Who here has a hiking/camping-related job? [Archive]

AbeHikes

01-10-2006, 10:57

How did you get hired... or if you're self-employed, how did you get started?

Did you hike/camp before being on the job?
If so, has it changed your interest in hiking?

Does it fully meet your financial obligations?
If not, what do you do to supplement your income?

Is it everything you thought it would be?

Do many people express envy over wanting a job like yours?

Do you ever wish you were back at your old job or miss aspects of other jobs (grass is greener symptoms)?

Others who are interested, feel free to add your own questions.

Lone Wolf

01-10-2006, 10:59

I'm a part-time, freelance shuttle driver who undercuts the commercial shuttlers. I work cheap.

Footslogger

01-10-2006, 11:00

Not sure if this counts but I work at a Sports Medicine clinic and we see a lot of hikers, biker and climbers.

'Slogger

Lone Wolf

01-10-2006, 11:02

I'm a part-time, freelance shuttle driver who undercuts the commercial shuttlers. I work cheap.
Will work for beer!:cool:

QHShowoman

01-10-2006, 11:06

I work part-time at an outfitters. I didn't need a part-time job, but I wanted a job where I'd meet people with similar interests. I wish it paid enough so I could afford to do it full-time.

general

01-10-2006, 12:06

i make gear. just getting started. i didn't really like what i was doing. i asked myself the simple question of; well, what the hell do you want to do? the answer was; hike. hiking, however doesn't pay the bills, and thus far, neither does makin' gear, but i'm working on that. making gear does involve a fair amount of hiking ( i mean gear testing ) though. figure out what you want to do and then figure out how to make it happen. if money is an issue start selling stuff. (anybody want to buy a grand cherokee?)

J.J. Cale: The less you want, the more you've got.

snowhoe

01-10-2006, 12:37

I have taken people on guided flyfishing trips. It is such a fierce business to get into at least in Colorado. I do have a full time job. I just basically take some of my frinds friends who either want to learn to fly fish or just want some one to tie there flys on, make them lunch, help them nett fish that they catch. They pay me a small fee when we are all done. mostly to cover gas, the flies they use, and lunch. The thing is I would do it for free. Just to be outside and to see people catch fish on a flyrod is enough payment for me. I am sure you could make a lot of money doing it but if I did it everyday I think it would lose some of the fun and it wouldnt be as enjoyable to me and I would probably end up hating it. I think you should pick something and just have fun, if you make a little green along the way than that is just extra.

Mags

01-10-2006, 12:43

Footslogger

01-10-2006, 12:45

Well, this March and June, two local coffee shops are showing some of my photos. Will be doing 8x10 and 11x14 (matted and framed for both).

So, getting paid for photos I took on hiking trips. First time doing this...

Enough people said I should approach the coffee shops in town, so I did.

Do not know if that counts, but it is as close as I am going to get right now. :)
============================

Interested to hear how that all works out Mags. I'm getting the same feedback here in Laramie, both for my underwater and hiking pics.

'Slogger

Mags

01-10-2006, 13:11

============================

Interested to hear how that all works out Mags. I'm getting the same feedback here in Laramie, both for my underwater and hiking pics.

'Slogger

I put together a portfolio and approached the owners. They were into it. Both of them get 5% of the sales. That is how a professional photographer friend of mine started out. Now he has his own studio. Not saying I want to do that..but, well, who knows?

Anyway, I'd try that in Laramie. You never know!

betic4lyf

01-10-2006, 22:42

RedneckRye

01-10-2006, 23:56

I first started working at an outfitter after I did 900 miles in '98. Went back after my thru in '99. Worked there till they went under in spring of '03. Spent that whole summer hiking, Alaska and then the Colorado Trail. Got a job at a new outfitter that fall. I'm leaving in March to do Springer to Erwin, then headed to CA to start the PCT. The job will still be there when I get back in the fall.
I'm not getting rich, but the bills get paid, money stashed to spend 6 months in the mountains, and I get plenty of time off to go play.

RedneckRye

01-11-2006, 00:01

Oh yeah, is it every thing I thought it'd be?? Yeah, I figured it would be less stressful and more enjoyable than the catering job that I had been working, and it was/is. No, I don't miss the catering job (or the greenskeeping job before that where the grass WAS greener!!).

Max Power

01-11-2006, 00:37

I have a job like that, just haven't begun yet. Several years ago my wife and I drove around North Western, NC stopping at all recreation centers we saw. This is my current line of work and unfortunately we didn't see too many recreation facilities in Western Carolina like you do here in the Tampa Bay are. We came across Fontana Village which I knew from hiking. We randomly stopped in and spoke with the Director. She liked my background and said she'd like to have me. I kept in touch but things just didn't work out. Two years later everything clicked. I now have the job and my house up for sale. I won't make as much money, but they help with living since the Village is in the middle of nowhere. So it evens out.

The job entails guiding backpack trips, shuttling hikers, ropes courses, Mt Biking, aquatics, and pretty much anything related to fun at the Village. I would think many would see this as a great job, especially since it is in the Smokies.

I have great expectations with working/living there, and trying to create a good podcast for the hiking community.

MOWGLI

01-11-2006, 07:40

How did you get hired... or if you're self-employed, how did you get started?

I work for a non-profit. My volunteer experience was key to getting the job. I have extensive public speaking experience too, which didn't hurt.

Did you hike/camp before being on the job?
If so, has it changed your interest in hiking?

Yes
Not really

Does it fully meet your financial obligations?
If not, what do you do to supplement your income?
Yes, but the non-profit sector does not pay as much as the corporate world. Relocating from NY to TN helps some.

Is it everything you thought it would be?

Yes and no. Its a job with its ups & downs. I spend too much time behind the desk. I work with some great people though. Especially the volunteers.

Do many people express envy over wanting a job like yours?
Yes, often.

Do you ever wish you were back at your old job or miss aspects of other jobs (grass is greener symptoms)?
Never

Mags

01-11-2006, 11:34

wher they black and white, or digital prints? i just started doing my black and white stuff on 11*14 paper, and with medium format, it is hellatight. that is correct, hellatight. that is really cool though. maybe when i stop making bad stuff, i might try something like that.

They were all digitial prints, some in black and white.

If you really want a sample:

http://gallery.backcountry.net/co04/aif
http://gallery.backcountry.net/co04/aii
http://gallery.backcountry.net/cowint04/abb
http://gallery.backcountry.net/mags_italy05/aad
http://gallery.backcountry.net/mags_italy05/aai
http://gallery.backcountry.net/co05/ain

Not sure if my stuff is good, but it appeared to be "good enough" :)

The Hog

01-11-2006, 11:39

I'm a former television cameraman who now makes hiking (and other) films. My first film was North To Katahdin on the Appalachian Trail (1992). The next one will be Continental Divide Trail Diary: Montana/Idaho. That one should be out in late 2006/early 2007.

Another work in progress is a digital video on how to identify animal tracks and signs in the wilderness, featuring animal tracker Susan Morse. The working title is Keeping Track: How to Identify and Interpret Animal Tracks and Signs in the Wild.

You can check out photos from these productions at www.wildernessfilmandvideo.com

sarbar

01-11-2006, 12:18

One of my friends was a NP ranger for 3 years..she loved her job, but lets be serious: it was a job for being single. She didn't make much. But she loved it.

In some ways, my 2 incomes are somewhat related to the outdoors. My first is working for a Thai food importer. I like the job, my boss has been very relaxed about work schedules over the time I have been there. He gets why I go out, I dodn't have to work weekends, and the pay is good. And 1/2 our food we sell is perfect for backpacking ;) So yeah, I get lots of freebies. The second would be the trail cookbook I wrote. Ok, I am NOT going to get rich on it, but it gives me a nice chunk of extra money every month ;) It has given me the confidence to write another outdoor cookbook. This I love doing. Will I ever make enough on it? Probably not....but that is ok!

AbeHikes

01-12-2006, 11:31

I really appreciate the responses here. I'm thinking about a small investment of time, money, and effort into a (again) small related enterprise. It's encouraging to read the responses of others who are thriving (if not financially, mentally/emotionally) in related pursuits. Thanks again, all. Keep 'em coming.

Animal Man

01-12-2006, 17:33

I worked as in the CCC, YACC, as a Forestry tech, Wildland Firefighter, Smoke Jumper, and at several Summer camps. all involved alot of hiking and none of them paid well. I loved every minute I worked. I also need some volinteer trail work and work 4 weeks as an eagle watcher in AZ.

Animal Man

Twofiddy

01-13-2006, 12:04

I have been working in the outdoor recreation industry for 10 years.

It all got started for me back right after high school when two different friends of my father gave me summer and winter seasonal jobs in the ski and white water business.

I have progressed though several jobs, outdoor retail managment with Hudson Trail Outfitters, white water guiding with several different companies on several different rivers, I am now a member of National Ski Patrol, and I have worked professionally as a Ski Patroller.

Does it pay well... Hell no, but you get to do what you love. I did all of these things while working other real jobs too.

Now I am self employed in spray on coatings business, I own hikersupply.com ( hikersupplygear.com ) and I am trying to figure out how to get my self in a position to return to Northern Virginia and open my own shop.

If you want to get into the business as a career and make good money here is what I suggest. Get an education or psychology degree, goto all three National Outdoor Leadership School instructor certification classes ($12,000) and get a job with one of these companies like www.snwp.com (http://www.snwp.com) that does wilderness therapy for different groups of troubled individuals. Then you get to be outside working all the time and you make good money at it.

I am planning on attending one of the NOLS instructor certification classes as soon as I can get accepted into one. It is tough, only five or six classes are offered per year and they take less than 20 students per class.

Programbo

01-13-2006, 21:53

I sold backpacking/camping equipment for 11 years..I was one of the highest grossing salemen of packs,tents and sleeping bags in the country (I would average several hundred thousand in sales a year)..I also would test new equipment for the manufacturers and make modifications etc..As a long time AT hiker (Back then) I brought a new angle to the job the other guys selling lacked..I loved it and helping the new people learn the ropes and avoid the gimmicks but I worked for some pyscho family and finally couldn`t take it anymore and quit..Now I drive a delivery truck and make about half as much but I`m FAR happier which is all that matters..At least to me..I got the OK from my cardiologist to increase my exercise rate and hope to be back on the trail on some longer hikes by later this year!

Twofiddy

01-13-2006, 23:13

(I would average several hundred thousand in sales a year)..!

Where did you work?? The only place that I know of that it is possible to track that kind of sales in an accurate way was Galyan's. I worked at Fairlakes for 2 years. $300,000 in 2002, $350,000 in 2003, $400,000 in 2004 and I quit in April. I was on pace in 2004 to be Top Gun, but I wanted more out of the position.

fiddlehead

01-14-2006, 00:44

I do about 5 or 6 different things for my income, Most of them are hiking related: Selling lightweight backpacking gear, discounted long underwear, many many fleece products, stuff sacks, rain covers, gaiters, flashlights, croc liners, silk sleeping bag liners, many many more things.
I also make and sell hiking and traveling videos. My 1st one just got reviewed in the latest Backpacker magazine and although they didn't give it very good reviews (it was my first one and i've learned a lot since) it is free advertising and they are moving out nicely.
I also play music professionally which is something i couldn't do before i had the time to practice while hiking many years. Now i can get up to $300 a night. and am working on writing music that should sell
I also still do carpentry work when i find a very profitable job and landscaping too. I'll do almost anything it takes to make money for travelling and hiking although we just had our first baby so my priorities are changing.
I don't see what's so hard about making a living in what interests you. The most important things in life are your priorities. If you can't find a way to make money doing what you love best, then perhaps you are needing to much money.
I could make more money but then i'd have less free time. I like time more than money!
Use your imagination to create income: dehydrating and selling food, selling sage sticks, dreamcatchers, sewing new inventions (how about a combination down jacket/ sleeping bag? Learn to sew would be a high priority i think. Hikers like toys, sell them some.

Programbo

01-14-2006, 20:42

Where did you work?? The only place that I know of that it is possible to track that kind of sales in an accurate way was Galyan's. I worked at Fairlakes for 2 years. $300,000 in 2002, $350,000 in 2003, $400,000 in 2004 and I quit in April. I was on pace in 2004 to be Top Gun, but I wanted more out of the position.

I worked at a large family run camping/army surplus store in Baltimore which has been there about 60 years..I would write down all the stuff I sold in a little notepad during the day and transfer it to notebooks when I got home just for my own personal amusement..Our inventory was insane as we had 3 floors in the building which added up to near 350,000 square feet so they had tents and stuff going back 20 years...On average we`d have 200 tents to choose from..Maybe 130 packs...150 sleeping bags and a countless assortment of one of a kind discontinued stuff..I counted once and we had 15 DIFFERENT versions of the Eureka Timberline tent...There`s probably some Camp 7 sleeping bags and Bishop Ultimate tents down there right now...LOL

Programbo

01-14-2006, 20:43

PS: I`m not talking about "Sunny`s"

ed bell

01-15-2006, 00:09

I am the Executive Director at a theraputic/rehabilitative wilderness camp for incarcerated adolescent boys. I found the job after searching the internet following my '03 AT hike. (I have no doubt my hike helped me land the job.)

I hiked, backpacked and paddled before my job, and am luck enough to be able to do the same at my job.

Because we are a non-profit institution, I do not make a great deal of money; however, my salary fully meets my financial obligations. It helps that I strictly live by the credo "That man is the richest whose pleasures are the cheapest". Beacuse I love gear and being around other adventureers ( who are also my closeest friends), I work 2 weekends a month at the local outfitter in exchange for credit at the store.

My job is everything I thought it would be and much, much more. I gain profound joy from taking an inner city kid who has never been out of his county to mountains and highs that he never knew existed. The most common statement that I hear from them when we are deep in the backcountry is "I feel so safe out here...you don't have to worry about watching your back"...how ironic when they are so many who fear the woods for the opposite reasons.

Many people admire what I do and are inquisitive about the details, but few express an interest to work long hours for meager pay to work with troubled youth that everyone else has give up on. It most certainly is a calling.

I have absolutely no interest in rejioning the corporate world. The only place I'd rather be than at work is on the AT.

Peace and Blessings,
Gutsy 2 (ed bell's wife)
AT '03

We are currently in need of a backpacking/climbing (we have the highest outdoor climbing tower in the southeast and a full high and low ropes course to accompany it)/paddling instructor! Any takers?

Skidsteer

01-15-2006, 10:29

IWe are currently in need of a backpacking/climbing (we have the highest outdoor climbing tower in the southeast and a full high and low ropes course to accompany it)/paddling instructor! Any takers?

Is it a position for all three in one instructor or three separate instructors?

ed bell

01-15-2006, 10:34

Skidsteer....

It is a combined position that includes one or all...hiking/backpacking, climbing, and paddling. It is a very flexible position with the instructor being able to design and implement his or her own curriculum based on his or her own personal strengths and preferences.

Skidsteer

01-15-2006, 10:43

SideWedge

01-16-2006, 16:25

four months of the year i get paid to hike...and build trails! this coming summer will be my fourth year as a trail maintainer, and now i'm just figuring out how to do it 12 months a year

DavidNH

01-16-2006, 18:41

I don't have nor have ever had a hiking/camping related job..but if someone knows how I can make a living by backpacking and hiking in the mountains..I am all ears!

Some folks (ie Keren Berger, Chris Townsend come to mind) have managed to hike all the time and in the off season write books about their exploits and make a good living that way. Sounds wonderful but I bet it is a select few who are able to do this. What an amazing life they have! My ultimate fantasy.

And it seems so many books have been written about the Appalachian Trail..what more is there to say about it that trail? Though I am sure Squeeky could find a nitch for a neat book what with his single year triple crown!

David

general

01-16-2006, 19:12

If convenient, could you PM me with contact info, qualification, etc? I might be interested. Thanks!

i would like the same information as well. could you pm me too please

smokymtnsteve

01-16-2006, 19:35

http://www.coolworks.com/seasonal-pros/jobview.asp?JID=R-LISABUTLER-1/16/2006~b~8:55:56~b~AM

smokymtnsteve

01-16-2006, 19:40

Is looking for someone right now...cook

in the summer would be first in line for the hiking/raft guiding gig

http://www.coolworks.com/coldfootcamp/profile.htm

smokymtnsteve

01-16-2006, 19:42

http://www.trekamerica.com/employment.html

smokymtnsteve

01-16-2006, 19:43

http://www.exposurealaska.com/employment.htm

smokymtnsteve

01-16-2006, 19:50

http://www.steliasguides.com/employment.htm

AbeHikes

01-17-2006, 11:06

http://www.trekamerica.com/employment.html

This one sounds extremely interesting. Anyone have experience with them?

Seeker

01-17-2006, 14:46

I gain profound joy from taking an inner city kid who has never been out of his county to mountains and highs that he never knew existed. The most common statement that I hear from them when we are deep in the backcountry is "I feel so safe out here...you don't have to worry about watching your back"...

my wife works in a local school program, tutoring. there was one kid, a Katrina evacuee, who was overheard saying something to the effect of 'wow! there really ARE stars....' he'd never seen them before, due to the bright lights of the city...

we have a lot of evacuees who say they don't plan on going back, for the 'safety' reason mentioned above.

restless

01-17-2006, 15:43

How did you get hired... or if you're self-employed, how did you get started

I work full time for a trail organization resposible for building a 300+ mile trail in East TN. I have worked in the outdoor industry for going on 9 years, most of that time in trail construction for one organization or another. I started out working for the ATC out of Boiling Springs and then spent 2 years as a full time volunteer for the Forest Service at Mt Rogers.

Did you hike/camp before being on the job?
If so, has it changed your interest in hiking?

I had only hiked for about a year and a half when I started out and had only one somewhat long hike (300 miles) under my belt. I still enjoy hiking but it seems that I can't hike any trail without critiqueing the construction.:p

Does it fully meet your financial obligations?
If not, what do you do to supplement your income?

Tough question. Yes, it does meet my obligations, which are few. However, I cannot, and do not live an extravagant life. I have no bills, no credit cards. Most of the time, the job provides housing and food.

Is it everything you thought it would be?

Definitely, and more so. I have made some of my best friendships through the people I've had the privilege of working with.

Do many people express envy over wanting a job like yours?

Occassionally, until they figure out that they can't get rich doing it.

Do you ever wish you were back at your old job or miss aspects of other jobs (grass is greener symptoms)?

There are occasions when I wish for a more normal situation. Some jobs in this line pay well, others not so well. I wouldn't trade the memories I have for anything.