Today officially begins the 2026 Beyond Borders Humanitarian Forensic Science Team trip! We started bright and early, meeting at the airport at 5:30 am to check our multitude of luggage. Getting through TSA was mostly a breeze (with the exception of the 20 minute delay where they thought I was smuggling something in my shoes) and we got to the gate with just enough time to get a quick breakfast. We snapped a picture to kick off our day, and then boarding began.
All morning it felt like I was forgetting something, but I had checked and double checked, so I thought I was in the clear. Lo and behold, while in the line to board our first flight I was rooting through my purse and my earbuds were nowhere to be found. In my head, I can see exactly where I left them on the couch. But if that is the only thing that I forgot on this trip, then I count it as a win.
Our first flight was scheduled to depart at 7:25 am, but we did not end up taking off for Dallas for another hour due to deicing. Despite landing later than expected, we were right on time for our second flight to San Antonio. After being in a plane/at an airport for about eight hours, the hunger was catching up to us. So after securing the rental van, we continued the tradition of going to Torchy’s Tacos for lunch.
The drive to Falfurrias from San Antonio is about three hours, so we booted up our new and improved Beyond Borders 2026 Spotify playlist and started our drive. The excitement of beginning the last leg of our travel day was definitely present as we made our way out of the city. The Spotify was shuffling upbeat tunes and chatter was flowing as we appreciated the warm and sunny weather. As our views switched from apartments, suburbs, and restaurants to cactuses, motts, and dense brush, the fatigue of traveling all day began to weigh on the group. A couple of small naps later and we had made it to Falfurrias.
Once settling into our rooms, the next step was to prepare for the first day of field work. Before heading to HEB to get supplies, we were able to meet Dr. Reed McKinney, a University of Indianapolis alum who will be joining us this trip. We are excited to learn about his expertise and learn more in the field alongside him. After our HEB run, we met up with Deputy Don White and Socks of Remote Wildlands Search and Recovery at Whataburger for dinner.
We ended our travel day with a group meeting where we discussed and assigned our roles for the field tomorrow. The camera and walkie talkies were dispersed and we took stock of our compasses, bandanas, snake gators and whistles . While we are not sure of exactly what our schedule holds, we will go into our first field day prepared and ready to provide our forensic expertise.