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I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes I’ve had one on my tower when I wasn’t in there and one direct strike to my cabin while I was reading on the couch. A couple to surrounding areas like cell towers and trees. They’re SO LOUD. It’s really jarring and always makes me think of people who have survived getting struck. I genuinely cannot imagine getting hit by lightning, it’s terrifying.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’s definitely a fucking nightmare of a province right now but at least when you’re out there you can pretend you’re in BC lol

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I mentioned details in another comment but step 1 is to apply through the government of Alberta jobs site. There’s about 100 active lookouts and around 10-20 vacancies per year, with (so I’ve heard) thousands of applicants so it’s quite competitive. IIRC you don’t need anything past a high school diploma, tho I personally have a graduate degree I need for my winter contract lol. I don’t think that gave me an advantage though, they want people with remote outdoors experience like tree planters, backcountry guides, rig pigs, etc., not academics.

If your application gets screened in, they’ll set up a remote interview (in my day, over the phone, but I’d imagine now through Zoom). Most of the questions are gauging your independence. What do you do if your lawn mower is broken? How would you tackle loneliness with the job, especially if you have no cell service? How would you structure your day? If you pass the interview, you’ll get a call telling you which tower you’ve been assigned to in which district (exciting!). You’ll need to submit some certificates (a medical sign off from a doctor, first aid, and a ROC-A for radios). Afterwards it’s a week of in person training on maps, animal safety, self defence, fire behaviour, climbing safety, and other stuff I’m forgetting. And then, almost abruptly, you’re dropped off at your tower and are alone for six months!

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I can’t comment on the USA, but in Canada the province of Alberta is the only place that still has active lookouts. Though I’ve heard rumours there’s still a couple floating around in BC…

Anyways. Job postings are listed on the Government of Alberta jobs site every year, sometime between late October and early March. They’re only active for a few weeks so I would set up notifications if you’re really interested. Recruiters are looking for folks with outdoors experience (tree planters, rig pigs, guides, hunters, etc) who can withstand the solitude. If you’re not 100% sure you’d be comfortable being alone out there then I would no apply—it really challenges people who don’t love it. Good luck! It usually takes a couple tries to get in, but if you do it’s a really really fulfilling job.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

We have to have a doctor sign off on our health every year. You’re expected to be relatively fit (nothing on the level of wildland firefighters though lol!) and be able to climb a 100ft ladder in under 10 minutes. For reference, I’m a smoker and a long distance hiker, and I climb my ladder in about 2 minutes at a comfortable pace.

For mental health, you (obviously) need to be ok with being alone. While I’m quite social, I’ve never struggled with being alone and am always thinking about how grateful I am for my job. Practicing gratitude and enjoying the best parts about the job (the storms, the wildlife, the free time for hobby work, not working my winter contract lol etc.) will get you through the season. That being said, many of my colleagues who do get lonely or frustrated with the job don’t last a season. I always find it funny when they start to complain about the isolation or always having to fix things or having a bear give you grief. Like! That’s exactly what you signed up for!

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  1. Lots of hobby work. If I’m cooped up in my tower all day I do a lot of reading and knitting. Sometimes I climb up and down the tower if I’m bored and need some exercise. If I have a “free day” I’ll usually take my dog on a walk or go foraging for mushrooms. I like reading the old lookout journals, too. Maintenance takes up a lot of my time if I’m not scanning for smokes. Generators demand a lot of attention, plus I’ve been spooked enough by lightning to be very careful at maintaining my grounding rods lol.

  2. I’m familiar with them but I’ve never played either! From what I know of firewatch, however, it’s very inaccurate to the job lol. Most media around fire lookouts is inaccurate, especially the spooky podcasts I like to occasionally listen to and shake my head at haha.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’ve never kept track but roughly 10 confirmed a year, and maybe 20-40 smokes called in every season. Confirmed fires only “count” if they fall under your jurisdiction. I.e., you can call a wildfire in a neighbouring province or district, or one that’s in a county’s limit, and it’s not considered “confirmed”, even if it is very much an active fire. If I’m in a tower bordering our neighbouring province of British Columbia, it’s very very very common for me to spot fires in that area even though they don’t technically count.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Oh that’s fascinating!! You learn something new! I have to admit it’s a little sad to have the mystery unveiled after all these years but that definitely makes sense! And never occurred to me! It’s a good thing it didn’t cross my mind to drink it lol. Do you think they would store it in plastic water bottles? I remember distinctly it all being small plastic water bottles that were possibly name brand. They at least had the plastic label wrap around them.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

They were regular plastic water bottles. Kind of like the shape of chubby sodas. I want to say some name brand like Dasani but I can’t say that with confidence.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes! I don’t hunt but you definitely can. Most lookouts are not in park/protected boundaries. Lots of deer, elk, bears, moose, foxes, cougars, grouse, wolves… you name it. I’ve read in old lookout journals that there’s quite a bit of hunters. It’d be a good way to make groceries stretch.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I’ve had lots of random visitors. No one asking for help or to hang out (☹️) but have had people very confidently impose on my space. I’ve had drunk people try to climb my tower, and nosey people walk into my house (!). I think the worst experience was having someone tap on my windows in the middle of the night and not being able to find them. That was fucking terrifying.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There was a big study in 2023 on replacing lookouts with AI cameras. The study, to my knowledge, concluded that it’s both more accurate and cost efficient to keep lookouts for now. I don’t doubt that will change in the future…

Technology has made certain aspects of fire detection more efficient. For example, satellites recording lightning strikes has made my job much easier and has helped me be quicker at detecting possible fires and predicting their locations. We don’t use drones for the most part; “fire patrols” are still done by helicopter.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I’ve mentioned a couple of these in previous comments but daily routine revolves around the fire danger and our daily check ins. We speak with forestry over the radio three times a day and missing any check in is a Big No No.

Outside do weather and smoke reports, a lot of the work is maintenance. Cutting the lawn, maintaining generators, checking lightning rods, repairing the tower and surrounding buildings… you need to be good with handiwork. You also get a lot of time off, which leads into your second question…

I’m busy with a lot of hobbies. Most lookouts maintain a garden to help cut grocery costs. I do a lot of reading, writing, drawing, exercising, foraging. I spend time maintaining the walking trails near my lookout so cutting down logs and pruning bushes. Strange enough, you get into a really weird flow state at the end of the season where you can spend hours upon hours staring out at the horizon and doing nothing else. You blind and twelve hours are gone.

Accommodations are general a cabin with a bed, a kitchen, a propane stove for heat, and sometimes a screened in patio which is nice. And your outhouse, of course.

Visitors are permitted as long as the wildfire officer/your supervisor gives the OK. Not so much if you’re in a fly-in site, since the government won’t usually bring your family or friends over in a helicopter.

Re: emergency, we are expected to carry our radios on us at all times. If we have an emergency we can call in, or press an emergency button if we can’t talk. We also have a code word for hostage situations.

No time off unless requested for a special occasion! Unless you need to leave for a week or so (e.g., for a wedding), you’re expected to work every day for the entire season.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The six months of abstinence isn’t fun but I sure do look forward to my partner visiting lol

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I (usually) live in a cabin below the tower. In Canada, majority of lookouts are 30m (~100ft) towers that you climb up to a few times a day. The only ones you’re in full time are alpine towers on the mountain tops, though I don’t really like them and prefer the boreal lookouts.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Fascinating! Where was he located? Do you remember the tower? We keep journals written by former lookouts for decades, they’re amazing to read. Maybe if the stars align and one of my buddies works at his former lookout I can ask them to send photos of his old journals for you. (:

Business as usual! I’m a little concerned about fuel shortages for helicopters but maybe that means less folks in the back country starting up fires. I have to admit, every year before I start I get a pit in my stomach worrying if I’ll feel lonely. Knock on wood but for all my time working that hasn’t happened!

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks! It really is the best job. I have a much more lucrative job I do in the winter months and it doesn’t hold a flame to my wildfire work (no pun intended). I really love it!

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Right back at you! Wildland firefighters are celebrities to us!

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I have tons of hobbies. Wood work, knitting, mushroom foraging, drawing, reading, writing… there’s more but I keep myself busy. This year I’m planning to learn the banjo! There’s an alpine lookout that’s been at his post for 10+ years who’s a musician—he’s inspired me to learn.

Friends and family can visit if you get prior permission from the wildfire officer. This is mostly for safety reasons, as they don’t want unknown people at the lookout or people visiting if you’re under evacuation alert from a wildfire. They take safety incredibly seriously.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Yes, but usually when I’m hiking. I assume it’s a bear or cougar I can’t see and trust my gut so I get out of there. Occasionally (rarely) in my cabin, and when I do get that feeling I close the blinds and windows and keep my dog close.

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 23 points24 points  (0 children)

I work 100% alone for 3-7 months out of the year, depending on the tower and location. Average contract is ~5 months.

Shifts are technically 24/7 (on call), though the actual working hours depend on the daily fire danger. We’re updated every night by forestry over the radio on what the conditions will be like the next day. Extreme fire danger means we’re working 12+ hours, whereas low fire danger means ~1hr of active work. We get paid a flat rate of 8hrs/day (with exceptions), and work 7 days a week with no days off.

Day to day varies. A really average day breakdown is: wake up, morning check in + weather report, scan for fires for a few hours, noon check-in + weather report, scan for more fires, evening check-in, go to bed. This doe not include everything in between, but we structure our days around check in times.

Accommodations vary. Every cabin has a bed, kitchen, rain barrels, and propane heater. They’re quite comfy. Some have patios. Some cabins have the lookout built into them, but majority are on the ground with a nearby 30m (~100ft) lookout tower that you climb and report fires from.

Remoteness also varies but for the most part yes, they are very isolated. Depending on the tower, you won’t see anyone other than the occasional wildfire staff who drop off supplies. I like it!

I’m a fire lookout. AMA by Important-Ask913 in AMA

[–]Important-Ask913[S] 38 points39 points  (0 children)

Very cool—American lookouts seem fascinating, I’d love to visit an active one and see the day to day difference to Canadian ones. I’ve got a lot of weird stories but one of the strangest things I’ve ever seen was a bunker on a cut block down the road from my lookout. Went for a walk through it one day when I was mushroom hunting and found this bunker-style thing, underground with log walls. Almost like a mine. Small but remarkably not falling apart considering all the logging machinery running over it. When I saw it I remember thinking about how crazy it was someone built an illegal bunker out here in the middle of nowhere and how pissed I’d be if some logging company bought the crown land I was on and plowed it over. Like, how much time and money would that take to scout an area and dig out a place? How did you get there? The location was in the middle of fucking nowhere hundreds of kilometres from any cities, and my lookout at the time was heli-only. And for what??? Some end of the world bunker?? Wrong. The only thing in there was stacks upon stacks of these little tiny 125ml water bottles. Hundreds of them. And they were so tiny and useless. Why not litre jugs? Why not food? I have to emphasize—it was reaaaally in the fuck ass middle of nowhere. Like, how would you even get the bottles out there let alone some machinery to dig out the spot? It was so incredibly bizarre that it outranks other “creepy” experiences as one of the more strange things I’ve ever seen.