Today, we welcome a new MSc student to the group, Jack Mitchell. He joins us from Perdue University by way of the Utah Conservation Corps. In the article below, he describes a formative experience in the gap between the end of undergraduate studies and the start of grad school here at York. The very best scientific academic experiences achieve something similar, evoking an awe of nature while surrounded by friends with good work to share.
In the collage above: sunset and moonrise at Zion National Park (top left), canyoneering in Zion (top right), snow day in the Tushar Mountains, (bottom left) my crew prepping for a 10-mile hike to the bottom of the Escalante River Valley (bottom right)
by Jack Mitchell
Hello PVL Blog! My name is Jack, and I have recently joined the PVL as a new MSc student. I am an international student from a nice little state called Indiana (shoutout Hoosiers! I’m still not sure why we’re called that, but it’s part of my title). I completed my undergrad at Purdue University, dual-majoring in Planetary Science and Geology/Geophysics.
For this blog post, I thought I would introduce myself by discussing my year between undergrad and now. I think it is awesome to hear other people’s stories for how they ended up where they are today, so I thought I would provide that for all you readers at home. So, sit back, relax, and let me recount the tale of Jack and his Epic, Awesome, Life-Changing Western Adventure (EALCWA for short).
In the early days, long before Jack’s inevitable arrival in the far land of Toronto... (I am having too much fun with blogging, I’ll dial it back a smidge :)). I graduated in the fall of 2025 and knew that I wanted to continue doing planetary science research. So, while I applied to graduate schools, I also pursued another dream of mine, working out west in the National Parks. I always thought it would be awesome to work outdoors and make a meaningful difference through conservation efforts while educating others in the process. This sparked my decision to work with the Utah Conservation Corps (UCC).
This was one of the best decisions I have ever made. Without exaggerating too much, it was life changing. The lifestyle was unique: living in a tent for months, working 10 days straight, 10-hours a day, out in the middle of nowhere with no reception, and being stuck with a crew of 4 other people to pass the time when you're not working. Speaking of no reception, it was a struggle to communicate with Dr. Moores about the PVL. When I was first added to the Slack group, I sent my first message while trying to fix a chainsaw in the middle of the Tushar Mountains. Luckily, I got days off where I could have a Zoom meeting in a library parking lot. Thank you again, Dr. Moores, for working with my unique schedule.
One of my favorite hitches was working in the backcountry of the Grand Staircase-Escalante River Valley. Ten days of nothing but the items I had in my 65-pound backpack (what a workout), my 4 friends, and a hatchet. Having to walk upstream for 10 miles, bushwhacking to shortcut meandering rivers, and running into a million spiderwebs was an experience I’ll never forget. What got us through was each other. We made sure to keep our spirits high in so many ways. One of my crewmates recited the entirety of “The Lego Movie” from memory, our team leader surprised us with a whole watermelon in his 80-pound pack, along with a cast iron pan for making cinnamon rolls (I will forever love him for this), and together we would sing random songs for hours (my favorite was Payphone by Maroon 5).
Image: the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time), Eric, chopping up a delicious watermelon after a long workday
After chopping up all the Russian Olive trees we could find in 10 days, we did the 10-mile hike back to our vehicles. My pack weighed a little less, which was great, but the return trip was almost entirely uphill. Our bodies and minds were fried in the last stretch of hiking. When we could finally see the vehicles in the distance, for some reason my best friend Will and I decided to start walking faster, which soon ended in a full-out sprint to the trucks. Even though my body could not walk another mile, I was so happy just being with my friends and found myself racing like a kid towards the end of our journey together.
There are so many more stories I could tell about my time with the UCC, but I don’t want to take up too much time on this blog (you can ask me about wag bags in person if you’d like, though it might trigger some unwanted flashbacks).
This whole experience was one of the hardest things I have ever done, but also the most rewarding. Looking back, I wouldn’t change a single second.
So what did I take from this experience? Three main things:
First, I got to make a real, physical impact. Not only did I get to take part in invasive species management and forest fire fuel reduction, but I also had the opportunity to teach others about the importance of conservation. Getting to explain our work and seeing how it positively affected local communities was the kind of outdoor, educational work I’d always hoped for.
Second, I made some of my best friends. If you had told me going in that I’d walk out with a group of great friends, that I’d cry saying goodbye to each of them, and that I’d eat close to a hundred peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, I might have believed the last one because it’s a cheap and easy meal that tastes so yummy. These friendships taught me that the people you work alongside, these human connections, are what make life so great.
Third, I was happy. I wasn’t sure what would come out of this job, but I took it anyway, and it turned out to hold some of the happiest moments of my life. That’s the whole lesson, really. Do something that excites you or makes you happy. If you end up doing something that makes you happier than you were, I believe you are doing something right.
Returning to present day in the tale of Jack’s EALCYA (Epic, Awesome, Life-Changing York Adventure), I am super excited to be a part of the PVL group for the foreseeable future. The same things that made the UCC great (good people and a group that supports each other) are what have drawn me to this lab. To the members of the PVL reading this, thank you for being so welcoming and supportive. You’re a big part of why I’m happy where I am right now.
That’s the end of my story for now. I hope you enjoyed it, and I’m excited to see where this new journey with the PVL takes me.
Photo: my trusty backpack taking in one of the most beautiful views in the world.
