A map is my best friend

Hello everyone!

For those that don't know, I am a USDA Forest Service intern with Bridger-Teton National Forest through the New Year. I will use this blog to share my experience and stories with friends, family, and anyone that wishes to read about it.

I arrived in Jackson on Friday. The drive was long but surprisingly enjoyable, except for the times when Pandora stopped working. Twenty-six hours of driving later, I found myself in one of the most beautiful places that I have ever been - Jackson Hole. Driving in the mountains was an incredible experience, and stepping out of my car and smelling the Jackson air for the first time seemed to pump adrenaline into my body.

Jackson is a small town with a diverse population. There are ranchers that have been here for generations, people that come seasonally for the outdoor industries, people that work in the service industry in town, and immigrants (both Latino and European) that generally work in the service industry. For such a small town, Jackson has all the amenities that anyone needs. There is a Smith's (Kroger's for us Ohioans) and a Kmart, as well as many other stores. It makes sense though because many tourists come through Jackson.

I met with Mary, my Forest Service supervisor, on Friday evening for dinner with her and her family. I'm very grateful that Mary and her family welcomed me into town. They had just arrived to Jackson after a long trip as well, so they were tired but welcomed me anyways. Mary also invited me to go to Idaho Falls to spend Easter Sunday with her and her family. I again went on an amazing mountain drive. Mary spent the drive pointing out places that I will probably go during my internship or that I should check out. There were too many to keep track of! A map will be my best friend during the next few months.

After I got back to Jackson, I picked up a few things that I needed at Kmart and made an impromptu drive on Elk Refuge Road that goes through National Elk Refuge. It is a very beautiful area with the Teton Range in the background. I shot a panoramic video of one of the areas along the road, which I plan to post on here. My house is very close to the road, so I imagine I will go on many runs there.

I begin work tomorrow and I'm very excited for it. Mary and I will come up with game-plan tomorrow - initiatives, projects, programs that I want to work on and what I hope to accomplish by the end of my internship. I plan to share much of this information on my blog so stay tuned!

Cheers,
Felipe