Ranger Danger

Take a good look at these three faces: 

These are three faces that did not make it onto the text train.  These are the faces of those who showed up at Great Falls National Park for a service activity to pick up trash and weed because they didn't get the text that the activity was, in fact, cancelled.

Now take a good look at these three faces:

These are the faces of those who were taken under the park ranger's wing and given an opportunity to serve anyway.  

Their mission: clear all snow fences from the park.  

Their tools:  Mickey Mouse gloves, Titanium 3X Loppers, a trusty wheelbarrow, and sheer muscle.

  Their enemies: thorns and fallen trees.

They clipped and yanked and climbed and pulled and gathered wood chips (designated to those with bad backs).

And then they rolled and rolled and rolled.  And rolled.  Well, Alex rolled.  She was the best roller this side of the Great Falls.

And when all the fences were down, they carried them back one by one by one.

Over rocks.

Across ponds.

Through leaves that might make you think you were in the wrong season.

They hiked up and down along the river.

Every once in awhile they spotted pretty lone trees and wild indians from a rare California tribe.

They huffed and puffed and finally came to the end of the trail.

This was a very very small portion of what they carried back.  It was back breaking work and they truly loved it.  I think they are going back to school tomorrow to become park rangers.

I mean, take a good look at this view.  That could be their office.

So take another good look at those three faces.  Squint really hard to see through the blurriness (my muscles were too worn out to hold the camera up and snap the picture steady) and see the joy on their faces.  They don't need no stinkin text trains.