Ian Harris
Lead Wilderness Steward
Bitterroot National Forest | Selway River #4 Trail
6/6/23 - 6/13/23
The 2023 Bitterroot National Forest Crew
Heavy morning dew splashes against our rain pants and streams down onto our boots as we trudge through chest high brush. I am convinced there is no such thing as waterproof boots. The upper Selway, a mere six feet to our left, provides a cacophonous soundtrack to the last day of our hitch, but we don’t hear it anymore. We are nothing but sore, wet feet, and backs aching from burdensome packs and a week of crosscutting. Our weary minds can focus on only three things: sloughing off our packs at the trailhead, our first hot meals back in civilization, and the promising rays of sunshine creeping down the opposite side of the canyon.
Hannah Richter and Reyna Rodriguez crosscutting on the #4 trail of the upper Selway, Bitterroot NF, Frank Church Wilderness, photo by Ian Harris
For Reyna from warm, dry New Mexico, this is her first experience in trailwork. For Hannah from nearby Spokane, this is her first time backpacking. And for me, though my trail boots are well seasoned, this is my first hitch since a harrowing week in Yellowstone in the fall of 2019. After three years leading crews for the Montana Conservation Corps, and a year working from home during COVID for the Montana Fire Bureau, I had put my ambitions on hold to travel full-time in a camper van in support of my wife’s career. Two years later, I once again find myself beside wonderful trail people, with familiar bruised feet and aching limbs, and surrounded by the deep majesty of wilderness. Though I miss my wife, it was time I returned to work.
After a gentle, yet toilsome, five mile hike from Upper Crossing, we pass Haystack Creek. Then the first tree we cleared on the #4 trail seven days prior. And, finally, we glimpse the outbuildings of Magruder Ranger Station, where the sunshine and comfort of my truck await. We sigh with relief - not just out of physical reprieve, but with a strong sense of accomplishment and gratitude.
Hannah Richter, Reyna Rodriguez, and Ian Harris at Magruder RS, Bitterroot NF, Frank Church Wilderness, photo by Hannah Richter
Trailwork is not for everyone - it is laborious and demanding - but it removes us from social media, endless news cycles, and the comforts we take for granted, and deposits us into the magnificent splendor and simplicity of the wilderness. It hardens us, physically and mentally, building fortitude and a greater sense of appreciation, both for what we have at home, and for what we leave untrammeled. We spent eight days clearing 87 trees from five and a half miles of trail, inventorying a couple campsites, and doing our best to stay dry and hydrated. Our first hitch proved that the toughest moments are often the ones that leave us smiling with pride and joy, and keep us searching for more.
Before and after sawing on the #4 trail of the upper Selway, Bitterroot NF, Frank Church Wilderness, photo by Ian Harris
IAN HARRIS, LEAD WILDERNESS STEWARD
Bitterroot National Forest
Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness
Ian moved from Philadelphia to Missoula in 2010 to attend the University of Montana, from which he earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in public administration. He fell in love with the wild spaces of Montana and Idaho, and spent three seasons leading youth trail crews. After a year with the DNRC Fire Bureau, he traveled the county in a camper van with his wife for two years to support her professional disc golf career. When not in the woods or on the disc golf course, Ian can be found at the Roxy Theater, playing tennis or board games, or reading a good book.