Training & Christmas

We spent all of last week in training. The training will make us "competent" Interpreters. The class is a lot more intensive than we anticipated and a couple of folks have dropped out. We are preparing for 15 minute patio talks, 45 minute evening programs, 3 hour van tours and guided hikes. The weather wasn't too bad last week but come our day out to go out for van tour training, the temps were in the 40's with wind. Here we are listening to our instructor Ranger Ken.

Saturday, Christmas Eve, we drove up to Phoenix to spend Christmas with my sister Susan. We all went out for dinner and to church on Christmas Eve. Christmas Day we went out for a very nice brunch at The Buttes in Tempe. The buffet line and brunch table.

Sherri and I out front on a beautiful Christmas Day.

Tuesday we had a day off from class, so we went out to pull Buffelgrass with our campground neighbors, Kenn and Mary. Buffelgrass is a non-native invasive grass which the Department of Agriculture planted in the 40's to control erosion and for cattle feed. Kenn and Mary are volunteers with the Natural Resources Department and it was interesting going out with them to find and pull the grass. It is very scientific and all pulled plants are recorded and tracked by GPS. Both of us with our picks and the great Buffelgrass hunter.

Today it was back to class with a nice afternoon field trip. Charles is a herpetologist and the parks weather expert. We are at a weather monitor station on which Charles has placed an Our Lady of Guadalupe sticker to keep the illegal traffic from stealing or vandalizing the station. Some of the migrants think this type of equipment is a sensor and camera.

Sherri and I finish up our classroom training this week and next week starts the busy season with programs and tours five days a week. Happy New Year to ALL!!!!!