A Life in the Wilderness

I first encountered Gary Paull (a retired US Forest Service employee since 2017, photographer, and geology enthusiast) in the newspaper while researching a book chapter that turned into my book, An Open Pit Visible from the Moon. That work recounts the efforts of conservationists to stop a proposed mine in Glacier Peak Wilderness. The history focused mainly on the 1960s, but the campaign ultimately concluded with passage of the Wild Sky Wilderness Act in 2009 while Gary was working on the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. I quoted him from a local paper saying, “The Kennecott mine was one of my greatest fears as a kid, and [I] have been following it ever since — nudging and prodding from the inside hoping to see this outcome.”

At some point, between when I first quoted him and when the work was published, we met at a meeting about the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail. He later provided some photos and maps about the potential mine site and saved me from what would have been an embarrassing error. Now that we live relatively close to each other, we have gone on some walks together, including one that was the subject of an earlier newsletter.

You will find, as I have found, that Gary has lived a fascinating life that has prepared him for good insights about the outdoors of the Pacific Northwest.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Finding a Path in the Forest Service

Gary recognized a simple truth as a teenager in the Seattle suburbs: he wanted to be outside.

“I was trying to get a job working for the Forest Service or the Park Service because I knew I wanted to be outside. I just had this desire that started when I was probably in ninth grade, thinking, ‘I’ve got to get out there. I need to go explore.’”

During the early 1970s, exploration included extended trips into the Alpine Lakes, Pasayten, Glacier Peak, and North Cascades along with numerous shorter journeys.

“If I could find a way to be out in the mountains and get paid at the same time, that’d be great.”

After working on a timber presale crew in Oregon for a couple seasons, Gary finally landed his dream job as a wilderness ranger in the North Cascades. Beginning in 1977, he spent the next 11 seasons maintaining trails and patrolling the wild backcountry of the Chelan-Sawtooth, Holden, and Cascade crest.

“As a wilderness ranger, my job involved being out in the wilderness for 10 days at a stretch, maintaining trails and providing information to the public from May into October.”