As I started my second semester of my junior year at Boise State University, the only thing on my mind was the fact that our first week of classes was canceled due to snow, and it was the perfect time to head up to Bogus Basin to ski. At this point, I had not put any thought into where I would be or what I would be doing in the summer. A few weeks later I received an email about job and internship opportunities for the summer of 2024, and one announcement caught my eye that read “Backcountry Ranger- The Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness”. The internship seemed like the perfect opportunity for me to spend my time in the wilderness while also applying what I had learned in school.
I grew up in Athol, Idaho and have been camping, hiking, and hunting since I was little so spending time in the outdoors is not a new thing for me. However, the impact that the time I spent working in the woods this summer as an adult was nothing that I could have prepared for. As a student at Boise State, I have been packing my schedule and taking summer classes in an effort to graduate a year early, so time never really slows down for me these days. Trying to juggle work, school, and a social life while at school leaves little time for decompression. You can get so caught up trying to save money, get good grades, and experience all you can while in college that it can be easy to forget to stop and appreciate what is around you. I fell victim to this, and never really made time for myself to get out and go for a hike or go camp.
When I arrived in Trout Creek, Montana in June to move into my home for the summer – a small Forest Service bunkhouse – I couldn’t help but stop and stare at the mountains that surrounded me and enjoy the solitude of having no cell service.
My first day on Star Peak Trail with the Friends was really hard and I was not able to make it to the top. I was neither mentally nor physically prepared for what lay ahead. At the end of that first day, I questioned how I was supposed to make it through the whole summer when the first day had kicked my butt. After a couple weeks, the steep trails didn’t seem to be such a daunting burden to complete and clear, but rather something I wanted and was excited to do.
As I made it through the summer to my very last day as a backcountry ranger, I again set off on a trail project up on the Star Peak Trail, which I was dreading given my first day’s experience. We started up the trail and within a couple hours we reached the point where I had turned around my first day as Backcountry Ranger and this time, I wasn’t even tired. In that moment I realized truly how much this summer job had impacted me. My mind was in a clearer space, my body was healthier, and I had learned so much about wilderness areas, the environment, and using traditional hand tools like Pulaski’s and crosscut saws.
This summer was like nothing I expected, yet it was more than I could’ve wanted. The relationships that I formed with the FSPW and those in the Cabinet Ranger District bunkhouse/trail crew are something that I will forever be grateful for. This summer taught me to slow down and appreciate what’s around me, and value the time I’m able to spend outdoors with people who share that appreciation.
Sami was the FSPW Backcountry Ranger Intern during the 2024 summer trail season stationed out of the Trout Creek Ranger Station in the Cabinet Mountain District. She is currently pursuing a BA in environmental studies from Boise State University.
