WorldWide Drilling Resource

Tales from the Field by Jeremy C. Wire Geoconsultants, Inc. Those Nasty Critters The arrival of spring brings with it plans of completing fieldwork which was delayed by bad weather, but it also recalls thoughts about encountering wildlife whose activities are awakened by the new warmth of the season. Without thinking, one might pry open a long-unused utility box at an abandoned water well site to find wasps inside, who then fly out angrily from their nest to the detriment of the unfortunate trespasser. In poking around a nearby wellhead, possibly partly concealed by a growth of new grass, one needs to be aware of that little noise, “sst . . . sst . . . sst” which signals a nearby rattlesnake is giving you a warning to leave there, or remain at your peril! One spring, I was out with a group inspecting a large tract of property. One of the features which attracted interest was a spring box surrounded by green vegetation on an otherwise barren hillside some distance away from the entrance. Part of the group, including our geologist, decided to hike up to the spring, while others of us remained behind to assess other aspects of a potential project. I had cautioned him to be on the lookout for rattlesnakes, as they may hang out around wet shady places, such as the spring area. Sure enough, shortly after the group arrived at the spring, I could see them quickly disperse, with my field companion jumping back at least several feet high, and I knew immediately what had happened. Upon returning, the group reported finding a rattlesnake stretched out along the base of the concrete spring box, and I think they all learned to be a little more careful where they stepped next time in this kind of environment! In another instance, we were injecting direct electrical current into the ground as part of a geophysical survey. Normally, this operation didn’t cause any disturbance to wildlife that we were aware of. However, in this case, the operator turned around to suddenly see an army of tarantulas advancing toward him! During certain times of the year in our region, these large spiders migrate, leaving holes in the ground and becoming very visible as they cross roads and other open spaces. Whether the flow of electricity underground stimulated them to come to the surface, or this occurrence was just a coincidence when it was time for them to migrate, we will never know. Much later, while we were conducting a similar survey, some ground wasps were bothering us. So the operator and I decided to trace them to the hole in the ground where they were coming from. As it soon turned out, I foolishly took a large rock and covered the hole so they would not bother us. About 20 minutes later, there were the wasps again, exiting from another hole about ten feet away! Having been disturbed this way, the wasps were angry and stung both of us, the operator more badly than I - and from time to time to this day he reminds me of this stupid mistake. However, this is sometimes part of “life in the field”. Jeremy michele@worldwidedrillingresource.com New & Used Bits, HDD Bits & Tools, Drag Bits & Wings, Bolt-On Drag Bits, Reverse Circulation Tools, Hole Openers, Claw Bits, Stabilizers, Subs, Custom Tooling & Welding, Hammer Bits, Drill Collars, Pipe Wipers, and Drill Pipe. Office: (661) 834-4348 Rod Henderson / Eran Henderson 661-201-6259 • 661-330-0790 sales@bitcobits.com www.bitcoinc.us EXB Drilling Fluids by: Colorado School of Mines Grouting and Ground Improvement May 13-16 ~ Golden, CO phone: 303-384-2690 www.csmspace.com Groundwater / Water Well by: Texas Ground Water Association Continuing Education May 4 ~ San Antonio, TX, sponsored by Preferred Pump & Equipment May 4 ~ Lubbock, TX, sponsored by GICON Pumps & Equipment May 18 ~ Houston, TX, sponsored by Preferred Pump & Equipment phone: 512-472-7437 www.tgwa.org Education Connection by: American Ground Water Trust and New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Drinking Water Source Protection Conference May 16 ~ Concord, NH phone: 603-228-5444 www.agwt.org Irrigation by: Rain Bird Academy Training May 20-24 ~ Salt Lake City, UT phone: 800-498-1942 www.rainbirdservices.com Pumps by: Franklin Electric Residential Basic May 14-15 ~ Wilburton, OK May 15 ~ Bolton, ON, CANADA phone: 800-348-2420 www.franklinwater.com/more/ training/franklintech-schedule/ 19 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® APRIL 2019