A big thank you to those club members who worked out
at the Pawnee National Grasslands on November 19th. The volunteer were
Ed and Sally Chism, Dave Nalley, Jim Nunn, Ross Early, and Jolene Korgan.
The group met at 8:30am in Lucerne. The purpose for this project is
to remove 2 man made structures ou of a Natural Research Area, and rebuild
them in a new location. The structures area rain guzzlers that catch
and store rain water for wildlife.
It
takes a good hour to get out to Dave's Draw where the rain guzzlers
are located. We decided to do the most remote rain guzzler first, no
access by vehicle. It was quite a hike carrying the tools, kids and
gear. It didn't take much longer than an hour or so to dismantle the
guzzler, however, the next task was to find a route to get Ed's pick-up
and the "Sub" somewhere as close as possible.
There was no way we could carry the guzzler materials
on foot, the way we walked in, so the best plan was to find a way to
the fence that runs north, as discussed with the Rangers. We used a
seldom traveled fence lline that crosses the ravines and washouts, without
leaving vegetation damage was the most feasible way. That journey in
itself took quite a while. Once as close as we could get with the two
vehicles we haulded the materials on our shoulders across the way, down
the sandy ravine, and up a real steep sand bank, over the fence and
into the trucks. Lunch time was getting well behind us, but decided
to transport the materials to the new location before breaking for a
bite to eat.
The terrain was real rough, and the main frame structure
was considerably wider and much longer than the box on Ed's truck. Jim
ended up riding on top to help stabilize it, so our progress back was
very slow. Heading out east a ways, then running south along the fence
line, we encountered a washout that was too steep for the pickup without
dumping the materials. The "Sub" continued on south to the graded road,
and the truck ventured due west, along the creek bed. As it turned out,
it lead right to the new site for the guzzler.
We ate a quick bite, started digging post holes and
the trench for the trough. The slope of the terrain was slightly different
than the original site, but we were able to get the measurements right.
By 4:30pm we had the guzzler reassembled and ready for the next rain.
The second one will wait for another day. It will be much easier because
it is real close to the road and on fairly flat terrain. Also, it only
has to be moved a few hundred feet.
