So when she came across a friend’s Instagram post about a women in a wildland firefighting bootcamp, she thought to herself, “Wow, this is perfect.” Over two weekends in Vale, Oregon ...

When Mikaela Balkind trained to become a wildland firefighter, she knew she was signing up for a physically- and mentally-demanding job — and in a male-dominated industry.

So when she came across a friend’s Instagram post about a women in wildland firefighting bootcamp, she thought to herself, “Wow, this is perfect.” Over two weekends in Vale, Oregon ...

(BLM Oregon and Washington/Wikimedia Commons) Kathleen Shannon March 26, 2025 - Wildland firefighting is a tough job and the industry has long struggled with worker retention. Training boot camps have ...