My Job Sucks

So, I've been here for over two months. Perhaps you're wondering what exactly I do here between hashes. Well, as a Park Ranger at War In the Pacific National Historical Park, my responsibilities are multifaceted. And no, I don't hike around with a gun looking for poachers or bears stealing pick-a-nick baskets.

For all NPS employees, our fundamental objective is to preserve the parks for future generations. To achieve that objective, I help people experience and understand the park. How does that help preserve? Allow me to quote an African philosopher:

"For in the end, we will conserve only what we love. We will love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught."

So by helping people understand the significance of places like War In the Pacific, I help preserve them. It's really that simple, not to mention highly enjoyable and very fulfilling. As a new employee, however, I am still struggling to understand the park myself. I have not visited every park unit, hiked every trail, climbed every rock, or read every book.

Much of the past two months I have been doing those things. My job has been one of orientation. For instance, last week several of my colleagues and I spent the morning hiking up to Mount Tenjo, one of the most remote park units. In 1910 the U.S. Navy used the commanding view of Mount Tenjo to build a coastal gun battery emplacement. Although the guns were dismantled in the 1930s, the same mountain witnessed the two U.S. beachheads come together during the fight to liberate Guam from the Japanese, thus assuring victory.

Guided by James, the intrepid Cultural Resources Park Ranger (and fellow hasher), we hiked up to Mount Tenjo. It was outstanding.

Here we are about to get started.

Erosion is a major problem on Guam, here it is caused by off road 4x4 driving.

Some great views from Tenjo.

Rain in the distance.

Soldiers carved their names and "DEC 25 1929"

Here we are where the guns were.

Last Tuesday, I accompanied two of our Natural Resources Division staff for a field day on the reefs off Agat. Over half of the park's 2,000 acres are underwater, so I needed to see firsthand some of the most threatened areas of our park. Natural Resources Division does extensive SCUBA diving to monitor the impact of sediment from runoff on the reef. I tagged along on the boat with my snorkel to watch them in action. It was yet another fantastic experience.

This is me, just signaling the girls on the boat that I saw a sunken World War II Amtrac (landing craft).

Oh yeah... I forgot to metion that they pay me to do this. With money.