a day in the life:
in a conservation corps
5:30 am – My alarm goes off. It’s day 5 of an 8-day hitch in the backcountry of the Santa Catalina Mountains. The sun isn’t up yet and it’s chilly, but I force myself to get out of my sleeping bag. I chug half a liter of water and do some stretching by the light of my headlamp.
6:00 am – Our crew leader gives the official wakeup call. Everyone grudgingly starts getting ready for the day. We take down the bear bags, pack up our gear, and wolf down as much food as possible. Backcountry breakfast of choice: cold oatmeal packets with protein powder.
7:03 am – Time for morning check-in and safety circle. We talk about work expectations for the day and do some stretching. Someone asks a silly question that we each have to answer. Today we discuss our best Halloween costumes.
7:24 am – We grab our bags and start hiking to the worksite. We descend down into a ravine and hike back up the other side. We’re in a ponderosa pine forest scattered with huge granite boulders. The sun hasn’t come up over the mountains yet so it’s still cool. The hike is steep and difficult, but honestly the best work commute I’ve ever had.
7:47 am – Work begins. We’re brushing the trail, cutting back all of the overgrown vegetation and clearing the trail corridor. I’m using loppers and a hand saw and I sometimes feel like I’m pruning the world’s largest garden.
10:15 am – Our crew leader lets out a whoop, signaling the start of our first official break. The sun is out now and I find a patch of shade by a rock. I shovel trail mix into my mouth at top speed and add an electrolyte tablet to my water bottle.
10:34 am – Back to work. I put my hard hat and gloves back on and pick up my loppers. The fight against the understory vegetation continues.
12:30 pm – Lunch time! Everyone finds a shady spot to hang out and eat some food. In the backcountry we have a lot of tortillas, tuna packets, and granola bars. After I eat, I stare out at the mountains for a while. I’m hot and tired, but at least I have a beautiful view.
1:09 pm – Our crew lead gives the “end of lunch” whoop and it echoes around the canyon. I refill my water bottle and put on a podcast.
2:41 pm – I end up working next to someone else in my crew and we chat while we brush. We work hard and make sure to complain about it, but everyone has a great attitude. I find myself laughing a lot.
3:15 pm – Our last break of the day. Morale is a little low now, but this is the home stretch. I eat more trail mix in the shade.
3:36 pm – I refill my water bottle again and reluctantly pick up my loppers and saw. I’m still chopping off overhanging branches and cutting back grass, but I take the work a little slower. My hands are sore from gripping tools all day.
4:43 pm – The work day is (finally) over! Everyone lets out a collective sigh of relief. We cache our tools behind a tree and hike back to our campsite.
5:08 pm – We take turns doing chores in the evening. One person cooks dinner on the tiny backpacking stove – tonight it’s ramen with dehydrated vegetables. Someone else will do the dishes. I’m in charge of filtering water, so I fill up containers from the creek and pour them into our filter system. We’ll need about 25 liters.
5:50 pm – Dinner’s ready and we each fill up a Tupperware with ramen. I’m ravenous. I sit on a rock and we all talk until the sun goes down, making each other hysterical with laughter. Everything is funnier in the backcountry.
7:13 pm – We brush our teeth, then pack all of our food and toiletries into the bear bags. It’s a group effort to hang them from a tree so we don’t attract wildlife to our campsite.
7:37 pm – I head to my tent and take a “baby wipe shower” before changing into sleep clothes. I write in my journal and do some stretches before bed.
8:03 pm – I’m exhausted from a long day’s work and crawling into my sleeping bag is the best feeling in the world. But I’m also grateful that I got to spend a day in the mountains, hiking and working, interacting with an intricate and beautiful ecosystem, spending time with interesting people. I find that I like working hard if I get to be outside. I’ll take my 7-to-5 over a 9-to-5 any day.