05/23/2024
The Forest Service Beavers are out there as the primary air assets for SAR efforts right now.
Squadmember and minimalist woods master "North Pete" (callsign 7357) serves as a human mooring line, protecting and steadying the ship for Beaver pilot Jeremy to dismount. 24-hour operation continues, and we have an enormous package planned for tomorrow. No plan survives first contact with the real world, so we'll wait on the details and report in a future Photo O' the Day. Suffice it to say, we are in this for the long haul.
Friends, there's a holiday coming up, and many of you will be hitting the woods and the water to recreate. If you're heading out, there are three things we'd like you to tattoo on your brains. First, wear your life jacket. Don't sit on it, strap it to the thwart, or lay it on the bottom...wear it. Second, save the alcohol for the fire ring back at camp. Alcohol is present in more than half the watercraft accidents, and 80 percent of the fatalities. We love an amber-colored beverage as much as the next guy, but don't imbibe in the boat...save it for the war stories at the end of the day. Finally, don't suffer from "Get-there-itis." If you find yourself wind- or wave-blown, lay up on shore, build a fire, and wait for the winds to die down. Expedition-grade hikers and paddlers certainly want to stick to their itinerary timeline, but sometimes Mother Nature has other ideas. To try to force the issue invites disaster. Lay up and chill out.
Friends, thanks for tagging along while we spin a yarn, and be safe out there, eh? (Dani "Strawbandit" Nagler photo)
