On the Lookout

On the Lookout

Forest fires can spread quickly and do a lot of damage. Keeping our forests safe are fire lookouts--men and women who spend their summers deep in the woods. They keep a sharp eye out for smoke, ready to alert firefighters at the first sign of danger. Steve Kalling (KAL-ling) has been a fire lookout since 1990. Every summer, he spends three months atop a tower in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness area. This huge forest covers parts of Montana and Idaho.

Interviewer: How did you become a lookout? Steve: I was hiking and met a wilderness ranger. We were talking about her job, which was to hike around and check trails and campsites. I thought that sounded like a great way to spend the summer. The Forest Service wasn't hiring any rangers, but they had a fire lookout quit that morning. I went into the ranger station and asked if I could be a lookout. It was that simple in those days.

Interviewer: What is your station like? Are there different kinds? Steve: My lookout is a wooden tower 50 feet (15 m) tall with a cabin on top. It's 14 by 14 feet (4 x 4 m) with a peaked roof and a deck around the outside of it. It has four walls of windows-in good light, I can see 60 to 80 miles (97-129 km) in some directions. There are other styles; some are cabins right on the high ground.

Interviewer: How do you travel to and from the station? Steve: It's an 8-mile (13 km) hike. At the beginning of the year, I'll get a helicopter ride to fly up with all of my supplies. Every month they drop off more stuff, and that's almost always with a helicopter. They bring food and things like paint or a new window if I've broken one.

Interviewer: What is a day at the station like? Steve: I wake up when it gets light, which is what happens when you have four walls of windows. First thing in the morning is a good time to take a look around. You might spot a small fire that you can watch for later in the day. After that first look around, I hike about half a mile (1 km) to get water from a spring. Then I make breakfast. The forest ranger will check in on the radio and read the weather. Wind, high temperatures, and low humidity are the things that worry firefighters the most because they can make fires worse.