Today the team headed over to Resource Management to begin our field trip with Nancy Schuldt, the Water Protection Coordinator. She gave us a brief lecture about the monitoring work that she does on the lakes and rivers on the reservation and then took us out to some sites. We stopped at Big Lake where she showed us how equipment such as a flow meter works, and gave us an overview of the current condition of the Lake; likewise with a section of the St. Louis river. We then headed over to the Stonybrook stream and jumped in with nets in order to see how benthic invertebrate populations are doing. This stream suffered a hard hit in the flood last year, therefore close monitoring is taking place to see that the biodiversity of it returns.

 

Later we stopped by the Veterans Powwow. Here there were many vendors and band members in the traditional clothing of their tribe. Upon the grand entry the veterans and the dancers entered accompanied by drumming and vocals and then a prayer was said in Ojibwe. Soon after the inter-tribal dance started at which point Christa and Adrienne joined in for a few turns. We plan to return to the Powwow tomorrow. 

 

Alec Keiper

 

At the Stonybrook stream doing a benthic invertebrate survey.