Fire Patrol

One summer I was on call for the fire patrol. The patrol pilot flew a particular circular route with way points on a chart and called in to headquarters based in Augusta at the crossing of each point. The flight lasted 2 or 3 hours depending on the airplane flown. We all clamored to fly the Skyhawk with the GPS. Sometimes we bounced around in a little 150 with no amenities. All that summer I saw no fires. It sounds romantic until you have to fly in the mountains on a blustery day with low overcast.

This is the kind of Maine fire we see, not the conflagrations in the dry west. Difficult to burn out of control when you just received 1.6 inches of rain overnight.