Range Camp Rocks

Spring is finally upon us.  For students, the melting of winter signifies that it is time to start thinking about summer break and how you will spend your time.  What could you possibly do to maximize both fun and professional development simultaneously?  For those high school students interested in rangelands, the answer is easy: attend range camp.  Visit your local SRM section website and contact the officers to find out what opportunities are in your area.  Below is an article by Terilyn Chen outlining exactly why Range Camp Rocks.

Range Camp Rocks
September 11, 2010 Posted in: Opinion
By: Terilyn Chen


This summer I vaccinated a sheep. With help, of course.

I learned to do that, among other things, at the 26th annual California-Pacific Range and Natural Resources Camp. I attended camp from June 20 to June 25 with Hercules High School senior Nicole Ng, and other students from all over California. Founded by Mike Stroud in 1985, Cal-Pac Range Camp is an annual environmental science camp held on the beautiful Elkus Ranch in Half Moon Bay.

Ng and I were among the few campers who had absolutely no experience working with livestock and ranches. Herculean culture is entirely different; I doubt many people know what FFA is and we do not have a farm. I am embarrassed to admit, but before camp, I thought everything related to hardcore agriculture and livestock was for Texans and Montanans. Somewhere in my head, I obviously knew California is a big farming state, but I just never thought there would be a camp that taught about livestock so close to home. Needless to say, the experience was an eye-opener.

At camp, we were constantly busy. Never in my life had I felt so accomplished when the day was over as I did during those four days. Every single minute was well spent, whether I was learning how to tell the difference between yarrow and poison hemlock, searching for fly larvae underneath the rocks in Purisima creek or talking about boys with a couple of buddies while walking across camp to take a shower. We even spent half a day in bright yellow hard hats, walking around Purisima Creek Redwood Forest with a forester who showed us how he decides what trees to cut, and why.

By the end of the first day, I was falling in love with range camp and everything I never knew California possessed.

The world that had previously seemed to me full of ubiquitous settling and compromising had something tangible to offer me: real examples of people simply unable to contain their passion.

The camp coordinator Marc Horney, the botanists, soil scientists, fire ecologists, entomology connoisseurs- every single one of our instructors and advisors were obviously in love with what they did. Their bubbling excitement was intoxicating, as was the magical environment they had chosen to use as their classrooms, because really, velvet grass makes such an impression.

I felt so complete when the sun was disappearing behind the hills. Several times, I wanted to cry because camp made it seem like there was a reason for everything. Since then, I have believed in the goodness of people again. Or rather, I believe in my own strength; it was as if camp made me realize that I can make a difference. Suddenly, beating global warming and climate change seemed possible.  After all, there were people out there running camps about environmental science.

The night before our last day at camp, I knew that I would soon mentally go over every memory and physically touch every plant I could get my hands on, in a crude attempt to hold on to Range Camp.  The next day, when I actually left Elkus Ranch, and my family drove away with me on the freeway, I felt traumatized, as if my senses were not yet adjusted to the loudness, the hardness and the greyness of the world. For the next few days, I felt lost in suburbia. I was lost in the uniformity and the cleanliness.  Over the course of the summer, I would dream about Range Camp for a total of seven times.

Later, walking around Hercules, I actually found flowers and grasses that I could identify. I realized that there is no reason to be sad because I had taken so much from Range Camp. So thank you, Kent Reeves and the Yolo County Resource Conservation District for sponsoring me, and thank you both Michael Hudson and Nicole Ng for introducing me to Range Camp.

Range Camp has enlightened me. It has changed me. It has permanently made me a “happy camper.”

California Pacific and Pacific Northwest Joint Section Meeting

The CalPac and PNW sections of SRM hosted a phenomenal joint section meeting early October at Lava Beds National Monument near Tulelake, California.  We learned about area rangelands, fire ecology, and the geologic and anthropogenic history at the monument.  Presentations focused on pre- and post- European settlement ecological conditions, fire management in the national monument and fire history of the area, and on wildlife species, wildlife preserves, and biodiversity.

A personal highlight from the meeting included several spelunking expeditions in the lava tubes.  It took a sense of adventure to climb through the caves, one flashlight to every four or five people!

Another meeting highlight was a detailed narrative of the Modoc War during the winter of 1872 and 1873 at the monument.  Our guide, who was himself a Modoc descendant, took us on tour through the site of the Modoc War, giving a vivid account of the battles, its key players, and how it all fit into the striking Lava Beds landscape.

Also at the meeting, I had the opportunity to meeting with the Spokane 2012 Annual Meeting planning committee.  These folks are well on their way towards putting together a meeting that will blow your socks off.  That is, if you even have socks by the end of the Billings Annual Meeting this February 6-10, 2011 in Montana.  Don't forget to register ASAP to qualify for early registration rates.

In an nutshell, the CalPac/PNW joint fall meetings was one more example of SRM sections putting on a great meeting: good food, good people, good conversation all around.  Thanks to both sections for the hospitality!

(Well, mostly good people - these two are clearly up to some trouble!)

CalPac Section Meeting at Deep Springs College

Deep Springs Colllege sits twenty-six miles from the nearest town, situated in the eastern California high desert.  The ranch/college hosts 26 male students, and focuses on a liberal arts education, a self-governing student body, manual labor, and an isolation policy.  Needless to say, the location for the CalPac section meeting was an interesting one!

The CalPac section had the task of providing my first introduction to an SRM section meeting and tour.  I think they did a magnificent job.  I met with the section Board of Directors and provided an update from the SRM BOD and headquarters on May 4th and again during the technical session on May 5th.  The group tolerated my inexperience with chalk boards (aren't those extinct?) and provided some feedback for the parent society.

The May 5th technical sessions included some excellent talks: David Neidorf and Paul Starrs introduced us to Deep Springs College, its history and highlights, and Tom Talbot, President of the California Cattlemen's Association, gave an update on the organization and current projects.  Two Deep Springs students provided a glimpse into life at the College, followed by a series of talks focusing on different aspects of the area.  Speakers were: Glenn Harris, Dawn Becker, James Bartolome, Sherm Swanson, Yvonne Wood, and Lynn Huntsinger, and topics included: innovative approaches to land management, vegetation monitoring, grazing management, geomorphology, global pastoralism, and the endemic black toad.  See the lineup and topics on the CalPac section website.

The technical session was concluded by yet another excellent meal prepared by the College followed by a campfire.

The field tour on May 6th was a windy, fun, and educational experience.  Ken Mitchell, Deep Springs Ranch Manager, led us on a tour of the college including their solar array and hydro plant, the surrounding area, the abandoned White Mountain City, a petroglyph site, and the nearby Black Toad Habitat.  The combination of a technical session, much of which focused on the surrounding area, followed by a tour of the college and nearby area was excellent.

For me, the CalPac meeting highlight was the people.  Whether it was stories of 'how I first became a cowboy', renegade plant identification trips for the upcoming finals week, jokes around a camp fire, or quips about this blog, there was fun to be had the entire trip.  I met some great folks, had interesting conversations, and am looking forward to next year!

Stay tuned - I'm heading to Florida next week.

Watch out for that calf!