Looking for some experienced advice

[CanaDave]

Hello and thank you.

I am a Realtor and a dad in Ontario.

My daughter is a graduate of the Forestry program at Lakehead University In Ontario.

She is starting a job in Clearwater BC - Jan 2014 as a forestry technician - doing field work every day.

I have several questions on her behalf. Any help would be appreciated.

Gear ?? What does she need I terms of clothes and footwear.  (Safety green patch yes or no)

What kind of winter suit is typical for this environment ??

Thanks in advance.

Dave.

[sprucebunny]

Welcome to the Forum, CanaDave !

I looked at a map and see that Clearwater is north of Kamloops at the foot of some mountains.

Though I'm not familiar with the climate, I'd suggest very comfortable waterproof boots ( I'd chose Muck boots ) and layers of fleece and windproof pants and jackets.
I work up a sweat in the woods and like fleece as a base layer to keep excess moisture away from my skin.

Hope she has a great time. BC seems like a beautiful place !

[woodenboater]

I'm not a forester but is this a contract or full time job ? Either employer should have a list of requirements of needed equipment or supplied I would think. A friend's daughter was doing work in Alberta re: infestation so I can ask what she had, even though it may not be same job. Minimum I think would be helmet and definitely CSA approved footwear. I'd probably invest in some Dickies or Carhartt coveralls or bibs overalls as well.

btw, LU is a great school, bunch of friends graduated from their Outdoor program.

[mad murdock]

I don't know if she will be issued some gear, or be expected to provide her own- i.e. Clinometer, core boring tool, handheld GPS(plugger), smallish powersaw , etc. or or even a set of snowshoes?  Forestry suppliers is one good source to purchase items, another is Ben Meadows, inc. both have online portals. Good clothes like Filson, or Prison Blues(baileys sells Prison Blues). For Filson, might have to just go to their website. A Filson cruiser vest or Tin Coat is a very nice item(s) to have in the bush. Almost too many things to list... A good machete, even a good quality hand axe(see John Neuman/Autine tools). Another good item to have in BC spring/summer/fall would be a 12 gauge shotgun for bear protection,  Best wishes to you and your family :new_year:

[thenorthman]

good rain gear, Filsons, grundees, you know the expensive stuff, preferably Filson, hard hat unless its supplied which it should be.  Boots good quality boots, preferably calked.  and a mountain of thick wool socks.

layers and more layers of thermal stuff wool, fleece etc.  Kamloops is a few hundred miles north of me, and it is wet and miserable here in the winter, it only gets worse the farther north you go.

As far as special needs equipment, like the clinometer and whatnot, I would imagine that the company would supply at least the basics.

A mid sized saw is a must, trees fall and block roads all the time, she may need to cut her way into a job and then turn around and cut her way out...

[mad murdock]

A mid sized saw is a must, trees fall and block roads all the time, she may need to cut her way into a job and then turn around and cut her way out...

I guess I should have been more specific-by smallish I had in mind 50cc range saw, which to me is smallish, but I guess would be considered mid sized. I always carry a good axe and a decent hand saw, in case the powersaw doesn't work for some reason. Another good thing to look into would be a ram mount setup for a computer in her pickup. Might be a company supplied item?

[celliott]

Definitely two, or three pairs of good quality comfortable waterproof boots, and a boot dryer.
When I was cruising timber this summer I could soak a pair of boots every single day. Then, you gotta go out the next day. You make your living on your feet, take care of them.
Also good wool socks and liner socks.

[ST Ranch]

Dave - Clearwater is located in a fairly wet part of the BC interior and in the winter it gets a fair bit of snow and lots of rain in the other seasons. I expect winter work will require some amount of snow shoe use as well as trudging through moderate levels of snow.
From a clothing perspective [which is usually quite personal] wool has been my preference for 30 years working as a forester and then logger in BC.  Good heavy wool pants [pioneer brand in old days - I think LL Bean has something similar in their hunting cloths] - Army surplus also have good heavy wool pants. This goes along with your choice of wicking away long johns [wool Stanfield's in the old days, but today has some active wear stuff probably good too].
If one is hiking or snow-shoeing, one needs layers on top that can come off while hiking, but go back on when standing around doing any survey plots - again I like a base of wool and outerwear of breathable waterproof.
However – today's active wear clothing has some good stuff too – I am not familiar with it so my fallback is too old fashioned wool [stays warm when wet]
Foot wear again very personal - insulated [thinsulate] 7-10 inch rubber sole/leather upper  snow boot [Gore-Tex lined preferred] with good lace-up support are good for snow-shoeing and/or boot with removable felt liners to help dry overnight. Sorrel makes some good ones.  Redwing,  LL Bean duck boot, Cabella, etc. as well.  Safety toe not needed for tech work unless running power-saw [which I highly dought ?] Also they are very cold and often uncomfortable with snowshoes.  Other safety cloths ???? not needed.
Agree with others regarding good socks – "smart wool" is a brand that I use as well as the old Stanfield's wool/nylon mix. One's feet [boots and sox] are the most important part of your gear so do not go cheap.  Chauk – [cork] boots may be a requirement in the snow free seasons, but again wait till you see local needs.
Agree with others on good raingear, but at this stage I would wait till spring to purchase - see what others in the area use.  Mountain Equipment Coop has good stuff.  Also lots of devils club [thorny underbrush] found in the Clearwater area and in summer, heavy guage raingear might be needed.
IN terms of forestry equipment, most employers should supply snowshoes, axe, power-saw [if needed] data recorders, etc.  Personal equipment should include a cruisers vest, Silva compass [GPS do not always work well in the mountains under the snowy forest canopy], small first aid kit and small survival kit, whistle, folding knife and possibly a clinometer and diameter tape. The last 2 depends on type of work and again suggest waiting till on site to see what is supplied. Same with increment borer – the size of borer depends on what size trees you are working in – & very costly.   A GPS unit is great, but again see what the employer will supply – you want to be compatible to their mapping system to allow you to download/upload maps, data points, etc from their system – Garmin have some good forestry GPS units, but again wait till you see what is needed locally.
Snowshoes are also personal but should be supplied by the employer, but often the latest hired person gets the junk – so again wait till you get to the job site and possibly buy a pair that match your weight and most common snow conditions [I have 4 pairs of snowshoes, each for a different task and snow condition – size and harness vary one each].
Prince George is a town north of Clearwater and has a good forestry supplier called IRL. Also Kamloops to the south [2-3 hrs] is a sizable town for clothing etc., but not great for forestry equipment.
A shotgun is not a requirement IMHO. A can of bear repellant spray is all one needs – Please do not scare your daughter with this one. Common sense has served me well for over 30 yrs with bears [Grizzly included]  Always give bears a wide berth if you encounter one & around Clearwater, keep a vigilant eye out for bears feeding along the Thompson River [and tributaries] in the fall when the salmon are spawning.
Tom

[Mark Wentzell]

Don't wear cotton in the winter, go for fleece or wool. Should also have some sort of fire starting device, just in case she gets stuck somewhere overnight.

[LB Sammy]

When I started in this business almost 20 years ago, I didn't have any equipment.  I grew up in the mountains, and started work on the coastal plain of North Carolina....very different environments.  The best thing I would recommend is warm clothes she can layer, and good boots appropriate for steep ground, waterproof. The other foresters she'll be working with are going to be her best source for advice on clothes, boots, specialized equipment for her area.  Every company I ever worked for provided me with the equipment I needed for the job.  It would be a shame to spend a pile of money on equipment and then find out it wasn't the best for her area.

[cutter88]

im from Ontario as well.. I was born and raised up near north bay Ontario now live in Huntsville.. what part of Ontario r u from?