Submitted by Mikell Schoonover (Minnesota North-Vermilion)
If you had asked me one year ago where I thought I would be this summer, I doubt I would have said slogging up a streambed in knee-deep mud, searching for springs. It was an experience I’ll never forget. We spent three weeks in the field at various lodgings with various degrees of comfort, a personal low was the 10 days in a barn. However, the barn came with seven curious kittens and starry night skies. Days went long but it made the food taste even better and the beds cozier. I feel a huge accomplishment with finishing this internship, having spent so long thinking and preparing for this experience. My partner and I surveyed the entire Whitewater State Park in two days and our group completed over 100 springs, a huge accomplishment in three weeks. I had a ton of fun, shared so many laughs and our group was a community of friends by the end. With one hour left of the internship, I can confidently say, I’ll miss my fellow interns and the fieldwork. Maybe even the barn. No, I wouldn’t go that far.
I had the opportunity to name several springs such as Weeping Willow Spring and Sami Spring. I greatly respect the DNR employees we met and the landowners who worked with us. They were patient and entertaining as we took our measurements. During this internship, I learned so much about geology, salt dilutions, karst topography, and algific talus slopes. I’ve been on the fence about what field I want to study geology in and this internship has made it clear as a bluffside spring. Hydrogeology has my heart. Even though parsnip burns, banged-up knees, and freckles galore. Trekking through the blufflands was no easy task, but I always felt accomplished at the end of the day and the university vans never looked so good. We had the opportunity to take flow measurements in Niagara Cave, a tourist attraction around 200 ft below ground. My group descended into the mud pit to work at the underground stream. Then the next week my group waded along the Upper Iowa River and took measurements at the spring where the underground stream came out. A full circle, just how water works! My personal research question highlighted some correlations between the spring aspect and stream orientation, revealing how foundational the springs are for the larger watershed of MN. The spring water we walked through last week will flow down the tributaries to the Mississippi where it will join with the water from Glacier, Colorado, and blend to join the ocean at the Gulf and work its way to Belize. It’s all connected.
Throughout this experience, I’ve gained a new appreciation for springs, how they work, and the spectacular geology of SE Minnesota. I wouldn’t exchange this experience for the world. Thank you KECK and Chloé Fandel!
