Blog number two! Things have been a blast down in Crescent America. Since the April blog, I’ve done many little adventures for work here in Crescent, OR and even had the opportunity to work in the Redmond/Sisters, OR area. I’ve been a part of many projects on the district. I was involved in a discussion of a request for tree removal on Odell Butte that could provide safe access for permit holders. I travelled with the district concessionaire to survey potential hazard trees around forest facilities and also conducted condition surveys of the campgrounds. The surveys entailed inspecting all of the restroom water spickits, picnic tables, fire rings, grey water sump pumps etc. The rest of May I worked on recreation residence inspections of various lots to make sure there was compliance with their permits. It was a good time to get out and meet the permit holders and check to see how projects are going.
June was a blur for me; it was gone in a blink. I had an important meeting with the Home Owner Association for Crescent Lake. It was another good opportunity to sit around and “break bread” with the permit holders before we talked about projects and partnerships with the Forest Service. In mid-June I attended a week of guard school. It was a great training to understand the basics and fundamentals of wildland firefighting. Afterwards, we got to assist a 64-acre prescribed burn in Sisters, OR. It really made me think that no matter how fast or big you are, you cannot outrun a fire! After guard school, I spent about a week up in Bend, OR for a new employee orientation.
In July, I went out to a Boy Scouts of America camp for a follow up inspection to talk about their future plans with the area. Mid-July I got to attend a special uses training up in Sisters, OR with my supervisors. I learned a lot of good things about special use positions and it was a good networking opportunity. This past month I helped remodel the Crescent Air Strip where we improved and widened it. I have also been the lead on a cabin removal project that involves tracking the finances, coordinating with third parties and planning the logistics (with some guidance of course). The summer here has been a blast; I am still trying to figure out where it went. I can’t wait to see what the last three months have in store for me down here in Crescent!
