Day 1-2: Orientation

(September 9)

Bear Sightings since last post: 0

Total Bear Sightings: 0

I woke up at 6:30 this morning (10:30 brain time) and couldn’t get back to sleep, so I quietly got dressed and snuck out for a walk. It was a crisp, cool, overcast morning, but you could see the mountains on the outskirts of town and hear seabirds calling. I called Sam while I walked and found a grocery store where I could buy some essentials (hygiene products were in the checked bag which was yet to arrive). I returned to an apartment bustling with morning activity and filled with shower steam and the smell of bacon. Shortly thereafter we all made our way to the library where orientation was held. We filled out paperwork, discussed company policies, got to know each other, and watched an exciting video on how to deal with bears! “If the bear starts to eat you, it is no longer a defensive attack, and you should fight back.”

BEAR FACT: Grizzly Bears, Kodiaks, and Brown Bears are all the same species of bear.

We were treated to delicious pizza for lunch, and we finished our tasks for the day shortly after, culminating in the following short video clip.



NOTE: She should have her hands covering the back of her neck in the last shot, fingers intertwined, according to our training. 

Our second day of orientation was largely the same, forms, meetings, activities. We did have a very interesting presenter come in and talk to us about methods we can use when we're engaging with youth. Afterwords, we ran some errands and went down to a 5K event that finished at a bar. We were planning on walking or running it, but most people had already finished by the time we got there. We felt we had earned some beer anyway, since we had walked there, so we went in and were each given a raffle ticket. Alyssa won a 10$ gift card to the bar we were in, so we split a pitcher before walking home!

Sunrise, Day 2