A Last Hurrah?

I have been meaning to make a post for the past couple of weeks. With the travel recently, and lack of Internet...it just took a while. I had intended to try to compose this and edit...but it looks like it will be stream of consciousness, with a point (I hope).

I've been doing a lot of thinking recently.

As you all know, I really enjoy all the field work I have been doing. The last few weeks in Missouri were quite fun. My field partner and I finally had some free time, since we only had a few nests to follow. So we got out to see some of the surrounding area. Right about that time I was really starting to think about where my life was going.

I am definitely not as young as I used to be. I also have begun to realize that working as a full-time field tech will never pan out into something I can do full time. On top of this, guiding in Costa Rica this fall was so much more fun. Even though it was "work", I really did enjoy myself every day much more than on a field job. Having new guests every week to help me experience things anew. As well as never knowing what to expect each day. Every day was a wonder.

On top of this...the field tech life gets a bit lonely at times. There are places that I have been that have just rocked, and I did not mind spending it alone. Atop Blackrock Pass in Sequoia-Kings Canyon comes to mind. Also on that trip was my camp at Columbine lake. But of course these are both during a trip I took after a job was complete. But even doing field work...one is alone most of the time, and I do enjoy those times. Perhaps this is why Hawaii was, and will probably remain, my favorite field job of all time. Though we worked alone in the field watching our birds, we met up back in camp and had the evenings together. This was the perfect balance.

At the same time, these past three years have seen me in some fantastic locations: Hawaii, Ecuador, Costa Rica (three times!), Panama. And now the coast of Maine. And soon Australia and New Zealand. These tropical trips have been beyond wonderful. But there have been some long and lonely bus rides at times. And when there hasn't been anyone around at night...no one to converse and interact with. One can only write in journal for so long at night. And I can't spend every night at the local watering hole.

It is hard to settle down, or even to think about doing so, when I pick up and move every few months, with no home location. The last relationship I had ended poorly - and the travel was definitely an influence on that. And I have met wonderful people these past few years on my field jobs...but I inevitably conclude what's the point, since I will be picking up and moving again.

If I make guiding a more permanent venture, I can be settled a bit more. And perhaps see my family more.

Does this mean an end to my field jobs? Doubtful. I do still have to pay the bills. And being a volunteer in Australia and then taking a personal trip to New Zealand means I will come home in January needing to find paying work expeditiously (but I am preparing for that by saving a lot right now). On top of this, I forgot how much I love the coast of Maine...and these jobs are here next summer if I so choose, I believe.

That being said...when I return home in January/February, I will be devoting a significant amount of energy applying to guiding organizations. I will probably not plan on being a full time bird guide. I really enjoy doing that, but I want "adventure travel" to be a major part of what I do. There are a few companies I have in mind that do packages that include backpacking as part of the trip, and those are the type of groups I will be focusing on. I don't think I will land anything full time right away. I have not been this nervous in a while. Perhaps next year at this time I will have finally settled somewhere.

So, the last hurrah is not here in Maine. At least not right now. This is a fantastic place for me to spend the 7 weeks I had free after Missouri. The island I am working on (Metinic) is fantastic. I forget how much I like having to ocean outside. We even all went swimming (briefly) on Wednesday and Thursday. And then got evacuated as a precaution on Friday due to Hurricane Bill. We head back out tomorrow (Tuesday). But the time there was, and will be, awesome. No highways. No trains. No planes. Crashing surf. No light pollution at night. And the unusual night noises of the storm-petrels coming in at night.

For a last trip though, I think Australia and New Zealand will be fantastic. I look forward to working with my friend again, and getting out and wild in New Zealand. I haven't done a backpack trip in over a year now, and I can tell. The backpacking I do is my therapy for everything and anything.

Happy trails. It will be a while (about 6 weeks) till I can post again, I suspect. But who knows what the hurrican season will do to us up here.