Life as a Field Biologist (Part #3)
By Isaac Rath and Katie Milesky
Photos by Isaac Rath
In our third and final segment of the “Life as a Field Biologist” series, we find our lonely researcher with a flat tire on the side of the road. Not just on the side of any road, but a very poorly maintained and seldom used road. I was able to get the spare on and back to town within a few hours and was able to get it fixed (with all-new tires, courtesy of Enterprise). It did however cut into my schedule, meaning I had to push that day’s survey back. Up until this point, I had surveys canceled for weather, but this was a first.
The end of the season is quickly approaching, and in all honesty, I’m much more tired than I was expecting to be at this point. I miss sleeping in a building, I miss seeing people and talking to people regularly, and I miss being able to shower daily, and I miss brushing my teeth in front of a mirror. My beard is grown out - to sum it up, I look like someone who has been living out of a car for the past 3 months. There are some things I will miss - the sunrises, the solitude, being paid to spend the afternoon at a local coffee shop inputting data, even to the point where the baristas knew me by name.
Sleeping in the car at my survey sites has been interesting, to say the least. I’m up and at it before the birds, so I usually settle in for bed around 8:30 pm. Sometimes, I even get visited by locals to say good night! Some will say they just want to use the car to scratch their sides, but I know better. They are here to see me. When it’s the ladies and the calves, that’s fine, but bulls make me a little nervous - maybe that’s just a side effect of my time in Yellowstone. I did have an encounter with a bull on the hike on my way to a survey site, he was clearly agitated and started huffing and acting in a way that clearly told me to get lost. Luckily, I can take a hint and did just that.
Over the past three months, I’ve had the opportunity to really get to know the state of Utah. I did some exploring of new national parks, added some new lifers to my bird list, saw some beautiful landscapes, and so much more. Overall, though I’d prefer to work with other people in the future, this experience was enjoyable and rewarding. My next field job is set up to start in just a few weeks in Reno, working with the Great Basin Bird Observatory studying Pinyon Jays. I’ll keep you all updated on things as that job gets going! To everyone who is thinking of me, praying for me, or reaching out to me while I am out here away from friends and family - Thank you!
