The end of a field season is always a bittersweet time for me. Bittersweet because this means we have successfully collected data for our research, but we have to say goodbye to friends we have spent nearly every day with for the past few months. In December, after a hearty, delicious meal at the Vida Cafe, I said goodbye to the fall 2017 technicians, Bryan, Leilani, and Rebecca. Hopefully they will be back again to visit!
After a busy summer and a few project in the fall, the H. J. Andrews headquarters is pretty quiet in the winter! All that remains is my car in the parking lot.
The end of a field season is also a difficult time because of the need to hire new technicians for the next season. For this project, since we are collecting data year-round, wrapping up a season coincides with hiring for the next season, and it is such a headache! Not only do I have to sift through numerous generic applications from unqualified applicants (usually more than 75 applications), I only have the budget to hire one person for the winter field season. The odds are terrible! In addition, I constantly feel struggle with my desire to both pay technicians a fair salary and keep costs down to stretch what we can achieve with limited grant funding. After several rounds of interviews and contacting numerous references, I welcomed Richard Rich as a technician for the winter 2017-18 season.
In December the H. J. Andrews has become a winter wonderland. In the higher elevations, we have had over 6 inches of snow, which allows us to see evidence of some of the carnivores in the area.
I'm excited to see what 2018 has in store for us!