More than rangers - Organization and job diversity in the modern Park Service.

Not everyone has the advantage of growing up as a park brat, but that doesn't mean that a life in the Park Service is out of reach. We talk with people all the time who are convinced that it's their dream job, but there's just no way that they could do it. They don't think they could compete, they don't think they could relocate, and most of all they don't think their skills are applicable to the service.

The reality is that the NPS is a complex organization, with thousands of different jobs and duties. The Rangers that visitors see are the public face of the Park Service, but for ever Ranger you see there are 5-10 support staff working to ensure that everything goes smoothly in the background.

Many of the contributors to this blog are members of the support staff. We operate in jobs that the public is never going to see, doing things that people don't associate with the National Parks. We don't wear uniforms, or give programs to teach people about the parks, but we bleed green and grey just the same. Our talents aren't suited to interacting with visitors day after day, but we still work hard to ensure that the parks remain safe, functional, and preserved for future generations to enjoy.

If you're interested in becoming part of the Park Service, but don't want to become a "Ranger", then it might help to have a brief overview of the organization of NPS.

NPS Employment within a park, monument, region, etc. breaks down into 5 main "Divisions", each with designated duties related to the Park Service mission.

Administration: The admin staff of parks handles things like payroll, budget, human resources, Information Technology, and purchasing. Other departments, such as Concessions and OPAC (office of planning and compliance), usually also end up as a subset of this division.

Facility Maintenance (also known as "Design and Engineering"): The maintenance staff works to cover everything from building and housing maintenance to trail construction and waste management. In most NPS locations this is actually the largest portion of the staff.

Science & Resource Management (also known as "Natural\Cultural Resources"): S&RM functions as the academic side of the Park Service. Staff who work for S&RM include Biologists, Botanists, Zoologists, Archaeologists, Paleontologists, Hydrologists, Geologists, and every other kind of "ologist" you could imagine. They work in tasks as varied of their specialties, with duties ranging from active research to historic preservation.  

Interpretation: These are the Rangers that people think of when they imagine the National Park Service. Flat hats with green and grey uniforms giving programs or guiding events in the park. Interpretation staff make up half of the "Ranger" title. They offer presentations and programs, provide visitor information, and cover all kinds of other work designed to help people learn about, and enjoy their National Parks.

Visitor and Resource Protection: V&RP includes the primary other "Ranger" type. Law Enforcement Rangers. This division also includes programs like Backcountry Management, Fee Collection, Wildland and Structural firefighting, Emergency Services, and campground staff.

Once upon a time in the Park Service a "Ranger" was expected to be everything for a park. The law enforcement, the scientist, the interpreter, and the maintenance staff. These days the requirements of each job have become compartmentalized, because you can't expect every employee to be a federally credentialed law enforcement officer while also having a degree in Botany and knowledge on how to work a bulldozer. Because of this the Park Service family is incredibly varied in skill set, and just because you can't track a deer through the woods or give a Ranger Program to a crowd doesn't mean that's not a place where your skills can be put to use.

So, if you think that you'd rather have a Bison for a neighbor than an apartment building, or you feel like you'd rather be paid in sunrises than cold hard cash, consider taking a look joining the NPS family. You'll kick yourself every time you see your paycheck, and you'll wonder why you signed up for 150-mile grocery runs, but every time you get to step out and enjoy the beauty around you you'll understand that it was the best bad decision you ever made.

~CBD

A River Runs Through It (Part 1)

The Colorado River.  One of the main elements that shaped the Grand Canyon.  Glorious, internationally known, and extremely cold.  Less than 10% of visitors to Grand Canyon National Park are estimated to have seen it up close (Durango Herald), and even fewer have traveled down it on the river.  It was my honor to participate in an NPS employee trip last summer.

Commercial paddle tour (photo: SaintLost)

Something that most people aren't aware of is how expensive it is to get on a commercial river trip of the Colorado.  Here's what I found in my brief research.  Motorized (shorter, full length of Colorado within Grand Canyon) trips run an average of $2,630/person, while paddle trips (usually twice as long in time) are an average of $3,870/person.  The people I saw on these trips seemed very happy, but I doubt I would pay that much to raft down the Colorado.

Commercial paddle tour (photo: SaintLost)

My trip was only the lower half, which seems to typically be about half the full length price on commercial trips.  So, I hiked in to Phantom Ranch, the first time I'd ever really been below the Rim, despite living here for numerous years prior.  While it was a difficult, it was definitely worth the effort.

The Colorado River, immediately off the Bright Angel Trail (photo: SaintLost)

I did run out of water before the end, however. That was the hardest part, but I was rewarded with lemonade at the ranger station!  The afternoon and evening just consisted of hoping the pain in my legs would go away and resting.  A surprising thing, that I'd only heard rumors about in the past, was that one of the Science division employees ran ice cream down from South Rim for us to have that night. She ran down the South Kaibab trail in about two hours, then ran straight back up after having some water! I should mention that this was at night, which is more perilous on the trail.

About to load the boats with our gear (photo: SaintLost)

The next morning, we all rose quite early (for me) and started hauling gear to the boats.  Shoving our things into water-tight bags, getting acquainted with the boats and the crew, and trying to figure out what was needed for the ride itself were among the things we did before shoving off.  Lo and behold, the pain in my legs had intensified (despite extensive stretching the night before), so that will be a recurring theme for at least this entry.

Traveling down the Colorado! (photo: SaintLost)

Starting off on the bigger boat (the S rig), we went through a few smallish rapids before stopping to do some vegetation preservation work.  This basically means that we all worked together to water some saplings that the Science & Resource Division was trying to grow on one of the "sandbars".  I don't have any pictures of it, but the task ended up being most efficiently accomplished via a train of people passing water buckets up the steep, sandy hill. The hard work was a rewarding feeling, and just standing around in the water meant that I wasn't stressing my already cramped up legs.

Employees hard at work (photo: SaintLost)

After this, we loaded back on the boats and proceeded downriver. We eventually stopped to look at a rowboat that was perched up on a rocky outcropping and a story was told, but I couldn't walk up to it, so I stood just offshore in the wonderful, ice cold river water.  One of the boatmen, a friend of mine, stayed down at the bottom with me and we did the normal "gossiping" about NPS Divisional politics, which gets pretty dense, depending on the size of said Division.

Unrelated shot of the Grand Canyon! (photo: SaintLost)

I don't remember where we stopped for lunch, nor do I remember what it was, but I can tell you that all the food I ate on this trip was delicious.  From what I understand, river guides/runners end up as really great cooks from all the practice.  I do think that dinner was chicken fajitas; oh so tasty.  Stopping for the night on a really high sandbar is when I discovered that I had a bad sunburn developing on my feet.  It wasn't until days later that I realized how bad it was, but that's something I'll mention off and on during this series.

In any case, sleep was easier than I thought it would be and I only needed the footprint from my tent to sleep through the night.  You do get a good picture of the consequences of having a solo office job, since I was friends with only one person on this trip and it was difficult to socialize with everyone else, given how socially awkward I am.

A random side canyon (photo: SaintLost)

I will end this first part by saying that while the commercial trips looked low key, the employee river trip was more wonderful than I could possibly have imagined. More stories and pictures to come in Part 2!

Bleeding green and grey - Building a life with the National Park Service

If you work for the National Park Service for long enough you'll eventually hear a comment that someone "bleeds green and grey". The term is used either as a compliment for someone that devotes their life to the Park Service, or occasionally as a playful insult when a person's life is so integrated with the Park Service that they couldn't go back to the real world if they wanted to.

The saying comes from a book written by Gregory Moss, a career park ranger who published a collection of stories about his life in the service. (Amazon link for anyone who is interested) National Park Ranger, a.k.a. "Bleeding Green & Grey": High Adventure Tales, Humorous Stories, & Deadly Consequences! What Gregory hit on with his title is that the Park Service often attracts a certain kind of person: A person who takes the job because they love the places, the people, and the experiences that living and working in America's best idea provides. People who end up staying with the Park Service for a career are there because they deeply care about being a part of the mission to protect and preserve. So willing in fact, that many give up enormous opportunities outside of the service to stay in the places they love. We give up higher paying jobs, relationships, and whatever else is required in order to stay with the Park Service, and to become a member of the Park Service family.

This is not to say that to join the Park Service you must be willing to give up the "real world" for the rest of your life. There are thousands of jobs in the service that you can work for a single season and move on. You'll get the amazing experience, and the eye catching job on the resume, but you don't have to stay forever if you don't want to.

But, many of us do make the choice to stay in the family, to accept a career of lower pay, for harder work, in more difficult and remote locations. We do it because we love it, because we think it's the best thing we could do with our lives, and because sooner or later you realize that you bleed green and grey, even if you never thought you would.

(Waking up to sights like this every day might help)

Once you realize that you want to spend your life working for the Park Service your perspective shifts. You stop thinking about how much you'll make in your next job, and start thinking about what parks you want to embed yourself in. You stop thinking about moving to get a promotion, and start focusing on the parks that will allow you to pursue your passions. You lose focus on the short term difficulties from day to day and start daydreaming about leaving your legacy.

Part of the amazing experience of working for the Park Service is that the organization has been around for less than 100 years. In fact our centennial isn't even until 2016! While the Park Service is a place of strong tradition and a commitment to stewardship of our national treasures, it is also an organization still in the formation phase. Every year we gain new sites, new people, and new mission goals. And with only 98 years in operation, there simply hasn't been time to do everything that needs to be done. Therein comes the idea of a person's Park Service legacy. For different people it means different things. To some it's a personal mark they can leave behind when they move on. For others it's a new way NPS can serve the visitors who come to see our landscapes and places. It all depends on your passion and what you think the Park Service needs to become a better place.

One example that comes to mind is the work of a dedicated group of interpretive employees. Together with hard work, sweat, tears, and enormous amounts of effort they built the first distance learning program in the Park Service. In the past students would have to come to a National Park location to meet a ranger, to ask questions about the park, and to start to appreciate the work that we do to protect it. With the distance learning setup Park Rangers from Grand Canyon now give programs for kids all over the country, giving students who don't have access to our National Parks the opportunity to see a condor flying overhead, or look at fossils embedded in the red sandstone. Technology like this introduces people to a world they might never have been able to experience before.

Image source: http://arizonahighways.wordpress.com/2013/02/13/grand-canyon-goes-high-tech-to-reach-students-nationwide/

On its own Grand Canyon's distance learning program would have been a "legacy" item. A change made by a group of dedicated people that will continue to serve the Park Service long after they retire. But the program at Grand Canyon was only the beginning! As other parks saw the new technology, and the new opportunities that it can provide to visitors the idea spread. The single distance learning studio has turned into programs at parks across the country, each unique to the park that hosts it, but based on the ideas pioneered by a few dedicated individuals in a single branch, in a single division, at a single park.

The National Park Service now hosts an entire suite of distance learning programs. Information is available at http://www.nps.gov/teachers/distancelearning.htm if anyone who comes across this is interested. How's that for a legacy? Serving thousands or tens of thousands of students per year from all over the U.S. and all over the world.

A legacy doesn't have to be public facing either. For some, the scientific pursuits outweigh the desire to interact with visitors. For a person motivated by the invisible bits of the park service, a legacy might be out of the public eye, but still critical to the mission, such as preservation of an ecosystem, plant, animal, or even mineral that otherwise might be lost without protection.

Leaving a legacy may not be always be glamorous, but each legacy still provides a permanent place in the halls of nearly a century of NPS staff who have given their careers, and occasionally their lives, to protecting the places that America treasures.

~CBD

My First Permanent Job with the Park Service

Editor's Note: This post is part #1 of a series on becoming part of the National Park Service. New posts in the series should be added in the coming weeks.

I’m a park brat, the same way that some people are military brats.  One of my parents worked for the Park Service my entire life, so it was always a part of my life.  It wasn’t until I was in college that I even considered it as a career possibility.

We rarely visited other Park Service locations when I was growing up.  Indeed, we only really traveled once a year and there was only one NPS location near where I grew up.  However, I did see almost every inch of the park my parent worked for.

Photo credit: SaintLost

Photo credit: NPS

I think being a park brat heavily influenced my eventual decision to pursue a career with NPS.  Initially, I wanted nothing to do with it, still being in that “rebellious” mindset of not wanting anything to do with my mother in the workplace.  Eventually, I fell in love with it all and set myself on the path to getting a job.  Hint: Start looking at USAJobs.gov!

The cert, the list of the top 10 or so people that qualified, for any given position is going to be heavily populated with either people with perfect qualifications (some are liars) or those with veteran’s preference (not a bad thing).  You might not think it, but a lot of people want the entry level positions working for the Park Service, even working at an entrance station.

My story is more about luck than anything else.  I had a lot of drive-thru cashier experience, so it ended up that I was perfect for working at an entrance station.  However, I think the only reason I made the cert is because of my stint as a seasonal Park Ranger.  How they came to my name above whoever else they had interviewed I’ll never know.

What I do know is that interviewing with enthusiasm was a huge part of why I was chosen. While I didn't know everything about the job I was pursuing, I did know that I wanted it. As a friend of mine always tells me, the worst thing that can happen from applying for a job is that they offer it to you. I realize there are arguments against that saying, but the meaning behind it really is that applying for a job doesn't actually hurt. IF you get the job, then you have to decide whether or not you want it and are willing to uproot your life for it. Working for an organization with remote sites like the National Park Service, upheaval really is a big possibility and commitment. Your new job is likely to be hours away from the nearest major city, and things like going out to dinner at a restaurant or catching a movie after work may no longer be possible. It's up to you to determine what is important to you.

Photo credit: SaintLost

For me, taking this job involved moving cross-country and being over an hour away from the nearest grocery store. My brother made that move easier, but it was also expensive. Only in certain circumstances will NPS be able to help pay for the cost of moving. Mine was not one of them.

Working at an entrance station isn't glamorous. It isn't usually exciting, can be stressful, and doesn't pay as much as other government jobs. Yet, I wouldn't trade the experiences, friends, and career path I made for anything in the world.

Photo credit: SaintLost

One of the main things I recommend if you want to pursue a career with the Park Service is have some notable experience at one.  Try to volunteer at the closest location, get a seasonal position, or work as a student hire (much easier to get than a seasonal position, if you lack experience.)

My tips for building your resume on USAJobs:

• Be extremely thorough in your description of duties at past jobs. Even the smallest thing can be seen as a game changer from the perspective of the person doing the hiring.
• Write a succinct list of the skills you gained and the duties you had in your various positions. Be very thorough.
• Read through the questionnaires that you have to fill out when applying for a job ahead of time. Include anything you have experience with, but had not previously included, on your resume. Without this, you’ll be automatically disqualified from consideration.

If you have questions about specific types of positions, feel free to leave a comment on this blog.

The lights are on, but nobody is home: National Parks in the off season.

Our National Parks are amazing places, designed to provide a sense of cultural identity and a point of national pride, as well as being an instantly recognizable model for conservation and protection. They serve as snapshots of the unique locations in our country and bring visitors from all over the country, and all over the world.

But, therein lies the problem. People. Those pesky other people. Now, don’t get me wrong: National Park Service employees are incredibly happy that people love our National Parks. Because the public cares about our parks, and wants to see them, visit them, stay in them, and learn about them, people like me have the amazing luck of being able to work in them day after day.  But, there are times when living and working in a National Park can become difficult because our day to day lives take place in the same locations where millions of visitors have decided to congregate.

Let’s look at the visitation stats for my “Home Park”, Grand Canyon.

(Note: All stats provided in this article were collected from the official NPS stats website at https://irma.nps.gov/Stats/ . This is an amazing site, accessible to anyone who wants to see visitation statistics about the National Parks. Further non-visitation stats for the NPS can be found through the IRMA (Integrated Resource Management Applications) Portal at https://irma.nps.gov/App/ )

So, in 2013 the total visitor count for Grand Canyon was roughly 4.5 Million people, the fourth highest year on record.

Source:

https://irma.nps.gov/Stats/SSRSReports/Park SpecificReports/Annual Park Recreation Visitation Graph (1904 - Last CalendarYear)?Park=GRCA

And if we look a bit closer we can break down those stats by month.

Source: https://irma.nps.gov/Stats/SSRSReports/Park%20Specific%20Reports/Monthly%20Public%20Use?Park=GRCA

Basically, any month that a person might consider spending time outside to be a positive experience is likely to be filled with tourists. Keep in mind that in a place like Grand Canyon there are only 3,000 to 5,000 year-round residents. On a busy weekend day in summer it’s very possible for tourists to outnumber the locals by 200 to 1! Not exactly a point where you’ll be likely to get out and enjoy the peace and solitude in your park, eh?

This is not to say that it’s impossible to enjoy a park as a resident during the busy season. One of the perks of living and working in a National Park is that you get to know it, or your local part of it, like the back of your hand. Once you’ve been around for a little bit you know where “that” spot is, the spot where on a beautiful summer day you can go to a place far from the throngs of visitors, and still have the beauty and majesty of the park all to yourself. It helps to keep you sane when you're number 30 in line at the post office >.> 

Back on topic: The crowds at the parks can be a bear during the summer, but the tradeoff is the magical time where all the tourists disappear back to their real lives, the hotels close up, the restaurants and stores run on limited hours, and the park is all yours.

This is what Old Faithful in Yellowstone looks like in the summer.

Image Source: http://www.youmustbetrippin.com/are_we_there_yet/montana_road_trip_yellowstone.html

This is the same boardwalk in January.

Nobody here but us Bison!

Which of those looks like the way you want to make a connection with a display of nature’s force and beauty? Mhhhhhhmmmmm…. That’s what I thought.

Now, let’s try this again. Which one looks like a better time to visit?

This?

Source: http://www.nps.gov/grca/parknews/2011-05-26_mather.htm

Image Credit: Michael Quinn, National Park Service.

Or this?

Image Credit: Lance Diskan.

Okay, I’ll admit that last image is cheating a little bit. It was taken during the 2013 government shutdown. It’s REALLY hard to find Mather Point completely empty during the day, even if you work for the park and are there on a regular basis.

But, the point still stands. If you want to experience a National Park, without all the people, you go in the off season.

You still get to see things like Punchbowl Spring at Yellowstone,

But instead of being greeted by tour groups, buses belching diesel smoke into the air, and screaming children, you get to enjoy things like this

Note: The two other people in this picture were traveling with me. There was not another person visible ANYWHERE when this shot was taken.

Instead of jockeying for position to take a picture of the upper geyser basin, you can take your time to get the image just right, and there won’t be anyone to mar your view

Instead of stressing about being bumped off the narrow boardwalks surrounded by boiling mud, you can sit down and watch the steam waft by in the afternoon light.

You get the point….

But let’s just drive it home with more gratuitous geyser pics, all of which were taken on a nice relaxing walk where we saw not one, not two, not three, but FOUR people on the entire 2-ish mile walk. Oh the humanity!

Possibly my favorite shot of the trip.

And last but not least, the critical shot of Old Faithful itself.

 

So, final lesson: Avoid tourists, enjoy your parks, go out of the way, love the off season!

Ta Ta for Now, from your friendly NPS-ers, living the dream.

~CBD

The Perks – Part 3

Now that we've covered some of the business side of working for the park service we can return to the fun perks of living in “America’s best idea”. If you can work your way into a skilled position in the Park Service, it is often necessary to work at remote locations. We've covered one method of travel in The Perks – Part 1, but we’ll discuss another one today. Mules.

When people think of mules they often imagine the western expansion of the United States, complete with wagon trains and farmers working to clear and prepare new land for crops. To many people living outside of rural areas the idea of using livestock for everyday tasks seems alien. What could a living, breathing animal do better than a machine? Well, for one, they’re darn good at dealing with the harsh and undeveloped terrain that is a core feature of our National Parks.

Mules, like the lovely Skinner posing here, are a crossbreed between horses and donkeys. While they don’t have the speed and grace of horses, they also don’t have the ornery nature of donkeys. As explained by a friend who manages livestock “A mule won’t like going up a mountain, but will do it because you ask. A donkey will sit at the bottom and won’t go a step further until it’s damn well ready.” So, when you need to go rugged places, and don’t want to argue with your ride every morning, a mule is your best choice. They may not be the fastest ride, and they may not be the smoothest ride, but they’ll get you there in one piece, and are smart enough that they won’t walk of the edge of a cliff, even if you tell them to. (Which I've heard can be an issue with horses, though always as an anecdote). 

So, if your two-day plan includes 17.5 miles of difficult trails, 9,028 feet of elevation change, 3 people, and 200 pounds of gear, you go make friends with your friendly local wrangler. (Or Packer, as they tend to be officially titled).

Once you've made friends with your packer, AND convinced them that yes, you really do need to haul all that stuff down with you, AND woken up at the crack of dark to get to the corrals on time, you’re treated to the most effective way to get to the bottom of the Grand Canyon! It’s a bit slower than the helicopter (about 4 hours instead of 20 minutes) but doesn't require any fossil fuels, aerospace grade metals, or thousands of dollars of running costs per hour. Congratulations, the hard work is now done. You can now sit back, hold on, and enjoy the view as the study and sure-footed animal carries you through some of the most scenic areas on earth!

On the way down you get time to really enjoy the scenery. Normally when you’re hiking you've got to keep an eye on your feet and the trail ahead so you don’t end up eating dirt. When you’re on the mule you can just let the animal do the work, and besides the occasional bit of direction to keep them from stopping to enjoy a nibble on any vegetation that catches their eye there’s not much you need to do. You can keep your head up, your eyes on the scenery, and occasionally try to snap a picture. (Note to those with cell phone cameras, HDR or High Dynamic Range works by taking multiple pictures in a row, then combining them. If you’re bouncing around on top of a mule and try to take one it will end up blurry, hence the lack of amazing action shots in this post >.< )

Once you've let your majestic ride carry you to your destination you can start the real work. And, because you're not tired from hiking 10 miles before you even started your actual task, you can complete it and still have the energy to snap a couple pictures of the beautiful location you have the pleasure of working in.

And, now that all of your work is done, and you've had a good night's rest in the lovely NPS-managed bunkhouse, complete with a hot shower and a bed, instead of sleeping in a tent on the ground, you can get up early the next morning to head out, and enjoy the real perk of mules; Not having to hike UP! 

While getting a ride down into the canyon is a pleasant perk, not having to hike OUT of the canyon is something that people would kill for. Imagine, you've had all of the enjoyment, all of the scenery, and none of the effort. This is not to say that hiking is bad, or the effort is not worth it, (Even with perks like these I do my best to go on a long hike in the canyon at least once a month.) but there's definitely some enjoyment in being able to enjoy the canyon without the work. And it lets you have the energy to take pictures like this on the way out to share with the lovely readers of this blog.

~With much enjoyment (and a very sore butt),  CBD.