Hello Hello! Time is FLYING out here and life is still magnificent! I’ve been up to some random, cool tidbits here and there so this is what has been going on:
Mid-July I got called on shift to help with a search and rescue for an older 280 pound person who needed to be litter carried down a mile long hiking trail. With a team of 14 total we stationed 7 people on the lift at all times and helped carry them down the trail. We then rendezvoused with a helicopter team and three female flight medics airlifted them to the nearest hospital, about a 40 minute helicopter ride. Due to patient privacy, I am intentionally being vague with the details, but just know the person is okay, and it was a unique experience for me to help out with this search and rescue event and it was neat witnessing a full female flight medic team! This experience inspired me to sign up as a volunteer with the National Park EMS unit and I am hoping to start putting some volunteer hours in soon and put my EMT certification to good use finally.
Another special opportunity I recently took advantage of was my roommate Zenja coordinated with the Old Faithful Inn and got us a private tour of the Inn rooftop. We were able to listen to one of the managers delve more into the history of the park and share stories of the historic building that paved the way for park architecture aka parkitechture. The Inn was built in 1904 and we were able to walk up to the Crow’s Nest, which was modeled after a treehouse, and then climb around 160 steps to the rooftop and have a glorious view of the Upper Geyser Basin!
One fun thing we have been doing as a team is Junior Ranger books. We sell thousands of these each year and they are quite popular, so as a team, our new goal was to have everyone who wanted to, go ahead and complete their own Junior Ranger book and be sworn in as a Junior Ranger! Even though I have sworn in hundreds of kids, this was my first time doing the activity book and it was some lighthearted silly fun. When I was all done, I asked none other than my roommate Zenja aka Ranger Zen to swear me in as a Junior Ranger!
Outside of the workplace, I have been keeping so busy with spur of the moment adventures and travels. Last Sunday, I traveled to Missoula, Montana (a 5 hour drive) for a Fleet Foxes concert with my coworker Garrett. We pulled a 5:00am – 2:30am day but had a blast! The city of Missoula was such a cute little college town, and we explored record stores, the University of Montana (where Garrett is transferring to) and some nice local food places as well as a brewery. The concert was a cute outdoor venue surrounded by mountains and I super enjoyed the live music! As I told some pals, it was a great experience, but a crazy adventure that I would not do again.
Speaking of spontaneity, some of my best college friends, Zach and Jesse came to visit me in Yellowstone! They flew into Bozeman (2.5 hours from me) super late Thursday night (11:00pm) and are here until Tuesday morning. Since they arrived so late Thursday, I took two of my coworkers, Paige and Jameson to Bozeman with me for company, and oh man did we find things to do in such a short timeframe. We ate out at a restaurant which felt like the first time in forever (we don’t eat out much here because of the distance from everything) and then we stumbled upon the Bozeman county fair. We went on the Ferris wheel and made Jameson go through a fun house before we picked up Zach & Jess.
I’ve been making the most of my time with Zach and Jess by sending them on all the touristy activities while I work Friday & Saturday. Over my weekend, we did some new hikes together with some of my coworkers including several gorgeous hikes by Yellowstone Lake, Shoshone Lake and the Elephant Back trail. I took them to the Employee Pub for drinks and pool, we had a bonfire another night and went stargazing our last night. In addition to all the fun, we spent plenty of time hanging out together and catching up on life. They’re some of my best friends, my “ride or dies” as the youth say, and it meant so much to me that they took the time to come out and visit me.
Speaking of some other cool people I’ve run into, I ran into my water polo coach Jayme and her husband Ty when I was watching Beehive erupt, and my neighbors Nick & Lauren made time to stop by the Junior Ranger tent when they knew I was working to say hey to me. I didn’t take photos of these encounters but it always is special to me when people make time to come find me and say hi, even if it’s just for a few minutes!
Yellowstone was the perfect place for me to be this summer, and I am so happy out here. Each morning that I wake up, I can’t believe that I get to put on this uniform and work for the National Park Service. I’m so proud of myself for fulfilling this lifelong dream of mine. Until next time, sending good thoughts and love everyone’s way!
