Wilderness rangers know the backcountry terrain of the North Cascades National Park like the back of their hands.

The rangers serve as backcountry experts by assisting park visitors with trip planning, monitoring impacts of trail and mountain conditions and educating visitors about protecting the wilderness landscape during their trip.

Rangers also track the amount of people venturing into the wilderness for overnight stays and mountain climbs to maintain a sense of solitude for visitors and lessen the impact of foot traffic on fragile areas of the park.

“We want people to come out from the backcountry with a good impression of the park and of the people who work here,” said Wilderness Ranger Kevork Avackellian.

About 15 seasonal rangers work out of the wilderness information center in Marblemount from May to September when a majority of visitors explore the park.

Wilderness rangers patrol a majority of the national park, which consists of about 400 miles of trails.

“It’s a big park and it takes a long time to get to know the backcountry of the park and be able to help visitors plan their trip,” Avackellian said, who has worked at the national park for six years.

Talking to wilderness rangers who have first-hand knowledge of the park is something park visitors find to be a valuable part of their visit, said Kelly Bush, the park’s wilderness district ranger.

She has worked in the wilderness sector at the North Cascades National Park for over 20 years. As a wilderness district ranger, Bush coordinates all search and rescue missions and aviation for the whole park and supervises wilderness ranger staff, among other managerial duties.

The two main responsibilities of the wilderness rangers is to protect the national park’s visitors and its resources, Bush said. In order to meet those responsibilities the rangers are assigned slightly different roles.

The park has eight wilderness rangers who primarily work in the wilderness office answering visitor questions, assisting with trip plans and educating visitors about decreasing their impact in the wilderness during their stay.

The other seven rangers work primarily in the field ensuring people are safe and following park regulations. They also monitor trail conditions and respond to search and rescue emergencies.

In addition, four of the backcountry rangers serve as climbing rangers. Their duties, in addition to those of a backcountry ranger, include monitoring the safety of mountain climbers, the conditions of popular climbing routes and other less-frequented areas of the park where no trails may exist.

However, backcountry rangers are required to spend time in the wilderness office while rangers from the wilderness office spend time working in the field.

“(The wilderness office) tries to mix it up so we’re more knowledgeable on all aspects of the park,” said Erin McKay, one of the park’s wilderness backcountry/climbing rangers.

All wilderness rangers are required to have some Emergency Medical Technician training, Bush said. The backcountry/climbing rangers have additional training to help them prepare for responding to emergencies in mountainous areas.

The work required of a wilderness ranger is similar to what most of them do on their spare time. Many of rangers enjoy backpacking along trails for extended periods of time or mountain climbing.

“You can’t go wrong being able to climb mountains for your job,” said Rob Burrows, a backcountry/climbing ranger, who is completing his first season with the wilderness office.

Burrows said he also enjoys educating park visitors about protecting the wilderness and assisting with search and rescue missions — which he participated in a few times over the summer.

Although working as a wilderness ranger has many positive aspects, there are some realities to the backcountry that can be unnerving.

When someone becomes injured in an accident, the reality sets in that the victim was participating in an activity similar to “what we’re doing on our free time,” McKay said.

Seeing those accidents first hand and helping the person involved with the accident can be “chilling,” she said.

Aside from some of the emotional and physical challenges of the job, most wilderness rangers find it to be satisfying.

Several rangers said part of what makes the job fulfilling is knowing they are doing their part to protect the wilderness landscape of the North Cascades.

“I feel really in love with the North Cascades as a mountain range and as a park,” Bush said. “I find it’s a special place than any other park I’ve been to.”