Posted by baker on April 6, 2009, 8:31 pm, in reply to "A few more questions"
Hey Shannon,
You've actually hit on a couple questions that aren't so simple to answer due to the number of variables involved. Still, I don't want to duck reasonable questions, so here's my best shot at reasonable answers:
1) If you like cool weather I might choose September - December in Arizona. January - March can be more aptly described as cold, depending on where our projects are that particular year. In CA you don't deal with the heat issue to the same level so it's not quite so important when you come. In the summers we try to work in the Sierra Mts or along the coast where it's cooler, although there still can be some forays into the hotter inland climates.
2) In general there are more projects in Arizona that involve trail work and building fences, whereas more of our work in California involves removing non-native species (weeds), planting, erosion control and fire prevention. That's not to say that we don't do trail projects, just not as high a percentage to this point in CA. Obviously volunteers have strong opinions on where the projects are "better" or generally more exciting, but I won't engage in that debate. It surely depends on the season and the needs of our project partners in any given week. We just ask that people come with an open mind and without a foregone conclusion that one project or location is better or worse than another. Even the most seemingly exciting project can be dull at times and virtually every task is repetitive so whether or not you enjoy a project just boils down to your outlook and mentality, not to some inherent weakness or strength of the project itself. Sorry for the philosophical answer which no doubt confused more than it helped.
-chris
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