4/5/04
We accomplished a lot this week.  We finished burning up the brush piles in 3 Finger Valley, and we did another prairie burn – the east-facing slope of Indian Grass Prairie.  That was harder than any of the other burning we’ve done.  We used the 50 gallon tank that fits on the gator, which was a big help.  We burned a wide black line around the sides and along the top first.  Then we did diagonals to fill in the middle.  It took two days.  The first day we had to quit after a few diagonals because the wind was very variable, and we were so tired from just getting everything organized and getting the black line done.  But when we finished it off, it went very quickly and easily – it helps to not be so tired.

I’ve seen all the spring butterflies now – Commas, Milberts Tortoiseshell, Comptons Tortoiseshell, and yesterday a Mourning Cloak.  Today it’s pretty warm – 60 degrees – and starting to get cloudy.  It’s been cooler and clear for most of the week – nice and dry for the burning.

We had Dan and Jackie and Emmet over for dinner on Saturday, and we all had a great time.  We looked at Jupiter and Saturn through the spotting scope – that was fun.