Filmmaker Brian Bolster profiles a fire lookout named Lief Haugen, who has worked at a remote outpost of Montana's Flathead National Forest since the summer of 1994. It's a lonely job, Haugen explains, but the perks are unlike anything you'll find in a city. "To be a lookout, you really have to love solitary time by yourself," he says. "This is a reminder of keeping it simple. It's just me and this place and the work."

If you'd like to learn more about the life of a fire lookout, I recommend you read Fire Season: Field Notes From a Wilderness Lookout by Phillip Connors. It's a lovely book. You may also enjoy this short documentary about the science of fighting wildfires.

^{Via Aeon Video}