(Temporarily) Back From the Dead

Well guys,

I'm back from the North. Here's a briefing on everything since I left in the first place.

I got up to Slave Lake, Alberta, and was sent in to help set up the new camp. (No other planters had arrived yet from the previous contract). It was an isolation camp, which I'd never experienced, so that was pretty cool.

Most of the crew was sent in to the camp location first (by helicopter), and a few of us stayed behind to set up the nets. So we put everthing from our kitchen/office/first-aid/etc tents, to our fridges/fire-fighting gear/quads into nets, and they received it all on the other end and started setting up shop.

I was flown in later with my personal gear and helped set up camp for the next few days. I was also flown around to go set up the shade tents, unload the reefer (refrigerated truck that delivers our trees), and get trees to the shade tents.

I planted for a whopping two days. The first day, I hit my personal best, which I think speaks volumes of the shit that last year was.

The second day was something else. It started out nicely. I finished my piece from the day before and got moved to another piece, with a fellow named Skyler. Then, while we were both out on our second bag-up, we came back and found our day bags gone (that is, the ones with our lunches, water, cameras, etc). This we thought interesting. We didn't hear any quads or the Hagluund go by. We thought maybe our forewoman Thunder was moving us or playing a trick on us. We thought of a bear, too, but thought that bizarre that it would take BOTH of our bags at the SAME time into the forest. Without spilling anyting. And leaving our cache so neat.

I don't know, if I was a bear, I would rummage through everything at the cache, but hey, that's just me.

Low and behold, it was indeed a bear, who took both of our bags. Skyler heard something in the bushes a little ways off, and went in with his shovel to see. Our bags were there, broken and ripped open, with our sandwiches gone, and everything with a bite through it. Apparently, Yogi likes privacy when rummaging. Apparently, he also likes DEET. (Both of our bug sprays were ruined by the bite).

So we planted the rest of the day on sugar highs of fruit.

I also managed to give myself some wicked tendonitis in my tree hand (not the shovel hand). Weird.

This all works out, since my dad also ruptured his biceps tendon at the elbow, and got surgery. So I am home, healing up and helping out. I'll be returning, I think/hope, soon enough.

Righto, I'll try to get some pictures of the short expedition up. It's slow going with dial up though. Hopefully talk to you cats all soon.