‘Master of my own destiny’

Andrew Vietze ’91 took a leap of faith.

As an editor for Down East Magazine, he’d written extensively about Baxter State Park in Maine, chronicling rescues and the feat of climbing Mount Katahdin. After a while, Vietze couldn’t ignore his desires anymore. He wanted to do more than just write about Baxter, he wanted to become a part of it.

“It was terrifying, frankly, to walk away from a cushy job that was desired by lots of people not knowing how I would fare,” said Vietze, who majored in English and history at Clark. “I knew that I couldn’t sit at a desk anymore and look out the window and live a 7-to-6 workday every day. I knew I wanted to be master of my own destiny.”

For the past 20 years, Vietze has worked as a park ranger in Baxter. He is the author of “This Wild Land: Two Decades of Adventure as a Park Ranger in the Shadow of Katahdin,” which chronicles his life and work as a ranger — from search-and-rescue missions to trail maintenance to cleaning toilets. His other titles include “White Pine,” “Becoming Teddy Roosevelt,” and “Boon Island.”

Challenge. Change. is produced by Melissa Hanson for Clark University. Listen and subscribe on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Find other episodes wherever you listen to podcasts.

Where are they now?
Hear more Clark alumni on Challenge. Change.

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