Mythical "Rangers"

[ppine]

People talk a lot about their outdoor experiences on this forum and many others, and there is inevitably mention of "the rangers." I have seen NPS rangers collect fees at the gate, and give talks around a campfire in the old days when there were still naturalists, and I have seen "pay dudes" the campground hosts at some campgrounds. There are rangers come to think of it at the visitor centers of National Parks. But I have rarely seen a "ranger" in the field in a lifetime of living outdoors. Maybe it is left over from Ranger Smith on "Yogi Bear." Maybe some state parks have rangers. I am confused and need your help in understanding this phenomenon. Two weeks ago when we were chased out of the Sierra NF by a fire, several people said things like, "the rangers will come and tell us if we are in danger." I think not.

[Grandpa]

Yellowstone was swarming with back country park rangers Ppine. A few years ago, we were in the White Clouds and a fire broke out below us. A helecopter landed and the forest ranger told us we had two hours to get out. I met a forest ranger in the Uintas last fall, about 15 miles from a trailhead. He didn't say what his business was and didn't ask me what mine was but we talked a few minutes. Yep, they are running around back there.

[ponderosa]

The national parks have naturalists. My little girls love the Junior Ranger programs in the national parks, and have had some very good experiences with the naturalist rangers who do those programs. I've run into them here and there in the backcountry...mostly in national parks, but occassionally in wilderness areas or regular old forest lands. I sometimes see the BLM law enforcement guy in the desert north of my parents place in E. Idaho. I used to see them in the Mink Creek area (Caribou NF, I think) near Pocatello ID quite often when I was a student there. When I was in high school (OK, 20 years ago), my best friend's dad was a law enforcement ranger on the Targhee. I don't see a ranger on most trips, and wouldn't plan on there being one around for any sort of emergency, but I'm not surprised when I do run into one. No doubt there are fewer rangers in the field than there used to be, but they're around.

My grandpa was the head ranger on the Targhee NF back when the rangers were always in the field and seldom in the office, but that was a number of years ago. He'd routinely be on backcountry patrol for days at a time.

[shaun]

I have met a few park rangers on my travels, they are around, lurking behind the trees. No, seriously, I haven't met many park rangers in 20 years of camping in the wild. I like it that way, solitude is one of the reasons I enjoy camping, i don't want to meet people!

[Pathfinder1]

Hi...


Here in NY we have Forest Rangers. One of their primary functions was to man the fire towers throughout the State. These towers have been long since abandoned.

These towers still exist, and many of them are open to the public. The purpose of these fire towers was to elevate the on-duty rangers to better enable them to spot and pinpoint smoke from a forest fire start-up, and to report those locations to Ranger fire fighting teams.

They also functioned as forest fire fighters...and they still do...although their ranks have been greatly reduced as the years passed.

Have never run into any when afield other than when we called them for assistance, but they are occasionally seen on the highways driving their 4X4 fire fighting trucks.

[wvbreamfisherman]

I got a little hassle from a "ranger" in a National Forest in Virginia , years ago. He threatend to cite me for something I'm pretty sure wasn't illegal, but I just ate a little humble pie and got off with a lecture.

I've seen a few Conservation Officers out in the woods, and a few NFS guys here and there, but they're really spread pretty thin. Never done much in National Parks, but I'd be surprised if they were much thicker on the ground, except in high-use areas like Yosemite and Yellowstone.

[IndianaHiker]

Just saw a back county ranger on my recent trip to the Great Smokey Mountains. Was on the way to charlie's Bunion stopped at one of the shelters on the AT to take a break and read the Trail Journal. Must say meeting her was very nice. Very nice, polite, and knowledgeable of the area. As a back county ranger she spends her time hiking around and assisting others as needs and checking permits. Was very envious of her job basically getting paid to backpack. However the only down side would be the law enforcement peace as all back county rangers are also federal law enforcement agents. She was a seasonal ranger as she started later in life as a career change. After September she was moving on to a park out west so that she could work all year. Very nice chatting with her and she was easy on the eyes as well.

[Judy Ann]

Traveling solo most of the time probably causes me to notice anyone including Rangers out and about and to make a point of striking up a brief conversation. When camping in State Parks I usually drop off a treat at the office for all to share and to say "Thank you" for keeping an eye out for me. When picking up a backcountry permit I'll ask a couple of questions about a destination or two just in case I don't return as planned.

[ejdixon]

In all my years of camping, I only came across a ranger once. And it wasn't a really pleasant encounter. That was back in the day when me and my friends went camping back in college and had a wee little bit too much to drink.

[wvbreamfisherman]

Heck, in all the years I've been hunting and fishing (over 45- damn I'm getting old!), I've only had my license checked once. I've actually seen more conservation officers doing boat patrols (playing Coast Guard IMHO), than I have out in the woods, by a factor of at least 5:1.