notes from the field

My brother has returned from "the field" (that's what he calls it when he's out on a major kayak excursion) and I thought I would take this opportunity to interview him about his experience and post it.
(You don't want to hear about me dusting and vacuuming.)

So.
You're back from "the field" - are your arms tired? Heh. That's a little joke about the kayaking. How long were you gone?
Did you train people before you went out - how does that work?

'the field' is a NOLS term and it comes from how many weeks you have worked, 'weeks in the field' is what your pay is based on. My arms aren't tired, because kayakers shouldn't use their arms. I was gone for just under three weeks, a short course. We have students for one day before we 'go into the field' and there is a lot to do. We go through their personal gear, and talk about group gear, we spend some time getting their food rations, and preparing our re-ration. We talk about what we are going to be doing, to make sure everyone knows what they are in for, they learn how to set up a tent, then the following morning, we go.


Did you make fire with flint or did you use a lighter?

If we make a fire it is a leave no trace fire, ignited with a lighter.

A leave no trace fire is a fire that won't, well, leave a trace. We do fires in the intertidal zone, so at the next high tide the fire will be washed out and no future visitors to the camp site will see remains of the fire. Everything we do in the field is run via the Leave no trace principles.



What, exactly, were you teaching out there?

Our students learn a lot. They learn sea kayaking, and camping, and cooking skills. Some learn fishing. We throw in (depending on what people want) meteorology, geology, currents, tides, navigation, baking, marine mammals, just about anything related to Alaska. But almost all of what we teach can be related to 'the leadership progression' this is a leadership school, and that is what people learn.


Did you have any bad experiences?

Not on this trip.



Do people ever get hurt? (Now we are getting to the good stuff.)

Yes. And as one of the only paramedics I am generally the ranking medical person. So I get all the good ones. On this course I had a woman with very bad sciatic nerve pain, but we managed to control her pain, and she didn't have to leave.



Has anyone ever left the party? Not been able to hack it? Or do you weed those people out before you set off?

Admissions tries to, but frequently people get 'evaced'. By either boat, plane, or helicopter, depending on the seriousness of the issue. If you can't hack it, you get a boat.


Do you bring real food with you or just freeze dried stuff?

Well, we don't bring freeze dried. We bring real food, though a lot of it is powder. Powdered milk, instant mashed potatoes, things like that. We have some 'freshies' like real potato, carrots, garlic, onion, lots of pasta and grains. A LOT of cheese. Generally we bring a little sausage. Tuna. Things like that.


Was there a time you were worried about weather? What do you do if the weather is threatening? Do you carry a special radio?

We carry VHF radios for contacting boats, and emergencies. These radios have weather channels so we can hear the marine forecast every four hours. Weather is a good thing. Students have to learn to watch the weather change as we are paddling, listen to a weather forecast and figure out what it means, and use the forecast in planning for their leadership day, and react accordingly to changes in the weather. We don't worry about weather exactly, but we are careful about wind. High wind will keep us on the beach, instead of in kayaks. But on beach days we teach land classes.


How big is the group? How many instructors go? What about bears?

The group varies, this last group was nine, and all female. Normally it is slightly more male. The group for this course can be as many as twelve. There are usually three instructors. We saw bear scat at a handful of our campsites. The bears in Alaska aren't habituated, meaning they don't associate humans with food, but inland you still need to be careful. Where I was, the bears are docile enough that we don't even do bear bags or things like that. Though we do carry bear spray which is like mace but much bigger.


What do you like best about leaving civilization behind?

I like going out. I like being in that environment. I love paddling, and teaching, and seeing my students take over the expedition. I like seeing people realize they can do so much more than they thought they could.



What do you miss the most when you leave civilization behind?

My wife. I miss her terribly. My boy too. But it's a good incentive to come back in one piece. I love that there are no cell phones, and people are forced to be in their own head.


Do you reach a point where living out there becomes second nature and you have a hard time re-entering the real world?

Living out there is second nature for me, as I have been doing this for a while now. It is hard work. Everything takes more time. For instance, going to the bathroom takes planning, and about 30 minutes. Working that into everything else you have to do can be a challenge, And that goes for just about everything. The hard thing about returning to the real world generally starts at the airport. Too much noise, too much confusion, too many messages, both visual and auditory. It can be overwhelming.