Two
sets of eyes peered from the cockpit of the green Arctic Tern
N59AT. Sheep hunters' eyes. Scouring the mountains for a trophy
ram.
Bert Flotre and Steve Smith hummed above the Alaska Range
on a Dall sheep scouting mission. These rugged guys, lifelong
Alaskans and hunting buddies since high school, owned Pinnacle
Guide Service. They had clients coming into sheep camp shortly.
They'd check out some peaks, find a gravel bar, sit down for
the night, then head back to Anchorage. It was July 31, 1993.
Bert had closed his flight plan at Paxson. That was the last
anyone heard from the men.
They were down. Word got out.
A search was mounted, coordinated by Bob Hodson, owner of
Barney's Sports Chalet in Anchorage. Hundreds of volunteers
rose to the occasion-private and official aircraft took to
the skies.
Nearly two weeks later a pair of sheep hunters reported the
wreckage of a single engine aircraft on the side of a peak
overlooking Johnson Glacier. The good news was that Bert and
Steve had been found. The bad news was that N59AT had crashed
and burned. The men were dead.
Bert A. Flotre Steven K. Smith
May 30, 1962-July 31, 1993 June 10, 1962-July 31, 1993
Some said their deaths were senseless. That no sheep was worth
it. Maybe. But Bert and Steve pursued what they loved. They
flew those glacier fed valleys and scanned those rock-riddled
peaks basking in the joy of life, liberty and the pursuit
of happiness. They chased their dreams, living life expectantly
and to the fullest.
Bert and Steve's foray into Alaska's wilds is replicated thousands
of times each year. From spring through winter. In all kinds
of weather-sunny, foggy, windy, sleeting and bone chilling
cold. Like thousands before them the world over,
they had gathered around the campfire,
they had drawn deep from its life giving warmth and
they had relished memoried reflections from the flames...
cherishing the camaraderie that the Brotherhood of the Fire
Ring bequeaths. These partners symbolize many who seek the
challenge, adventure, rewards and solace of The Great Land.
Bert and Steve did what lovers of Alaska's outdoors do-get
out and soak up the land, allowing it to become part of them...part
of their experience and their way of life. Bert and Steve
were Brothers of the Fire Ring, sharing our ancestral bond
with generations past...nurturing the coals for generations
to come. They were doing what so many do-going out, savoring
and coming back. But some don't come back.
These partners left this earthly stage together. Predictably
both Bert and Steve desired their earthly remains be spread
over the mountains they loved so dearly. Their temporal lives
are over, but their outdoor spirit lives on. They embody the
hopes and dreams of those seekers of the outdoor experience.
Their love of Alaska's natural surroundings is shared by those
kindred sprits they left behind.
There may be no answer to the question, "Why did it happen?"
Then again the answer could be ours to find as we look within,
asking ourselves if we're a better person today than we were
yesterday...
if we have accepted the call to excellence...
if we have passed on to others our love of nature and our
gratitude for this life...
if we have given our best to point others in the path of the
good things that God has prepared for us...
if we have chosen to give our lives to the best that we can
become in light of out Heavenly Father's love for us...
if we qualify as "Brothers of the Fire Ring."
If we can answer this challenge positively, then the lives
of Bert and Steve have not taken flight in vain, nor shall
ours.
