[Geysers] OFVC Logbook -- Please Read

[Lynn Stephens]

I'm not a representative of NPS, since I am no longer a volunteer for Yellowstone, but since my name has been associated with the logbook for many years, I feel I do need to respond to Scott's post.
 
Sometime in the early to mid-1990s NPS rangers decided to limit the number of people authorized to enter data into the logbook.  I objected at the time because I was afraid it would severely limit the amount of data submitted, which has been the case.  In any event, the list has been adjusted over the years, adding people who turned data in to so it could be entered into the logbook, and deleting people who no longer entered data into the logbook.  In the past, people not on the list could turn the information in at the Visitor Center desk and it would be placed in my mailbox.   Since my volunteer agreements for Yellowstone were not renewed by the Park Service this year, so that is no longer an option.  
 
Although it was never one of my "duties" in any of my Yellowstone volunteer agreements, as one of the "privileged few" whose name was included on the list and because I am a "data junkie," I tried to gather data from other gazers and from posts on the listserv so the data could be entered into the logbook.  I entered data for all geysers, with very few exceptions.  It was my belief that even a single eruption provided information for future researchers indicating the geyser was active, even if there was not enough data to compute a series of intervals.
 
However, this summer I am not in the Park, so am not able to enter data into the logbook.  For a variety of reasons I will probably not be spending much time in Yellowstone in future years, so will not have the capability to enter data in the future either.
 
Sometime in July Mary Beth was allowed to copy the logbook for October 13, 2009 through May 8, 2010.  I have not been home to Cheney since mid-July and will not be able to get there until about August 20 to collect my mail.  Once I collect the copies, I will update the electronic version of the OFVC logbooks through May 8, 2010.
 
Lynn Stephens
 
 


From: TSBryan at aol.com
Date: Fri, 6 Aug 2010 20:02:46 -0400
Subject: Re: [Geysers] OFVC Logbook -- Please Read
To: geysers at lists.wallawalla.edu



Ken Reeves makes a very important point. Unless things have changed (and my sense is that they decidedly have changed...for the worse) only a few certain persons were authorized to enter data into the logbook. Others had to pass their information on to those privileged few. For reason of current NPS policy, I believe that those few are now probably tending to not be very dutiful about the task.
 
I believe this is a matter that really needs (read: requires) and answer from the NPS. And something tells me that that answer will not be forthcoming.
 
Scott Bryan
 

In a message dated 8/6/2010 4:45:16 P.M. US Mountain Standard Time, kreeves5 at cox.net writes:
Can you please provide what should or should not be turned in, how we 
get it into the logbook, which geysers should we turn in, etc. 
especially for those of us who are fairly new or don't get up there very 
frequently.

A few years ago, I turned in my observations of some of the lesser 
geysers, I believe it was Solitaire Geyser, but was told by the ranger 
at the visitor center, that "we do not record data for that geyser", and 
it kind of left me with a bad taste on spending the time to gather the data.
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