31 Jul My time at Lewis and Clark National Historical Park!

I have had such a wonderful experience this summer. I had a lot of time to explore different animals and the environment all around me, as well as meeting new people. This summer was full of learning all about the birds in Fort Clatsop and the surrounding area. Before going into this internship, I had only minimal experience in birding and how it’s conducted. Working with staff in Lewis and Clark National Historical Park (LEWI) and Fish and Feathers throughout the summer has made me more knowledgeable about birds within Oregon. Additionally, I was able to learn about the education and interpretation programs at LEWI.

Most of the internship I was able to develop my own program surrounding birds and nature. I did some research and created a 1-mile Birding hike along the Netul River. The birding hike program, I presented about 3-5 times a week. On some occasions I was able to develop and present a 1-day only program. The Astoria Library invited us to present a 1 hour program, in which I presented the different bird beaks and a build-your-own bird activity. I also lead a 2-hour long bird hike and nature journaling to Upward Bound students from Clatsop Community College. I held 2 other similar programs to a camp group and a private school that came to visit LEWI from Portland, Oregon.

Lastly, I was invited to join the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) of LEWI to collaborate with YCC at Mount Rainier National Park (MORA) for a day. We traveled the first day and set up our campsite on the staff campsite near White River. There was an adult Snowshoe Hare hopping about the Maintenace lot. The following day we met up with the Education leads Shasta, Erin, and Matt as well as the MORA YCC. Together we did stretches, safety messages, and planned out our workday. Our day consisted of trail work near Tipsoo Lake on the Naches Peak Loop. Together we hiked up carrying Checks (cedar logs) that weighed about 8-10 lbs that will be placed in the trail. Half of the team deposited more Checks at two other stopping points and the other half used a Pulaski to widen the trail. On our final day, we woke up bright and early to watch the sunrise at Sunrise Point as well as trying to catch a glimpse of any Pika or Marmots.