A 5 o'clock wake up call kicked off our Monday morning. It was finally time to see the infamous lesser prairie chicken that we had all been looking forward to. We rode out into the prairie in three different trucks and waited until about 6:15 when the birds came out and began their mating dance. We watched the sun rise, and then headed back to the community center for breakfast. A biologist names Grant who works for New Mexico Fish and Game came to speak to us about his different jobs, focusing specifically on how the lesser prairie chicken being listed as threatened has impacted his work. For these people who dedicate so much of their time into preserving this bird, the topic is certainly an emotional one. We spent the afternoon putting reflective markers on fencing to make sure no wildlife collides with it, a job that we completed fairly quickly. With our remaining time we were able to visit different parts of the ranch, a prairie dog town, and do some other site seeing around Milnesand.
A day spent in the hot New Mexico sun definitely called for a late afternoon nap. All 12 of us collapsed onto our various foam pads and pillows and slept until dinner, which was a dozen pizzas provided to us by Tish and a few others. After dinner we trekked out into the prairie to some dunes where we watched another beautiful sunset. They never cease to amaze us, each one seemingly more spectacular than the last. We all lay on our backs and watched the stars and observed the constellations, some of us were even lucky enough to see a shooting star or two. The night was concluded with card games and lots of laughter. Tomorrow we head to White Sands, NM, for our free day! Till tomorrow, Milny out
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