The Outdoors

By Scott Rall, Outdoors Columnist

I recently did a podcast with Ron Shara Productions host Travis Frank about volunteering. If you would like to listen to it search The Flush Podcast. We spoke for about an hour about what motivates a person to volunteer for 40 years for the same organization. This is the length of time I have been working on behalf of Pheasants Forever. I was recently named as the first ever Pheasants Forever National Volunteer of the Year at Pheasant Fest and Quail Classic held in Sioux Falls, South Dakota earlier in March.

It was quite an honor to receive this award as the nominations were submitted from rank-and-file members of the organization from all over the United States. As we spoke about what motivates volunteers one of the most prevalent subjects that came up was engagement. Meeting and working with other like-minded people was a key ingredient.

I have seen this first hand with our local chapter’s Hands-on Habitat Days. Each year on or around Earth Day which this year is April 24th we head out to a parcel of public land to do a complete once over. The date for this year is Saturday, April 20th. Some of these projects are pretty easy and others get a lot more involved.

One particular project was the restoration of an 80-acre pasture/farmland parcel. There were many challenges. On this specific piece, there was over 4 miles of fence to remove. There was also a junkyard which I imagined was over 100 years old. We had three 16-yard roll-off dumpsters delivered and upon completion all 3 of these were filled to overflowing.

There was a pure junk dumpster, a metal recycle dumpster and one for environmentally sensitive substances. Old oil and chemical containers need to be handled with care and there was a ton of discarded chemical containers to go in the 3rd dumpster. A separate stack of tires accumulated that would not all fit on a 20-foot trailer.

Times have changed a lot but in the old days, you tossed whatever you did not want into a hole and left it there. Appliances, bed springs, carpets, old cars and a whole list of other stuff can be found when cleaning up a new public land acquisition.

The coolest part of this endeavor was just how many folks came out to help. On this one-day project, we had over 50 people of differing backgrounds show up to add their muscle to the outcome. We had college professors, bank presidents, farmers, business people and of course, lots of different habitat organizations all in attendance. The kids were there and yet some of the helpers were in their 80s.

We worked together for a common cause and each person was able to say at the end of the day that they were part of the successes of the day. As I said earlier we are planning another Hands-on Habitat Day on Saturday, April 20th. This is a pretty big project much like the one I previously described.

Lots of hands with gloves, eye protection, a few folks in rubber boots along with lots of equipment will all be needed. We intend to have 2 skid steers, 2 tractors and a handful of side-by-sides pulling trailers. We would love to have you experience a day in the wild helping us make this new property safe for humans and dogs. My goal when starting one of these is to put in a condition that is safe for both hunters and their dogs. There is nothing worse than a dog getting all cut up in metal or wire that they cannot see.

If you think you would like to come out and lend a hand that day, please reach out to me at 507-360-6027 send me an email to scottarall@gmail.com, or send an instant message to our Nobles County Pheasants Forever Facebook page. I can give you directions to the spot. We will be starting at 10:00 a.m. and should finish by supper time. We have more than enough work for as many folks who choose to attend. Hot dogs and drinks will be available at noon. We will also have enough water for everyone.

Spending time in the wild is not deducted from your lifespan. The sense of accomplishment is hard to describe but I can assure you that it will certainly make you feel good on the inside. Hope to see you there.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

If you have any questions, reach out to me at scottarall@gmail.com.