Backyard Science - Deep Dark Woods - Central Idaho photo diary
Some of you have been wondering what's become of me, as I have made relatively few appearances lately. Today is a rare day off for me, and it gives me a chance to tell you what I've been doing.Since...
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Backyard Science - Deep Dark Woods - Central Idaho photo diary #2: Approach...
The photo diary that I posted slightly more than a week ago featured plenty of pictures taken on bright sunny days (link, in case you missed it...Idaho Photo Diary #1). When you are in the mountains...
View ArticleThe Daily Bucket - Stranded in the Snow Edition
The Daily Bucket is a place where we can post and exchange our observations about the natural happenings in our neighborhoods. Birds, bugs, blossoms and more - each notation is a record that we can...
View ArticleThe Daily Bucket - William Bartram and Fickling Mill, Georgia
The Daily Bucket is a place where we can post and exchange our observations about the natural happenings in our neighborhoods. Birds, bugs, blossoms and more - each notation is a record that we can...
View ArticleThe Strange and Disturbing World of Illegal Trash Dumping
This diary represents a departure from my usual writings. Some topics are not cheerful to write about. Far be it from me to discourage readers, but if you are not in the mood to be depressed today,...
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The Daily Bucket - Thorns in the Woods - Greenbrier
The Daily Bucket is a regular feature of the Backyard Science group. It is a place to note any observations you have made of the world around you. Insects, weather, fish, climate, birds and/or...
View ArticleThe Daily Bucket - Umbrella Magnolia
The Daily Bucket is a regular feature of the Backyard Science group, a place where everyone is welcome to note the observations you have made of the natural world around you. Insects, weather, fish,...
View ArticleBackyard Science - Native Plants Versus Privet, A Photo Diary
Invasive species draw the wrath of many of us who care about the natural world. For residents of the southern states, Chinese privet is probably the most despised plant of all. It certainly is mine....
View ArticleThe Daily Bucket - Idaho Skies
After five weeks in the woods of central Idaho, camping out nearly every night, I have accumulated plenty of pictures and memories. Being away from highways and towns enables me to get pictures of the...
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Deep Dark Woods - The Year of the Hornet
It’s like a scene from a cheap horror movie, except that it’s no movie. You are in the woods, miles from the nearest town; far, even, from another human being. But you are not alone. Hornets are...
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The Daily Bucket - Pinyon Pines of the American West
In my recent travels across Nevada, Utah, and Colorado, I passed through many miles of arid, high elevation country that barely sees enough precipitation to grow trees. This is the home of pinyon...
View ArticleThe Daily Bucket - Deep Dark Woods: The Old Man Down the Road
My work is seldom boring. Sure, there is plenty of repetition in what I do. But there is something different about every patch of woods. Sometimes it’s the trees themselves. Sometimes it’s the terrain...
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The Daily Bucket - Leaf Miners
From time to time, I mention the umbrella magnolia (Magnolia tripetala) in my back yard. It even earned its own diary a year ago. When I'm in the yard, I can't help but notice the enormous leaves....
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Stranded in the Deep Dark Woods. Rescued by Black Men with Guns.
This time of year, I travel a lot. Although my official place of residence is in Georgia, I typically drive to the Pacific Northwest every summer to work on forest inventory jobs. The weather is...
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Big Bend National Park, Texas - Photo Diary #1
Being a vagabond has its rewards. Each year, as I drive between Georgia and the Pacific Northwest to take advantage of the seasons, I explore the scenery of this vast country. Due to a side trip to...
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Big Bend National Park, Texas - Photo Diary #2
The first Big Bend diary took us as far as Homer Wilson Ranch, on Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive, in the western part of the park. Today we will continue southwestward towards the Rio Grande and Cottonwood...
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The Daily Bucket - Big Bend National Park - Photo Diary #3
The first two diaries explored the western part of Big Bend National Park. Today's post will cover the eastern portion. The tour begins near the entrance at Persimmon Gap, proceeds south to Panther...
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The Daily Bucket - Big Bend National Park, Photo Diary #4
Near the center of Big Bend National Park, the Chisos Mountains soar above the surrounding desert terrain. Plants and animals that would have a difficult time surviving in the lower elevations find a...
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The Daily Bucket - GPS in Forestry
I have mentioned in passing that I regularly use GPS in the woods. Today, without going into information overload, I will show some examples of what I do.There are two basic uses for GPS in the work...
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The Daily Bucket - Balloons: What Goes Up Must Come Down
My forestry field work gives me the opportunity to see land that is off the beaten path, away from the bustling cities, and sometimes far removed from public roads. Sometimes I can work all day without...
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The Daily Bucket - Mt. Rainier Rainforest Nature Trail
Since early July, I have been working a short distance from the lightly-visited northwest corner of Mount Rainier National Park. On Friday I took a day off from the "drudgery" of working in the woods...
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The Daily Bucket - Fire on the Mountain
I often report from my cabin in Okanogan County, Washington. Or I report as best I can, given that the cabin is fully off the grid and lacks so much as one bar's worth of a phone signal. Turn a phone...
View ArticleThe Accidental Journalist, Part 1: Reporting from Washington’s North Star...
This week I intended to be on vacation. Honest, that was my plan. Being a self-employed forester, I don’t take vacations in the sense that an hourly or salaried worker would describe them. My work...
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The Accidental Journalist, Part 2: Reporting from Washington’s North Star...
Today's installment covers the events of Wednesday, August 19. Access to the outside world is limited, and it takes awhile to put these accounts together. The reporting is not in real time, but the...
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The Accidental Journalist, Part 3: Reporting from the Washington Forest Fires
This installment picks up with Thursday morning's activity, and continues through the end of the day Friday. With two massive fires threatening my neck of the woods instead of the original North Star...
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The Accidental Refugee: More Reports from the Washington Forest Fires
The past few days have seen me at a shelter in Republic. Staying in a shelter was never on my bucket list, but here I am.How did I get here? It began with last Thursday's evacuation of Aeneas Valley in...
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The Accidental Refugee, Part 2: More Reports from the Washington Forest Fires
Sunday, August 23 through Wednesday, August 26 While the Search and Rescue shelter at the school provided me with a safe and comfortable base of operations, not everything was rosy. When people see...
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Washington Wildfire Update, and News from the Cabin
Thursday, August 27 After four days and nights at the shelter that had been set up at the Republic elementary school, it was time to move on. Since I had stayed more for convenience than a last resort,...
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Okanogan County Washington Photo Diary (no fire pictures today!)
After three weeks of tense news about the northern Washington wildfires, perhaps a change of pace is in order. Readers of the fire news might be tempted to ask why anyone would want to inhabit a...
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Washington Wildfire Update, Getting Better Every Day
In eastern Okanogan County, the saga began slightly more than three weeks ago. A series of fires began almost simultaneously under dry windy conditions. Many were started by lightning. Before resources...
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The Daily Bucket - Muddy Roads and Hot Springs in Idaho
This adventure took place last Tuesday, September 15. For the previous week, I had been working near the towns of McCall and New Meadows in Idaho.This is the same area where I worked in 2013, The Year...
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In the Wake of the Forest Fires: Part 1, the North Star Fire
Forest fires generate a great deal of attention while they are raging. Walls of flame plunder hillsides, creating smoke plumes visible for many miles. Lives and property are at risk. News crews cover...
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In the Wake of the Forest Fires: Part 2, the Tunk Block Fire
My previous diary explored a portion of Washington’s North Star fire. By personally visiting the area where the fire’s progress was stopped, I was able to establish that the fuel treatment zones...
View ArticleTales from the Deep Dark Woods, Episode One
About a year ago, I began writing down some of the things that I have encountered in my forestry career. Most days are mundane, and one day runs into the next as far as memories are concerned. A few...
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Connect! Unite! Act! Houston, Ferguson, NYC, San Francisco & NN16 Events:...
The Interactive MAP in FULL SCREEN The orange pinpoints are the location of each organized group of Daily Kos readers. If you'd like to join a group, click on a point and a box will pop up showing...
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Connect! Unite! Act! Houston, Ferguson, San Francisco & NN16 Event Info:...
The Interactive MAP in FULL SCREENThe orange pinpoints are the location of each organized group of Daily Kos readers. If you'd like to join a group, click on a point and a box will pop up showing...
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Connect! Unite! Act! Ferguson, Pennsylvania, San Francisco & NN16 Event...
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The Daily Bucket - Avoiding the Wrath of Stinging Insects
In many locations in the Northern Hemisphere, this is the time of year that populations of stinging insects are at their peak. An otherwise joyful outdoor event can turn ugly in short order.Nature...
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The Daily Bucket - Northeast Oregon Photo Diary, Part 3
I have not posted a diary of any kind in three months. When I’m on the go 8 to 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, there is not much time for outside activities.The MonolithY’all know that I’m still alive...
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Republished: The Year of the Hornet
Today I am posting a Daily Bucket to discuss the recent hype about murder hornets. In the summer of 2013, I experienced a population explosion of hornets while doing forestry field work in Idaho. It...
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The Daily Bucket - Views of old growth forest they won't show on calendars
What adjectives come to mind when you think about an ancient forest? For many people, the list will include words like incredible, majestic, awesome, inspiring, cathedral-like, and timeless. There is...
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