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Boundary Waters Quetico Forum Listening Point - General Discussion I retired 55 minutes ago |
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09/22/2017 08:23PM (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
Well technically I retire tomorrow nite at 24:00, but I just finished my last day as a wildland firefighter in Alaska.
I'm not sure how to process it after 28 years fighting fires in a stressful occupation that I mostly loved.
I worked in every mountain range in the L-48 and have fought fires in 20 ish states. 7 years were spent stationed out west, 15 plus in Mn, 3 in Alaska with a Florida stint for a year In Everglades NP.
I think the Seirra Nevada mtns were the prettiest, but I think the Kenai mtn range in Alaska where I worked today top the charts, if you take in beauty, plant, animal and ecosystem diversity.
I will volunteer here until the end of October (the reason was a budget deal).
Then retire back in northern Mn, where my wife lives. (she's flying up tomorrow and we are vacationing for 2 weeks).
I will not just quit working, I am a driven young 54 year old, and I have many talents. Odd jobs and continuing to work the spring fire season in Minnesota are in my future.
I did a lot of paddling while here in Alaska, and will go a few more times, but in my opinion there is no better paddling then the BW. I like the lack of crowds in Alaska, but miss the bedrock, bigger lakes and shorter portages of Mn.
I'm hoping my folding canoe will give me new areas to paddle in Canada shortly.
Happy Trails to Me ;-)
I'm not sure how to process it after 28 years fighting fires in a stressful occupation that I mostly loved.
I worked in every mountain range in the L-48 and have fought fires in 20 ish states. 7 years were spent stationed out west, 15 plus in Mn, 3 in Alaska with a Florida stint for a year In Everglades NP.
I think the Seirra Nevada mtns were the prettiest, but I think the Kenai mtn range in Alaska where I worked today top the charts, if you take in beauty, plant, animal and ecosystem diversity.
I will volunteer here until the end of October (the reason was a budget deal).
Then retire back in northern Mn, where my wife lives. (she's flying up tomorrow and we are vacationing for 2 weeks).
I will not just quit working, I am a driven young 54 year old, and I have many talents. Odd jobs and continuing to work the spring fire season in Minnesota are in my future.
I did a lot of paddling while here in Alaska, and will go a few more times, but in my opinion there is no better paddling then the BW. I like the lack of crowds in Alaska, but miss the bedrock, bigger lakes and shorter portages of Mn.
I'm hoping my folding canoe will give me new areas to paddle in Canada shortly.
Happy Trails to Me ;-)
May the rivers be crooked and winding, and your portages lonesome, leading to the most amazing view.
09/22/2017 09:35PM
Awesome,now it will take a while to sink in. I found out no matter what kind of job you had or how much you loved your job, your stress level will drop to some extent.
Now get out and enjoy.
I also said when I retire one of my new jobs was to stay active and fit by having a regular exercise regime.
Now get out and enjoy.
I also said when I retire one of my new jobs was to stay active and fit by having a regular exercise regime.
09/22/2017 09:40PM
I had many MN DNR Forestry friends for a few years after retirement also sign up for fire season for Minnesota or Montana for like you they had all that expertise and knowledge. They just didn't do the mountain climbing routine fighting fires. That is a young man or women's game in my opinion. They have to be super fit.
You are also lucky to be able to retire at a young age. Enjoy.
You are also lucky to be able to retire at a young age. Enjoy.
09/22/2017 10:05PM
Deep breath, and thanks from all for everything you have done! One of my favorite songs has this line in it: "Nothing left to do but smile, smile, smile!" Oversimplified, of course, but you deserve to kick back and enjoy the sunsets.
"The future ain't what it used to be" Yogi Berra
09/23/2017 05:59AM
Congrats........A guy my age who is retired. Will your wife let you take long canoe trips? Do you fish hard? What is your opinion about carrying other peoples stuff across portages?
Sort of sounds like a job application ;)
Sort of sounds like a job application ;)
Lets Go!
09/23/2017 10:14AM
Hey Linden, well done!! I always like to ask, after 28 years, what were you thinking on your "last day at work"? What was the last call you went on? That is the one you will remember. I won't likely forget mine!
Another option you might consider is teaching. If you have a college or a high school that has a fire program they are always looking for instructors. I have been retired for 17 years and have been a wildland instructor for 16 of those years. It really is fun working with the kids and watching them start their careers.
Again, thank you for the service you provided!!
Larry
Another option you might consider is teaching. If you have a college or a high school that has a fire program they are always looking for instructors. I have been retired for 17 years and have been a wildland instructor for 16 of those years. It really is fun working with the kids and watching them start their careers.
Again, thank you for the service you provided!!
Larry
09/23/2017 10:51AM
Congrats!
I met a guy who makes a living in the "don't let a wildfire destroy your home/business" industry. I'll betcha there is some interesting consultant work out there for someone with your experience. Good luck!
I met a guy who makes a living in the "don't let a wildfire destroy your home/business" industry. I'll betcha there is some interesting consultant work out there for someone with your experience. Good luck!
"Life is not a beauty contest. It is a fishing contest." --me
09/23/2017 11:10AM
Did you get a silver plated Pulaski mounted to a plaque as a parting gift? My cousin, a retired Pike National Forest guy did. He is very proud of his work, checks fire incidents on the web often and wears wrist bands to remember those who lost their lives in fire.
If you didn't get a silver plated one I think you can just use spray paint on the tool for the same effect.
If you didn't get a silver plated one I think you can just use spray paint on the tool for the same effect.
09/23/2017 11:11AM
Canoeing in Canada...
Check out Two Jack Lake near Banff, Lake Louise of course. Course pretty areas are ho hum for you anyway...
very pretty puddles...
congrats.... At 67 I was helping get a stupid cow out of the gutter and seriously asking myself 'why'.... and the farmer would like to quit but his wife won't let him.... Anyway finally got her up and trying to get her in a stanchion to check for a twisted stomach....well she runs down the aisle and slips by the closed door to the yard and jams herself again.... so we have to open the door so she would have room to get up....so she gets up, runs out the door, under the electric fence gate to the rest of the herd..and gone.
Can't charge enough.....
dr bob
Check out Two Jack Lake near Banff, Lake Louise of course. Course pretty areas are ho hum for you anyway...
very pretty puddles...
congrats.... At 67 I was helping get a stupid cow out of the gutter and seriously asking myself 'why'.... and the farmer would like to quit but his wife won't let him.... Anyway finally got her up and trying to get her in a stanchion to check for a twisted stomach....well she runs down the aisle and slips by the closed door to the yard and jams herself again.... so we have to open the door so she would have room to get up....so she gets up, runs out the door, under the electric fence gate to the rest of the herd..and gone.
Can't charge enough.....
dr bob
09/23/2017 12:47PM
Congratulations. I am right there behind you. After 25 years in the fire service, I only have 64 duty days left. That will put me at 54 years old and done on May 1. Happy paddling.
"Half the things you read on the internet are false"-Abraham Lincoln
09/23/2017 08:25PM
LT3 -
process this... you are alive and as far as I know, have had no major disabling injuries.
That ain't nothing to sneeze at for a guy who did what you did for as long as you did it!
Go have fun!!
process this... you are alive and as far as I know, have had no major disabling injuries.
That ain't nothing to sneeze at for a guy who did what you did for as long as you did it!
Go have fun!!
LNT - The road to success is always under construction. http://hikingillinois.blogspot.com/
09/23/2017 08:46PM
quote jcavenagh: "LT3 -
process this... you are alive and as far as I know, have had no major disabling injuries.
That ain't nothing to sneeze at for a guy who did what you did for as long as you did it!
Go have fun!!"
Thanks, I fought over 600 wildfires, did Tornado recovery, Floods and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Yes I'm in good health and was fortunate to not need a stich during my career, only got a few minor burns, spent some time in an ambulance after heating up my lungs from breathing hot gases trying to outrun a fire. (I lost)
I guess there was one night spent in the ER and hospital in Oregon in a different incident.
Back in the old days we/Government wide took alot more chances than we do today.
No one under my direct supervision had anything more than a minor injury in all that time, I consider that my greatest success.
MHS67,
I found myself lagging around the office on my last day when it was time to go.
Staring at the Sheild on my shoulder knowing that I never would wear it again.
One funny memory was beating the Smoke Jumpers to their fires, and watching them parachute in. (Lawn Darts) ;-)
I'll never forget fighting four fires in one day on my birthday.
The day was 04/04/2004, and I did 4 fires that day.
Thanks everyone for your well wishes.
May the rivers be crooked and winding, and your portages lonesome, leading to the most amazing view.
09/24/2017 11:31AM
Congratulations! I always enjoy your stories and look forward to hearing about many more paddling adventures. Enjoy the 2 weeks with wife, and enjoy the real Fall up there. It's still mid-July back in MN.
Wherever there is a channel for water, there is a road for the canoe. -Thoreau
09/24/2017 10:42PM
Congratulations LT3! Thank you for your service to the wilderness and best of luck in your future. Have a great vacation with Mrs. LT3. :)
"Keep close to Nature's heart, yourself; and break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean." ~ John Muir
09/25/2017 08:18AM
quote LindenTree3: "I found myself lagging around the office on my last day when it was time to go. Staring at the Sheild on my shoulder knowing that I never would wear it again.
"
Congrats (not sure if that is the right thing to say) Lindy! Sounds like it's both a refreshing and regretting concept all at the same time. You just closed one chapter and now you have more time to write the future ones. Maybe see you up Duluth way this winter.
09/26/2017 07:46AM
54 is so young to be retired. I'm glad for ya--but with congrats expressed--what the heck are ya going to do now? Hang around AK awhile while it soaks in? Moving out that cabin soon? Head home to MN & wifey ASAP? Meanwhile, don't let any AK bear encounters surprise ya on the trails. You've travailed too long! ;-)
“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Sir Isaac Newton
09/27/2017 09:52PM
quote mjmkjun: "54 is so young to be retired. I'm glad for ya--but with congrats expressed--what the heck are ya going to do now? Hang around AK awhile while it soaks in? Moving out that cabin soon? Head home to MN & wifey ASAP? Meanwhile, don't let any AK bear encounters surprise ya on the trails. You've travailed too long! ;-)
"
I'm vacationing until Oct 8, then I will volunteer for the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge until Oct 23 so I can stay in the Guard Station then head to Minnesota.
I volunteered because I felt bad for leaving so suddenly, but I had to retire before Oct 1st because there was a chance I could loose my fire fighter retirement because of a provision in the 2018 budget deal.
I'll do odd jobs to keep myself busy.
May the rivers be crooked and winding, and your portages lonesome, leading to the most amazing view.
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