JEFFERSON COUNTY —Anyone who’s worked at the same place for more than 30 years should love what they do. Jefferson County Open Space ranger Mark Oline fits in that category.
“It’s hard not to love this job,” Oline said.
Oline is one of 12 full-time rangers (and three part-timers during the summer) who spend their time outside at the 28 Jefferson County Open Space parks. In Oline’s 32 years, the rangers have focused on many areas of education and outreach for park users, and this spring and summer will be no different.
This year, Open Space rangers are focusing on informing users about muddy trail etiquette in the spring, raptor area closures and pet safety.
Two dogs died on trails last year, said visitor services supervisor Mary Ann Bonnell. Starting this summer, rangers will set up informational spaces for a program called “hot dogs,” educating people on what their dogs will need on a hike, especially water.
“If you need water, they need water,” ranger Shaun Howard said.
Oline says he carries extra water and more often than not, will give to a dog rather than a person.
Hiking etiquette suggests that park users stay on a trail when it’s muddy, otherwise the trail ends up widening and becoming less aesthetic.
Raptor closures occur during nesting season so people don’t disturb the environment. Most other issues vary from park to park.
At South Valley Park in the Ken-Caryl area, there are rock formations that are off-limits, but rangers typically find people climbing on them. They are asked to stay away for safety reasons. Bonnell broke the rangers’ jobs down to the most basic areas of visitor safety and maintaining the beauty of the parks.
Rangers can issue tickets to patrons in violation of park rules. The most common violations are for illegal parking and dogs off leash.
“There’s those two, and then an enormous gap, and then other types of tickets,” Bonnell said.
Rangers can also issue a written warning that gets a person into the ranger system so a ranger can check if the person had been previously warned.
Howard said the education component is more important than writing a ticket, and she prefers that method to just writing a ticket with little explanation. But she will write one if necessary.
“You’re gonna get a lot more compliance from people if you actually give them reasons why,” Howard said. “If you get that buy-in, they’re more likely to do the right thing when they’re not being watched.”
The rangers also have a pool of about 140 volunteers who can help provide information at each of the Open Space parks. Those volunteers are trained to give instructions but not confront rule breakers. They are asked to call for rangers if the situation is untenable.
“They’re the best,” Jeffco Open Space director Tom Hoby said of the volunteers. “They’re just an awesome group of people and it’s so cool to have volunteers we have and the enthusiasm we have.”
Hoby also praised his Open Space rangers for the work and the service they provide to people who go to Open Space’s 53,000 acres of parkland and 230 miles of trails.
“They can provide a lot of great information to folks so they can have a safe and enjoyable experience,” he said.
Oline, who started as a ranger in 1983, said the job is still challenging to the point where he sees something new fairly often.
He quipped: “It seems like every couple weeks, someone mentions something when we’re outside that hasn’t come up before.”
Joe Vaccarelli: 303-954-2396, jvaccarelli@denverpost.com or
