My Greatest Wilderness adventure!

Wow! I can only imagine an experience like that.
If you don't mind me asking, how did you fall into such a career?
 
Wow. A crosscut saw still in use. I guess that somewhere, somebody may still be making these then. Interesting. Thanks for the interesting posts.... Coote.
 
Thanks for the detailed reply about the camp craft etc. You're stirring up quite a bit of envy in this thread:D That does suck about the snake, kind of a waste to kill it then if it had to go to waste. At least no one got bit though. I'm also wondering how you came to land this job?? Was it volunteer or did you get paid a bit? And I know this is kinda weird to ask but it keeps popping in my head-how did you maintain your home(rent/bills) being away for so long? You don't have to answer that if you don't want to. Thanks again for the info.
 
I'm so jealous and happy for you at the same time. Sounds like you gad the summer of your life. Thanks for posting.

Do you any pics of your camp?
 
What kind of clothing did you use? Did you have a way to wash what you had in some way?
 
Selway/Bitterroot is a long drive from here so I don't get to spend much time there but it's renowned by the outdoor community. Great river to raft/kayak, great river to fish, awesome spot for backpacking... you chose an ideal spot for the experience of a lifetime.
 
Awesome post brother! What a wonderful experience. Those photos are conjuring up some warm memories of my own. Thank you for sharing them.
 
Great pics but i realy like the last one with all you guys sitting on the clif over looking the mountains. That must have been a great moment for all of you. Thanks for posting pics and the adventure .. Some more pics please.
 
Thanks so much for sharing this, and for all your hard work. It is so easy to take hiking rails for granted, forgetting all the HARD work that goes into creating and maintaining them. I'm glad you also had time to explore and enjoy yourselves. What a great adventure!
 
Thank you everybody, I thought if anybody could appreciate the experience it would be you folks. Most people just don't understand why I wanted to do it.

I would say that I got started down this road back when I was in Boy Scouts and got my Eagle Scout. Thats where I really fell in love with the outdoors. But in college I studied Forest Resource Management, and loved it. I love everything about forestry it is such and interesting field. But after school I wanted to try out a conservation corps trail crew before I started down my career. Well I joined up with the Montana Conservation Corps. They are a non profit Americorps organization that does trail work all around Montana, Wyoming and Idaho. During my season as a member I heard about this Wilderness Immersion opportunity and I decided that I was coming back to be a Leader for it. So thats kinda how I fell into this job. As I was an Americorps leader I didn't get paid because I was technically a Volunteer, we did get a weekly living stipend, not much but enough to pay the rent and buy food. The real pay is in the experiences you get. As somebody asked before I left I made sure to pay off all my debts and then I set up auto bill pay for the ones I couldn't pay off. It worked out really well. I also did not have an apartment to pay for since I was heading out into the woods I got one that my lease ended the week before I left.

As far as what clothes I wore I had a uniform I was forced to wear, Ben Davis Pants and a uniform T Shirt. The pants were terrible. The were nice because they dried quick but the had terrible pockets and I didn't like the way they fit. for my most worn clothes I had a pair of REI Sahara convertable pants. They worked GREAT, so comfortable and useful. I will try and post up a detailed gear list sometime later this week. Or maybe I will spread it out and talk about all of the gear I had and what I liked and disliked about all of it. As far as cleaning it, we did our wash up away from the creek with good ole Dr. Bronners and a bucket, the old school way.
 
Thanks for sharing Wanderlust...I think most of us here really appreciate the opportunity that most wouldn't understand. If they did shorter trips, hell, I'd take 30-45 days leave and take that as a vacation! I'm sure the work was challenging, but 9 on and 5 days off isn't too bad (I'm only getting about a half day a week right now and that's with 14-18 hour days here in Afghanistan).

Definitely discuss your gear...what worked, what didn't and what you would have liked. Glad to see you get some fly fishing in...that's my soul refreshment when I get the opportunities.

Congrats on taking the leap and make the most of the adventure...it's something you'll remember for the rest of your life...and now the mountain-man bug has bitten you:D

ROCK6
 
What a way to say Hi again! Great story, and experience. I did an extended trip in the arctic during spring thaw/summer that changed a lot for me.

I would like to know more (eventually) about the boot selection that you guys made, and how well they held up.

I've stolen a couple (ya, only a couple- right!!!) of your pics to put on my scenic folder on my computer, they were great!
 
Awesome stuff buddy, love the pics, what an adventure !!!

I will try and post up a detailed gear list sometime later this week. Or maybe I will spread it out and talk about all of the gear I had and what I liked and disliked about all of it.
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Maybe you could start a thread in the outdoor gear forum about your equipment !:thumbup:
 
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