Then I got to go on a field trip.
Military posts are interesting places- especially old ones. Lots of history tucked into the most obscure corners. And Aberdeen Proving Ground is an old one. Rusted railroad tracks, dilapidated barracks, relics of all sorts. At one point they fired missles and such with reckless abandon- and to this day WWII era munitions turn up on the shore of the bay and in the tributaries near post after every storm. Unexploded stuff. Kinda unnerving. And so much of the post is fenced off: "Keep Out- Unexploded Ordnance". This makes for great wildlife habitat. People can't get in and muck with the frogs and birdies. (They have a heck of a deer season, though).
I have a rotation coming up that is a little more hands on than what I've been doing and I drove out to visit the site which is located out in a remote corner of the post. Really out in the middle of nowhere (Maryland-style nowhere). And it is beautiful- absolutely stunning marshland- the grasses brown with winter, glowing in the late afternoon sun. I imagine there'd be lots of water fowl other times of the year. So very good for the soul. I saw a fox, a couple of deer, the bay, the horizon.... and more than one yellow "tank crossing" sign.
Heh heh heh.
I do love my job.