Day 2 of volunteer work at the Galapagos Tortoise Center consisted of four hours of bushwacking — clearing brush, grass, and small trees. The goal was partly to remove invasive (non-native) species, partly to clear trails for visitors, as well as for the turtles wandering around the land.

The critique I received about sharpening my machete was that I was sharpening it like I was playing a violin, so clearly there is some room for improvement there.

Ready for action!

The motley crew that made it happen: Suzy, Dylan, Sara, Basia, Arial.

Before:

After:

It was brutal work — we came home with blisters, scratches and welts from the most common tree on the property, the leaves of which are toxic. But oddly satisfying when we were done! We were feeling pretty important when visitors to the center would stop to photograph us working, and thank us for volunteering. And, I’m getting pretty good at working that machete…

Definitely a memorable way to spend a birthday!