One Cool Day

Today was awesome. We did some work here in Okefenokee. We learned how to use a bush wacker and hedge trimmer so that we could go out onto the trails around the samp and cleam them up. First, Jen and I were on digging duty. There was a busted pipe that needed to be dug out. Jen and I were well up to the task. However, every single man that walked by us while we were working had to drop by and give us advice. They told us nothing that we didn't already know. That's kinda how it is in the south--they don't really think that women are as capable as we are. Trust me, my female teammates are more than capable--they rock! :) To finish the story, we dug the perfect whole and then went to meet up with our team on the trail.

We had to wear waders. Unfortunetly, I didn't have my camera to take pictures for your viewing pleasure, but let's just say I looked pretty hot. Also, I haven't showered in a couple of days because the water here smells like rotten eggs. So my hair is piled on top of my head like a big rat's nest. I looked perty! :) So we cleaned two miles of trail, in the waders with the bush wackers. Also, the park ranger, Russell, who was working with us took us on an ATV out to a place to work. I got soooo muddy and it was AWESOME! We saw bear markings on the trees which was a bit scary because we were out in the middl eof nowhere, but it was still awesome.

At the end of the day, we had to go back and get the van. Since I am a certified van driver, I got to go back with Russell on the ATV. This time I rode on the front with Whitney and we had SOOOO much fun. It was a pretty long ride, and Russell went pretty quick through water and mud, over tree stumps and boardwalks. It was just incredible.

Then, (can you believe there's more?) on our way back to our trailers, Russell was in front of us on the ATV. He had stopped on the side of the road and motioned for us to stop and come out to him. We walked over to him and realized that he was holding a baby alligator in his hands. I got to touch a baby alligator. It was rough like leather. That's the only way I can think of how to describe it. Mama alligator was just down the rode, so we walked over to her and she hissed at us. It was SCARY. Seriously, she could have charged us and we would have all run like the wind. :) Great times.

That's all for now. We are pretty glad that we left Miami because they got hit pretty hard by Wilma. We had some crazy wind and rain here last night, but that's all. Good times. We will probably be heading back on Wednesday.

Grace and Peace! And lots of love!!!