For the Horses!

Who knew that working in 80+ degree heat, with biting flies and long hours would be one of the best times of my life. Sometimes the unexpected adventures turn out to be the most influential.

Under the guidance of our fearless crew leaders, Maddie and Kelsey, Crew Number Nine, has persistently been working on the West Mancos and Transfer trails in the San Juan National Forest. From general trail maintenance, to culvert work, to creating a switchback section of trail, Crew Number Nine has been able to cover “trail and conservation work 101.” Day after day, we work as a crew serving the people of our natural land. However “For the Horses!” has become a common motto on Crew Number Nine, because the tragedy and deaths of several horses on our section of trail remind us that the trails we mend serve an array of travelers.

While the physical work bonds us as a team, it is the nights by the fire and the time away from the trail where we can truly connect as people and recreate our perspectives. Between mimicking British accents, learning to lasso and sharing the stories of life I feel that I am truly part of a team. We are able to work of each other’s strengths and weakness, creating links that are stronger than the steel of a rock bar. We are able to laugh at each other’s jokes, but we are also able to provide a support system in which we all depend on one another for survival. This co-dependency is the feature of SCC that I most value. It reminds me that we are all connected in one way or another and that my actions provide a platform that everyone else feeds on. The sense of community derived from an SCC crew, is consciousness that needs to be redefined in fast pace of modern society. Crew Number Nine has taught me a lot about seeing things from a different point of view. I’ve realized that there are so many ways to interpret the natural environment because so many aspects are changing. I feel as though the people of Crew Number Nine understand the importance of stepping back and looking at the bigger picture from a different view. We are all working for the people, we are all working for ourselves, we are all working for each other, and in a sense we are working for everything that will combine us as a whole.

That is why “For the Horses!” is so much more than a dedication the horses, it is a reminder that there are hundreds of reasons to do what we do and that taking a step back to see something differently is the most valuable experience of all.

Time flies when the weather is right, when the crew is meant to be, and when fun outplays the hardships of work.  As we approach the entrance of our third hitch I know that Crew Number Nine will take on the challenges to come and that we a crew will continue thrive in our co-dependency with one another as well as with the natural world.

I hope now after four weeks of dedication, human feet as well as horse hooves can travel safely on restored paths of the West Mancos and Transfer trails.