Erwin Hertz: Farming Logs in Alaska

I was born in Montana in 1936. I always wanted to be a mountain man. I didn’t like civilization. I graduated in 1956 and enlisted in the Navy. I didn’t tell my dad I was joining up. We had five farms. One morning I came downstairs, after I had milked the cows, with my casual clothes on and my ditty bag. My dad said, “Where are you going?” I told him, I joined the Navy.  I thought he was going to kill me right there. He said, “Well, you could have joined up in the fall when the summer work was done.”

I went to San Diego to boot camp. The Navy was desperate for electricians so I went to ET school. In my off duty time, I studied electrical engineering and wiring. I was discharged...

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