Summer 2018

After graduation, I made my way west to work for the Nevada Conservation Corps on a forestry chainsaw crew. We lived in Great Basin National Park, where due to fire suppression and climate change Pinion Pine and Juniper trees are quickly moving down the mountain and encroaching on Sagebrush habitat. For three months we felled hazard trees in a burned canyon, restored meadows and selectively thinned, sometimes to as little as 5% ground cover. Historically, these trees live above 8,500 feet but are now found as low as 6,500. It was our job to very, very slowly push them back up the South Snake Mountain Range.

These images are from my drive out to Nevada, my day to day life and any trips I took on my off days. Alex, pictured in quite a few of these images, was my adventure partner and fellow crew member. We spent all but a couple of days within earshot of each other for the entirety of the three months. Before moving to Nevada, I thought it was a flat wasteland of desert when in fact it is the most mountainous state in the lower 48. We spent the summer exploring alpine zones, exposed ridge lines and rock formations throughout the Great Basin. Most importantly, we both gained an incredible appreciation and love for the prominent, chaucy peaks and deep valleys of Nevada.

Summer 2018 Tunes

Coleman stove beard portrait. | Kansas 5/15/18

The coldest river foot dunk I've ever experienced. | Leadville, CO 5/16/18

Pitched camp down in the Pinyon/ Juniper zone at the base of the South Snake Range. | Great Basin National Park, NV 5/18/18

Alex stands on the rim as the sun dips below the opposite canyon wall. | Zion National Park, UT 6/3/18

A confusing body position made the lower half of myself nearly disappear. | Great Basin National Park, NV 6/10/18

Alex loads the chipper with slash that we cut to restore a meadow to its natural state. | Great Basin National Park, NV 6/14/18

Alex gives Tableau la Rossa a shot. This climbing area called “The Monastery” was made up of routes that Tommy Caldwell and his dad set. | Estes, CO 7/6/18

One of the wierdest and most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen. A thunderstorm on the right, a sunny double rainbow on the left, and dramatically lit clouds behind us. | Ochoco National Forest, OR 7/17/18

Alex gets a haircut from me. It was the first haircut I've given, and it was powered by the sun. | Great Basin National Park, NV 7/18/18

A smoky moonrise over Johnson Lake. | Great Basin National Park, NV 7/27/18

Alex, among 3,000 year old bristlecone pines, makes his way up the loose limestone to the summit of Peak 10842. | Great Basin National Park, NV 8/5/18

The Milky Way and Mars present themselves on a clear night. Great Basin National Park is one of the darkest places in the country and is known for its skies. The high elevation, incredibly low humidity, and low light pollution make it a stargazers heaven. | Great Basin National Park, NV 8/5/18

My pants blew out in the final days at Great Basin National Park. Since there were no stores to resupply for dozens of miles, I got some extra airflow for a while. | Great Basin National Park, NV 8/13/18

Obligatory chainsaw crew photo. From left to right: Danielle, Crew Lead Mari, Alex and myself. | Great Basin National Park 8/14/18

A light painted portrait of Dani and I with Wheeler Peak in the distance. | Great Basin National Park, NV 8/19/18

I snuck into a closed National Forest campground in my new Melanzana hoodie, available only in Leadville. | Leadville, CO 5/16/18

About 60 miles west of Delta, Utah I was the second car to arrive at a recently flipped truck. No cell service here so I sped back a few miles to find a whiff of signal while standing on my car to call 911. The nearest officer was 50 miles away. The driver fell asleep at the wheel but was (miraculously) unharmed. | UT 5/18/18

Some locals were having a birthday weekend four wheeler party, and they all rumbled back in around dark. I was the only one there not with their group, and while I was cleaning up from dinner one of them came over and drunkenly shouted "Come have beer and a taco!". I agreed and as I was walking back to their fire of burning trash, he asked if I was a tree hugger. I said “oh of course not” (but come on, look at me). Good on him for not judging based on appearance! Later I met someone in their group who quietly confided that he too does conservation work. | Great Basin National Park, NV 5/18/18

Just above treeline, Wheeler peak and its cirque erupt into the sky. Wheeler peak stands at 13,065 feet, the second highest point in the state. | Great Basin National Park, NV 6/10/18

Jess sweeps a meadow below Wheeler Peak for beetles. | Great Basin National Park, NV 6/14/18

On Wheeler Peak I munched on an avocado, which I believe was the highest avocado in the Great Basin if not the western United States. | Great Basin National Park, NV 6/16/18

Myself in all of my saw gear while working on some trail maintenance in Big Wash. | Great Basin National Park 7/20/18

Fire in the sky. | Ochoco National Forest, OR 7/17/18

I filter water in my new Melanzana dress. | Great Basin National Park, NV 7/27/18

Bjorn, Alex and I set out to hike to an area called Horse Heaven, which required traversing a couple of tall peaks. It was at the pictured moment when we realized we did not have enough daylight left to make it to Horse Heaven. I suggested we stop on Peak 10842 since at least we'd be able to see Horse Heaven. In all seriousness Bjorn exclaimed "SEAHORSE Heaven, where's that?" | Great Basin National Park, NV 8/5/18

Heading back to camp after a wonderful bushwacking excursion. | Great Basin National Park, NV 8/5/18

Alex cleans up a recently felled tree. | Great Basin National Park, NV 8/8/18

A double exposure of Alex during a lightning break in the work truck. | Great Basin National Park, NV 8/14/18

Dani on the summit of Wheeler Peak, very unhappy with what I just made her do. I told her we were just going on a hike but left out the detail that we were climbing to 13,000 feet in smoke filled air. | Great Basin National Park 8/18/18