National Wilderness Month on September, 2024: how do i get a wilderness camping permit?

September, 2024 is National Wilderness Month 2024. Pew Applauds Presidential Proclamation of National Wilderness Month “By proclaiming September as National Wilderness Month, President Obama is

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Start with picking where as that is where you get the permit from. Each national forest regulates it's own wilderness area's some charge a fee for the permit some don't. Some you have to get your permit 6 months in advance because of the popularity. "Wilderness" camping is but one option there is also "dispersed" camping. Here you have more options and no permit is required, well except for a fire permit perhaps, and no fee's are charged and no early reservations needed.

Have you been in the National Guard before?

I served in the Army National Guard for a few years. I enjoyed my service and have no complaints about how I was treated.

We drilled one weekend each month (saturday and sunday), and between two and three weeks in the summer. The weekend drills were either at our armory, or in the field (state parks and wilderness areas) all within 100 miles of our armory. And although I was in the Indiana Army National Guard, our summer training was held in Indiana, Michigan and Missouri. Once we were scheduled for Germany, but that got cancelled.

The trainings are no different than the Regular Army. Out in the field, we are either peforming our Military Occupational Specialties, learning other military skills, or participating in war games. If you enjoy camping and being outdoors in the woods, then this could be a pleasant experience for you. The worst times for me was during and after a rain when everything gets wet.

Not many people realize that when you join the National Guard, you sign two contracts. One is the state contract to serve your state in their National Guard. The other is a federal contract to serve the United States of America in their U.S. Army Reserve. If a national war was declared, the federal government could activate your unit as an Army Reserve unit. If a natural disaster occurs in your state, your state's governor could activate your unit to serve as part of the Indiana National Guard.

My Army National Guard division had units spread out in two states. When you enlist, you can be assigned to any unit in the state where you joined. When it comes time for a transfer, you will also remain in the state where you joined. Remember, your state contract limits you to serve in any unit within that state.

If you don't believe me, look at the tag above the left pocket on the battle dress uniform. It indicates "U.S. Army" and not "National Guard". Also, you will also notice that your paychecks for weekend drills and summer training come from the federal government. The only time the paychecks come from your state is when your state activates you for a disaster.

During the time that I served, there was only one natural disaster where the Governor activated the Indiana National Guard. But he only activated certain units and asked for volunteers instead of the entire unit.

If you quit, you are considered Absent Without Leave, just like in the Regular Army. Therefore, it is possible to end up in jail.

National Geographic jobs?

Organizations like National Geographic have some paid staff, mostly for editing and publishing the magazines they produce. If you notice, most of the articles are written by people who are NOT employees of the magazine but are journalists, photographers and researchers who are either associated with institutions such as government agencies, foundations and universities or are independent "contractors" who sell their stories to publications. National Geographic sponsors the expeditions and investigations of some of these individuals through grants. Their very small core of staff photographers and field people are only those who are among the very best in the world in their chosen craft.

If that sort of thing interests you, you should be pursuing a degree, probably at least a Master's or PhD eventually in one of the sciences that attracts you OR studying journalism or photojournalism. There are a number of college programs now that specialize in wilderness documentary film-making which would be a good place to start. If you live in a city with any kind of museum, especially natural history, get involved as a volunteer. You would need to be very experienced and somewhat of an expert in your field to work with or for National Geo.

If you want a taste of life as a field researcher, check out

With this organization you pay to be part of the research staff on real scientific expeditions in the US and around the world, in everything from tracking dolphins and studying rain forest plants to excavating archaeology sites. You live in a field camp, sometimes in dorms but more often in tents, for two weeks usually. You have to be at least 16 and they do have some scholarships available. Even if you or your parents pay for it, most of the cost is tax deductible because you are "donating" your time and money to support non-profit research. It would be an excellent way to gain experience and see how you like that sort of work. It can be challenging, sometimes uncomfortable and tiring, but it can also be the most fun and rewarding "vacation" you can possibly have and would enhance your resume in working towards an education and experience in scientific research and reporting.

If you are interested in Antarctica, there are 100s of jobs there every Fall that last about 4 months. Raytheon Polar Services has a contract with the National Science Foundation to support the researchers working there with everything from maintainence on snowmobiles to food service workers in the station cafeteria. Check out their employment website.

They have job fairs around the country (check the schedule at the site) and this is around the time of year they are recruiting for the summer polar season of October to February (which is winter up here in the US). Depending on what you do, the pay isn't huge but they pay your transportation down there and you get free room and board. And how cool would that be to tell your friends you worked in Antarctica (even if all you did was clean bathrooms or make sandwiches)? It would still be an excellent introduction to living and working in a remote area and you could eventually work your way up to more interesting positions in later years since they prefer to re-hire.