Time Well Spent

Time Well Spent

Hello ProRangers and Park People!

            To prepare for the incoming visitors at PIRO, I’ve spent the past couple of days training and practicing skills with the law enforcement staff, getting the patrol vehicle up to standard, checking equipment, doing park up-keep tasks, and planning time to work with the other divisions of the park. Although the park has been relatively quiet, we’ve used our time wisely.

Changes in water level shape the cliffside and expose the Jacobsville sandstone

            The first day of my week was spent cleaning and organizing the patrol vehicle with Ranger Paupore. Not only does having a clean vehicle look professional, but it may also be the difference between a smoothly run incident and a stressful one. Knowing where your equipment is, trusting that everything functions correctly, and being confident that your vehicle is prepared for an arrest are all reasons to keep your patrol vehicle in check. I genuinely enjoy doing simple tasks like these! It’s a low-key environment to have fun with my co-workers and ask for advice and thoughts on topics in law enforcement.

            The following day, I met Ranger Paupore at the marina to start our day. The majority of the park is accessible by boat, so it is often easier to accomplish tasks by using the boat to reach the trail systems that run along the shoreline of PIRO. On top of practicing my boat skills, we set out to put carsonite markers on the beaches with the most common kayak launch zones. Commercial kayaking brings hundreds of visitors to the park every season and on busy summer days, sea kayaks can crowd the shore. The purpose of the markers are to designate specific areas for the commercial kayakers, to allow space for other recreational use.

Off in the distance is the Munising Formation - a favorite among park visitors

Stunning colors occur when water seeps through the "Pictured Rocks." Iron (red and orange), copper (blue and green), manganese (brown and black), and limonite (white) are among the most common color-producing minerals. 

While out on the water, we were requested to respond to a motorcycle accident that occurred just outside of the park boundary. We quickly returned back to shore and transferred from the Arrowhead to the patrol vehicle. Upon arrival, Ranger Paupore and I assisted the county police with the scene by directing traffic at the accident site. Although the condition of the patient is unknown, the incident poses a hard-to-answer question. How do you deal with emotionally difficult incidents? Ranger Paupore explained to me one of the resources made available to law enforcement officers in the National Park Service called “Responder 911”. The goal of this program is to provide professional counseling, post-event education, and stress management after on-the-job traumatic incidents. This is a wonderful resource for law enforcement and something I would be interested in pursuing to further my degree in psychology.

The freshly organized patrol vehicle on scene

PIRO has proprietary jurisdiction making most of the roads through the park county or state authority

The next day, Chief Hughes, Ranger Paupore and I took the Arrowhead out on the water to complete our “crew member” boating task books. There are a variety of technical skills that make up the task books that range from knot tying to mechanical functions on the boat. On the agenda for this day was “man overboard” drills. Ranger Paupore was kind enough to suit up and jump into the lake, so I could practice using a person’s buoyancy to hoist them up onto the patrol boat.

Practicing my water rescue skills with Ranger Paupore

With Chief Hughes as captain of the Arrowhead, he and I started practicing “man overboard” protocol under the supervision of Ranger Paupore. To simulate a person going overboard, Ranger Paupore would throw a life ring off the boat and then signal to begin the drill. With Chief Hughes at the helm and some pretty great line bag skills from me, our fastest rescue time was close to 2 minutes!

Under supervision from Ranger Paupore, I start getting the feel for driving the Arrowhead

Another week in the books at Pictured Rocks and I’m pumped to see what the next week will bring!

Until next time,

ProRanger Dover