Don: Work ethic is a good theme for the new year.
Tim On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 12:29 PM, DON BERTOLETTE <[email protected]>wrote: > Ed/Michelle- > Have you read Norman MacLean's "A River Runs Through It" anthology? One of > the vignettes that accompanies "River" details MacLean's life during a > season working for the newly formed USFS, manning/supporting fire lookouts > some 30 miles by trail from nearest habitation, and the work ethic that was > in place at that time...a lot to be re-learned! > -Don > > > Date: Sun, 3 Jan 2010 22:30:07 -0500 > > > Subject: Re: [ENTS] Recent Obituary > > From: [email protected] > > To: [email protected] > > > > > Thanks for posting this, Ed; > > > > Having worked in the wilds of Idaho myself, and not too far from the Nez > > Perce NF at that, I enjoyed the story, even if it is an obituary. > > > > It brings back memories of less dangerous forest fires... > > > > One morning, hiking down from an overnight camperoo on "The Nub", my > > hiking friend and I discovered a lightning struck forest fire about > > halfway down the mountain we were hiking down... we could see it way off > > in the distance and, as we rushed down what would've normally been about > > 4.5 hours of hiking in about 2.5 hours, killing our knees as we went but > > then again we were only in our twenties... anyway, we were certainly > > hoping the fire wouldn't grow too big for comfort before we could get > > below it and back to the ranger station! As it turned out, the firetower > > gal had seen it and the station decided to let it go out, which it did, > so > > I guess one could say I could've walked down that mountain slower! Come > > to think of it, that was the same camperoo when an elk almost stepped on > > the tent, probably trying to hide from the sudden lightning storm which > > had cropped up way too late in the day for hiking back down (and which > > caused the forest fire, of course). I had to shoo the elk away; it > > probably thought it was pretty weird for a human to suddenly pop out of > > what may have looked like a solid rock in the darkened distance??? > > Perhaps it just wanted to visit but I couldn't risk falling asleep until > I > > felt it was not going to step on me! > > > > Michele > > > > > > > > > I saw this in the latest issue of Time magazine: > > > > > > > > > > > > Earl Cooley; smoke jumper helped pioneer risky firefighting technique > > > > > > > > > > > > WASHINGTON - Earl Cooley, 98, who was one of the first two US Forest > > > Service smoke jumpers to parachute into a forest fire and later was a > > > spotter on the Mann Gulch fire that killed 13 firefighters, died Nov. 9 > > > at his home in Missoula, Mont., of pneumonia. > > > > > > As a 23-year-old outdoorsman who had built logging roads, lookout > > > towers, and a home for his mother, Mr. Cooley was as well-prepared as > > > anyone, which is to say hardly prepared at all, for the task of jumping > > > from a propeller-driven plane into a lightning-triggered fire in > Idaho's > > > Nez Perce forest July 12, 1940. The first man out the plane's door was > > > Rufus Robinson, followed closely by Mr. Cooley. > > > > > > The wind was blowing so hard that afternoon that Cooley's load lines > > > twisted up behind his neck. As he bent to look at the emergency chute, > > > the lines unwound. He was nearly in a freefall, and as he drew closer > to > > > Earth, he clipped the limbs off a big spruce tree. He landed without > > > injury, as did Robinson, and the pair squelched the fire by 10 a.m. the > > > next day, then hiked 28 miles to the nearest ranger station. > > > > > > That was the start of the Forest Service's storied corps of smoke > > > jumpers who even today jump in hazardous, remote areas to quickly > > > control fires that ground-based crews cannot reach. The idea of smoke > > > jumping had first been proposed in 1934 and was tried in Russia in that > > > decade, but the act of dropping men into a wildfire with little more > > > than shovels and pickaxes was considered something between experimental > > > and insane. > > > > > > On the flight in the 1940 Nez Perce fire, the man whose job was to > shove > > > supplies out after the smoke jumpers almost fell to his death. Merle > > > Lundrigan's legs got tangled in ropes, and he was pulled out the > plane's > > > door, barely hanging on to the doorstep. The pilot immediately banked, > > > which tossed Lundrigan back aboard. From then on, cargo kickers had to > > > wear parachutes. > > > > > > "We didn't know what we were doing,'' Mr. Cooley told the Associated > > > Press in 2000. > > > > > > His own training was rudimentary; the trainer had hung a parachute in a > > > tree to point out the harness, shroud lines, and release handles, then > > > said: "Tomorrow, we jump.'' Still, Mr. Cooley said, the only bad part > of > > > smoke jumping was the walk home. > > > > > > Mr. Cooley went on to make 48 more jumps. He was aboard the C-47 plane > > > in 1949 from which a dozen smoke jumpers leaped into the Mann Gulch > fire > > > near Helena, Mont. > > > > > > Mr. Cooley was the spotter, the man who found the landing site and > > > tapped each jumper on the left calf to alert him it was time to go. The > > > firefighters landed safely, the additional equipment fell to the > ground, > > > so Mr. Cooley and the plane went back to base. But the fire "blew up'' > > > and overran the men in what became the Forest Service's biggest tragedy > > > until the 1994 South Canyon Fire in Colorado. > > > > > > "Earl lived a very long time, and he was acutely aware of his place in > > > the history of smoke jumping,'' said John Maclean, author of three > books > > > on wildland fires, including one on the South Canyon Fire, and the son > > > of Norman Maclean, who wrote on the Mann Gulch incident. > > > > > > John MacLean called Mr. Cooley's book about the early days of the > Forest > > > Service, "Trimotor and Trail: Pioneer Smokejumpers'' (1984), "the most > > > authoritative book from the inside about that period.'' > > > > > > Mr. Cooley retired from the Forest Service in 1975. He had been a > > > district ranger and superintendent of the smoke jumper base in > Missoula, > > > as well as regional equipment specialist. > > > > > > Ed Nizalowski > > > > > > Newark Valley, NY > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > > > Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org > > > Send email to [email protected] > > > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en > > > To unsubscribe send email to > > > [email protected]<entstrees%[email protected]> > > > > > > > > > -- > > Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org > > Send email to [email protected] > > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en > > To unsubscribe send email to > > [email protected]<entstrees%[email protected]> > > ------------------------------ > Your E-mail and More On-the-Go. Get Windows Live Hotmail Free. Sign up > now. <http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/171222985/direct/01/> > > -- > Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org > Send email to [email protected] > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en > To unsubscribe send email to > [email protected]<entstrees%[email protected]> > -- Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org Send email to [email protected] Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en To unsubscribe send email to [email protected]
