressed the importance for NPS staff to be inclusive and accommodating to the various communities that make up the Nevada/Arizona Area. Specifically, Ranger Kevin and I are one of the few staff members who can speak Spanish when Nevada's population is 28% Hispanic and Arizona's is 31%, respectively. The probability of contacting someone who may not speak English as their native langue is relatively high, so being able to speak to those from different backgrounds is important. Not only because it is a useful skill, but because it highlights the NPS's core values of Excellence, Integrity, and Respect. Many of the people we spoke with, who were not native-English speakers, were often surprised if not thankful for being able to interact with staff who can actually understand them.

My experience with Interp. taught me a lot on how to interact with the public, outside of a VRP context, and learn much of the interpretive themes of LAKE itself. For those who do not know, interpretive themes are often described as the key stories or concepts that visitors should understand after visiting a park. The main theme here being survival due to everything and everyone relying on the life giving waters of Lake Mead to live out here in the desert. The landscape being a physical embodiment of the human spirit of resilience in a hostile environment and exerting dominion over the land to create something that stresses interdependence with nature, as well as a delicate tapestry of ecosystems that are deeply reliant on one another.

One of the last projects I assisted with before my week's end was helping with the STAR Party. The program is held to teach visitors about the stars, planets, and other celestial features. Despite some light pollution from Las Vegas, it is astonishingly easy to see a myriad of stars and their constellations. Before the event, we had to consider various things like possibly cancelling due to an excessive heat warning for the area. We ended up moving the event indoors and then bringing it outside near the end in order to allow visitors to see The Summer Triangle, which is an asterism. It’s made of three bright stars in three different constellations, the stars being Vega, Deneb and Altair.

Tim Denny explaining to visitors the significance of moon phases

Ranger Kevin Garcia manning the welcome desk for the STAR Party

The Summer Triangle

Interpretation Volunteer Elaine educating visitors by red light

Checking out the rocks at Redstone Dune

The night ended well, with excellent examples of interpretive talks from volunteer Elaine who gave a riveting tale of the Chinese legend "Night of the Sevens." The story involves two lovers, a weaver girl and the cowherder represented by Vega and Altair, who are tragically separated by an impenetrable and raging "River of the Sky." The next day we conducted an "After-Action" review to discuss areas of success, areas of improvement, and overall feedback for the one in charge of the program. Looking to host the next event at a more scenic environment, I was tasked with scouting out Redstone Dune Loop Trail as a possible site to host the next STAR Party. It was important to keep in mind the logistical necessities such as capacity, the number of benches, how many telescopes can fit there, what to equipment to bring, and the safety risks. Reflecting on my week, it has been an eventful few days full of knowledge. So, if you ever find yourself here at Lake Mead, be sure to stop by the Alan Bible Visitor Center to say hello to the Rangers and volunteers who will do their best to make your stay a great one.

Leave No Trace!

Week 4 is with interpretation! This week I was able to focus on my conservation project. I’m working with the interpretation supervisor and I have been locating every Search and Rescue in the park for the last 5 years. We will then put them on a map and show visitors where dangerous locations are. We hope to use this information to inform visitors on how dangerous the trails and river can be if they are not prepared.

This week I have been able to feed the horses and watch their shoes being replaced. It was very fascinating to watch, I even got to keep one of the old horseshoes! I have it upside down on my wall now; to catch luck! Also that day I got to walk a 5k with a few coworkers. Every Friday the park hosts a 5k walk to talk about the park with the locals or visitors. They want to invite dogs and their owners to come along; hoping to make the program grow. 

Working with the supervisor I was able to help out with a few fun programs with kids. We went to the river and searched for bugs in the river. Certain bugs will tell you the quality of the river, the kids mainly found snails. We started using the nets to catch fish and I wanted to catch a big one for the boys but fell in trying. Needless to say, I’m glad I had my gym clothes in my truck that day! I was physically ok but my pride was broken. We also got to go to the library and talk to kids about the 7 rules for leaving no trace in the park. It was sweet working with all the kids and showing them how litter, for example, really affects the wildlife.

On the last day, I shadowed the Visitor Use Assistant.  I was going from campsite to campsite that whole day seeing how they check campsites. We had to look at the logbook to make sure everyone checked in and paid for the sites. We also had to make sure the reserved sites were correctly labeled. Later that day when we were about to make our final rounds there was a call on the radio for a lady who fell at Lost Valley. We just listened on the radio for a bit and when they called for a litter we decided to head to Lost Valley to help. It wasn’t a bad hike to where she fell but her chief complaint was back and hip. So there was no way she could walk out. My job, while we waited for the litter, was to cover all the slime with rocks so that when we had to walk on it we wouldn’t fall as well. When the litter came they strapped her on and the paramedic had to give her pain medicine so that she could make the trip to the ambulance. We then carried her over the rocks and put her onto the ATV. Since she kept saying her spine hurt they decided to helicopter her out for a trauma hospital. It was nice to see all different people, not just people from the park, responding to this incident. I’ll now have to add another SAR from Lost Valley to my project data.

A Meeting of the Minds

 Hello everyone!

This week I was able to shadow the administration division, more specifically the acting superintendent of Lake Mead National Recreation Area. Allowing me to meet the Chief of Staff, the heads of Resource Management, Visitor and Resource Protection, Facilities, Commercial Services, and even the superintendent of Tule Springs. They allowed me to attend the leadership team meeting where they have a weekly assessment of what has been going on with the different divisions at LAKE. Discussing topics such as fire danger present here due to years of severe drought and extreme heat. Sadly, due to the sensitive nature of many of the meetings I cannot go into full detail about everything discussed. In a nutshell, it was a day full of extensive meetings, calculated discussions, and executive decisions.

One of the most significant being the meeting with the Colorado River Steering Committee. 

They are an interstate water administrative agency established by action of five state legislatures and Congress with the enactment of the 1948 Upper Colorado River Basin Compact. The Commission’s role is to ensure the appropriate allocation of water from the Colorado River to the Upper Division States of Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and New Mexico and to ensure water is released in accordance with the 1922 Colorado River Compact to the Lower Division States of Nevada, Arizona, and California and to the Republic of Mexico. 

Superintendent Sarah Creachbaum at her desk

My meeting with Superintendent Sarah Creachbaum gave me some insight into the types of sacrifices and hard work required to be an effective leader. She was not afraid of telling me the types of difficulties that come with her position either. While the title of superintendent brings acclaim and accomplishment, it can be a sort of "thankless" position since they are the ones expected to make the tough calls. With an extensive career in the park service, Ms. Creachbaum got her exposure to major leadership roles with the park service through the Bevinetto Congressional Fellowship. It was a program designed to provide those selected the opportunity to see how Congress operates and works with legislative affairs. Whether it be parks such as Olympic, Grand Canyon, or Haleakala; however, she has to strive to what is best for the park with the federal budget provided. The most profound thing she told me was the idea that sometimes we should walk through the doors opened for us, even if it is not always the most perfect fit. Since it is those opportunities that oftentimes pave the way towards long-term success. I will definitely keep those words in mind as I continue to pursue a career with the NPS. Who knows, maybe one day if I keep working at it I can have my own desk too!

A sanctioned photo at Creachbaum's desk

July 4th at First State NHP

Last week at First State was a bit of a strange one – rain and office responsibilities kept us mostly indoors on Thursday and Friday, but things kicked into high gear for Saturday and Sunday as a result of the holiday weekend. We spent all day on the 4th trying to manage the Smith Bridge Picnic Area and its associated parking lot, which filled up early in the morning. After the lot filled, dozens of cars began to park on the side of the road (in posted no parking areas) and in emergency pullout areas (also posted no parking), creating a hazardous situation for pedestrians and other vehicles. 

 

Keeping track of the flow of people in and out of the lot and directing cars to different lots or other parking options took most of the day. The rest was filled with roving through the picnic area, passing out trash bags to picnickers, letting people know about certain rules (for example, no alcohol in the park), and informing them that they needed to be packed up and out of the area before it closed for the night. 

 

Despite some visitors who were frustrated with the parking situation, and some folks who were breaking park regulations or getting a little rowdy, we had many positive interactions throughout the day. It is always nice to see people getting together to responsibly enjoy the park and the holiday with their families. Most importantly, we were able to close the lot on time without a single car left, with no injuries or major incidents, and with limited damage to the resources (there are often several bags worth of trash left over after a big picnicking day).  

 

This week I’ll be working with the Interpretation, Education, and Volunteer Coordination team, so stay tuned for my next update!