This week, I interviewed Andrew Clements, of Cortez, Colorado. Drew works for the state, but the program also does work for the US Forest Service in Wyoming, New Mexico, and Utah. Here, he shares an encounter with a grizzly bear in the Yellowstone National Park, while he was part of a team collecting forest health data near the confluence of the Thorofare and Yellowstone Rivers.

Drew told me that a fair amount of logistical work goes into planning for his field season. He tends to hit locations of lower elevation early, then chase the snow up to higher plots before being pushed down lower, again, by the snow, in the fall. Drew figures during any given year, he hikes four to seven hundred miles and is hoping to keep on keeping on until his knees give out.

Scotty Calhoun is a fourth generation horticulturalist, raised in Rochester, New York, now living in Cortez, Colorado.

He talked with me about the knowledge he's gained from his forefathers. His great grandfather came over from Holland with seeds in his pockets. That man, his son (Scott's grandfather) and Scott's father, all worked the farm in upstate New York. It's a business that still exists today, run by Scotty's uncle and cousin.

This work is a constant calculus of considering the weather, the seasons, the soil, the condition of the plants, the state of the equipment, and who is showing for work on any given day.

Scotty shares some thoughtful thoughts on, of all things, burlap. Burlap is essential and low tech. And when it decomposes, is it gone? Is all the burlap used by his family really gone? Or does it live on in the soil and in the plants themselves?

I interviewed Ben Longwell of Pendleton, Oregon. Ben grew up in Colorado, but has cowboyed all around the western US. For many years, he worked in New Zealand, where his wife, Natalie, was born and raised.

Here, Ben shares a moment way up in the Big Horn mountains of northern Wyoming and southern Montana. The Big Horns are remote and wondrous, but also daunting, with their own weather and terrain.

This particular moment unfolds along the Molly Crospey livestock trail, just east of Shell, Wyoming, at around 7,500 feet elevation.

It’s pretty unpopulated thereabouts. In Big Horn County, which is twice as big as the state of Delaware, there are fewer than four people per square mile.

I really enjoyed hearing how that scene unfolded and appreciated Ben’s take-away. What a beautiful lesson to fold into your life.

Also, you are one for understatement, my friend. I’ve herded horses horseback before, and, it can sure get, as you say, ‘interesting.’

We’ll put a link to Ben’s horse work on our website.

AweNice welcomes interviewees. If you have a moment you experienced while working outside and would like to share it, contact us at awenice.com.

Our music is by my friend, Forrest Van Tuyl, who knows a bit about wonders at work. Find more of his terrific music here.

My name is Maddy Butcher, I developed Awe Nice in hopes of brightening your day. If you’d like to donate, check out this page. And thank you.

Keep your eyes, ears, and mind open. Until next time.