"Drawn to Flame: Women Forged by Wildfire"

"Some people, like moths, are drawn to flame. For those that find their way into wildland firefighting, there is an allure to a forest fire: hearing the freight train- like roar as it advances, seeing the columns of smoke that rise into the sky, feeling the heat that permeates Nomex pants and shirts and can make trees explode in a shower of sparks.

For some, the challenge of the fight against a fire is the attraction: the sprint to contain it, the din of air support delivering payloads of water and retardant, the exhaustion of a 16-hour workday, and the battle weary comradery that comes from spending day upon day with the same overly-tired, overly-caffeinated and overly-filthy people. This is not to romanticize this work; but there is no question it provides a charged and exciting challenge.

Wildland firefighting offers both the promise of a decent paycheck and the opportunity to work outside, but most who stay in the profession have some form of addiction – to the adrenaline, to the challenge, or to the escape it offers from the real world. These are equal opportunity addictions, and the fix – fighting fire in a remote forest – is sought by both men and women."

Dayle Wallien reports for Your National Forests magazine in the Summer/Fall 2017 Issue.