01 Apr March
Month #2 on the Superior National Forest! This month, I have been working a lot on the planning parts of the field work I will do this season – creating maps, organizing data, making field guides, and reading up on the topics.
The other week, I linked up with the timber department and got to tag along to visit several active timber sale units. It was great to learn more about the operations of the forest.
I said I’ve been waiting for snow… and I finally got it on the 24th! It’s a weird combination of crusty and powdery, and melting fast, so not good for skiing, but it’s nice to look at for a few days, at least.
I also had the privilege this month to attend the field day portion of the Tribal Shared Learning conference between the Superior National Forest and the Grand Portage Band of the Lake Superior Chippewa (also known as Ojibwe tribe). This was a totally new experience for me, as being from the east, I had not had much opportunity to interact with native American tribes. It was an awesome experience, and I’m very grateful to have been able to do it.
During this day, tribal representatives/ employees of the reservation’s natural resources department shared parts of their culture with me and my coworkers. We started off gathering around a bonfire and they made cedar tea for us to drink. I didn’t like the taste, it’s quite bitter, but the aroma is heavenly. Then we got a tour of the village and visited several culturally significant sites in the woods including a blueberry patch and a maple grove (a.k.a. sugar bush) where people can harvest maple syrup.
Mid Feb-mid March is Maple syrup tapping season. April is steelhead trout fishing season, so I’m excited for that! I love how every month here brings something special to do with nature.
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