My last workamping was around wildlife that was alive with no hunting permitted in the area. Now I am in the opposite situation.
I worked a 16 hour shift, the opening day of deer hunting season, so it was very busy indeed. Below is the first buck to succumb to the hunters.
My job is to tag him, weigh him, measure his rack for length, diameter and breadth, plus count the points, then remove his jawbone.
Yes, you read that right. Remove his jawbone.
In addition, there is lots of paperwork and pencil pushing plus clean up all the blood left on the floor.
Sounds exciting? Well, I am adjusting, as is Harley. Hogs are open season too, they have to be weighed, but they get to keep their jawbone. (Thank goodness for small favors!)
Because I have very limited use of my right arm (temporary) I didn't have to remove any jawbones, but I was taught how to do it. It involve tools and lots of strength. I can't really say I am looking forward to it, but it's part of the job.
Well, that sign is posted on the fence in front of my camper below. It does seem funny. I guess it's directed at the hunters, who are supposed to camp in the hunter's area, about a half mile away. They have no utilities. I and the other workampers are camping about 100 feet from the Hunters Checkin Station.
At least the commute to work is short and my dog goes with me.
When I arrived, there was another couple already camping and working. They are very nice and we get along fabulously. They were super kind to bring me a bowl of homemade soup during my long shift. At the time I had a thee-bean pot going in my crockpot but hadn't had time to do anything with the beans yet. So the next day, while they were working, I added more ingredients to make it into hearty chili, so I could take them hot bowls of chili while they were working.
Needless to say, they were surprised and grateful.
The next day, they brought me a huge bowl of homemade stew to my motorhome. It was enough for several meals. I had just finished making 2 batches of hummus from scratch, as by now I had cooked dried garbanzo beans in my crockpot, so I gave them one of the batches.
This is great fun, sharing food and swapping dishes. Tomorrow I hope to cook some more, as I have another 16 hour shift to do on Sunday, so it does help to have food around ready to reheat or eat or both. Oh wait. They shortened my shift. I only work 15 hours on Sunday. Yippie!
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I sure hope they give you a good knife and saw for the jaw removal:) That buck has a decent rack, but looks like a small deer in that picture.
ReplyDeleteShould be an interesting job.
You have some great folks working along side you. Thats nice to share good food for long shigts like that.
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