Who took my wool socks?!
They're in the wash!
Help, Mike! Pencil
stealer, come here, will ya?
Aw, come on, you
guys, get out of my room.
Hey, you're messing up my stuff.
Come on, Chip, Robbie,
will you get out of...
All right, you guys,
now cut out all the noise
and play your children's
games in your own room!
Now, come on, cut the noise out!
You know, Mike might
find out how quiet it is
around here if he dropped
in some time when he's away.
Boy, you're sure right, Bub.
The older I get, the less
patience I have with children.
I can't take it anymore.
Don't they ever grow up?
All right, you guys, quit
playing with my ooga horn
or I'll lock my room
while I'm gone.
See what I mean, Dad?
Well, Mike, old-timer,
when you're up in that
fire lookout this summer,
you won't have to worry
about the, uh, "children"
playing with your ooga horn.
I'm not going to
take it with me.
No?
What are you going to do
when things get dull up there?
Dull? Are you
kidding? In a fire tower?
In the middle of
all that excitement?
What excitement, Mike?
Well, bears and mountain
lions and wildcats.
And chipmunks.
Yeah, all kinds of wild animals.
I better take my snake bite kit.
You're not going
to find it in there.
You know, Mike, it's not going
to be all excitement up there.
Oh, I know Dad, but
when we're not busy
protecting government
property or fighting forest fires
or climbing down some
deep canyon to rescue hikers...
What are they doing down there?
They're lost, what do you think?
Oh...
Well, Joe and I'll
probably be fishing
at the creek having
a bull session.
Uh, what creek?
And, uh, what are you
looking for in there, Mike?
Your sweat socks. Oh.
There's bound to be a creek.
Who's Joe?
Joe Mitchell... Dad's
old air force buddy.
You know him.
No, I don't know him. Do you?
Well, not yet, but I
will after spending
a whole summer with him
in a fire tower, huh, Dad?
Yeah. Oh, thanks.
Oh, you mean that guy you're
going to do all the fishing with
in one of those creeks you're
going to find up there, maybe.
Very funny.
How about laughing your
way down to the clothes hamper
with those sheets
you just stepped over?
Boy, will I be glad to
get up in the wilderness.
At least there they
treat you like a man.
Boy, life's funny.
That's just the way
Joe Mitchell talked
when he joined our
squadron over in England.
Treats you like a man...
How does he think
I'm treating him?
Everything was always
going to be high adventure
and big excitement for Joe.
I've been treating
him like a man
ever since he was a baby.
Then he found out
that flying was just
hours and hours of boredom.
Punctuated by
moments of sheer panic.
How am I going to get along
without that kid
all summer long?
Talk about being
wet behind the ears.
I know the Forest Service
wants to keep the forest green,
but do they want their
employees the same way?
Well, we were
green once, too, Bub.
We haven't always been
quite as ripe as we are now.
Oh, yeah?
I've been ripe for so
long, I'm darn near rotten.
Boy, isn't this
country the greatest?!
Nature in the raw,
huh, Mr. Mitchell?
Yeah, I guess you
could call it that.
I'm sure looking forward
to seeing the tower.
How much farther is it?
About 500 feet.
That way?
That way.
You mean, that's it?
That's where we're going?
That's it.
Hey, that's even higher than
I thought it was going to be.
Boy, what a spot!
And there we'll be.
Watchdogs of the wilderness.
Perched up there like eagles
over all of nature's
mighty forces.
Ready to swoop down any minute
and challenge those who disobey.
Boy, talk about a
subject for a book.
Ouch.
One of nature's mighty forces.
Boy, that's quite a climb.
Boy...
A guy ought to have a
parachute going up there.
You want to go first?
After you, mighty eagle.
Yeah.
Okay.
Well, here goes nothing.
Well, we made it!
Oh, I'm sorry.
Boy, talk about
reaching majestic heights!
Ten miles above the
petty world of man!
5,240 feet.
Yeah.
Hello, birds!
It's really blowing
up here, isn't it?
About average.
Hat's it like in a
really high wind?
You feel it.
I mean, it-it would never...
Oh, we haven't lost a tower
since, uh, the wooden one
over at Cedar Point
went over 25 years ago.
No kidding?
Well, what happened
to the guys inside?
Oh, boy, if the guys back
home could only see this.
Those poor characters
stuck all summer long
in a town where nothing happens.
I mean nothing.
That's yours.
This place is like an outpost.
An outpost in space!
Hey, I bet I'd feel
like Scott Crossfield
in his X-15 as he
zoomed through...
Hey, wh-what's wrong?
The tower's moving.
Well, it sways a
little in the wind.
Yeah.
That's Mother Nature's
warning, isn't it?
The pulsating reminder
of ever present danger.
You can't see it,
you can't hear it,
but you can feel it.
Here.
Yeah, it's here.
It's all around us.
It's a quiet kind of danger.
You site through
this firefinder.
Get the smoke, set
it in the crosshairs.
Then you take a reading
off the outside circle.
That gives you the
direction and degrees
of the fire from this point.
Then you pick up the
phone, give the information
to the Ranger's
station in Silver Springs.
By the way, don't
answer the phone
unless you hear our
ring... Two longs, one short.
I'll fill you in on the
details as we go along.
Well, we're in business.
I'll flip you for
the first watch.
You can take it.
Hey, that's great.
Oh, and now that
we know each other,
I want you to know,
I know there are
a lot of things I don't know.
Of course, I know you'll
have to help me out,
but I want to do my share.
I mean, I don't want you to make
things easy on me, Mr. Mitchell.
All right.
Oh, thanks... Joe.
You're welcome... Mike.
Hey, what's that
over in the canyon?
Is that smoke?
A little haze.
Wind stays pretty much the same.
It doesn't change much.
Nope.
The temperature's
about the same, too.
Yup... weather's still good.
I suppose it's like this for a
couple of weeks and then...
Fow! everything happens at once.
I guess I'll write a letter.
Uh, talk about excitement,
this is it. Whoa! You did it!
Quiet, you guys,
for Pete's sake!
Don't you want to
hear Mike's letter?
Yeah, we're listening.
"We never know from
one minute to the next
"just what's going to happen.
- Whoa!
That's it!
Uh, "Being on, uh, fire lookout
emergencies, we never can tell
"what's going to happen
"and there's really
something doing all the time
and we've got to be on..."
Quiet, will you, Tramp?
We've really got
to be on our toes."
It makes living down
here seem pretty quiet.
Huh?
I said, it makes living
down here seem pretty quiet!
Come on, let's
do it right this time.
Tramp, sit down
here and keep quiet.
Hey, no water!
Something's happened!
Belt slipped off the pump.
Here, take over.
Yeah.
I wonder how that happened.
Boy, I sure hope
Joe can fix that.
I'd hate to be up
here without water.
Well, we'll just have
to carry it up by hand.
So, no problem.
Boy, wait'll I tell Dad
that we had to carry
our drinking water up
from the spring by hand.
Hello!
Anybody up there?!
Hi!
Hi!
How's the weather up there?
Oh, it's great!
Stick around, I'm coming down!
Imagine living up there.
Yeah. Boy, what a great
place to spend the summer.
He's cute!
Look, sis, so far today you've
said that about two rangers,
three hikers, and a
middle-aged fisherman.
Shh! What a
terrible thing to say.
Hi. Hi. Hi.
Boy, am I glad to see
some real live human beings.
Welcome to Needle Point.
We just hiked over the pass.
Oh, you going to Silver Springs?
No, no, we're headed
for Thunder Rock.
Well, you're-you're
going the wrong direction.
Your trail turns off at the
spring you just passed.
Oh, no.
Do you spend the
whole summer up there?
I sure do.
Say, you want to
come up and see it?
Love to.
But we can't... not
if we're going to get
to Thunder Rock in time
to meet Mom and Dad.
Oh, gee, it'll only
take five minutes.
No, come on.
We'll practically
have to run as it is.
Run?
But I'm tired.
You were tired
when we left home.
Come on.
Well... Here, I'll
show you the way.
You can see it
from right over here.
Boy, take it from me...
Never go hiking with a
woman, especially your sister.
I'd love to go up and
see what it's like up there.
Oh, it's a terrific spot.
Gets pretty exciting sometimes.
Like today... ran
right out of water.
Mike!
Hey, Douglas!
Yeah!
That's Joe Mitchell, my partner.
Be right there, Joe!
Got a couple of
lost hikers here.
Just showing them down
to the Thunder Rock trail.
They can find it themselves!
Get up here!
Just a second, Joe!
Right now!
Well, I better get up there.
It sounds like
another emergency.
Gee, I hope it isn't serious.
Well, you... you never know.
Your, uh, your trail
takes off right down there.
Oh, thanks.
Nice to have met
you. Same to you.
Now, stay on the trail,
and be careful
of your campfires.
So long.
Bye.
Sorry, Joe. I had a
couple of lost hikers.
Let's go.
Now, look...
I know it's been
tough on you up here.
You're lonely, bored
and disappointed.
But you took a man's job,
and you're going to do
it like a man or get out.
Now the next time
you leave this tower
when you're on
watch, just keep going.
We found the trail!
Have a good
summer, you lucky guy!
Who's Al? Who?
What?
Al. Al Who?
"Dear Dad, Bub and Al..."
Let me see that.
That's "Dear Dad, Bub and all."
Oh. A, double-L. All.
Hey, is that letter from
Mike? Let me see it, Chip.
I'll read it to you. Are you
kidding, that'll take all day.
"Dear Dad, Bub and
all..." Give it to me, will ya?
Hey, come on, you little squirt.
Come here, you two!
Bring that back here.
Come here. Come here. Whoa!
Give me that letter, doggone it.
Maybe your Dad
would like to read
Mike's letter in one
piece for a change.
Sit down. Listen
to it. Yeah. Yeah.
"Dear Dad, Bub, and Al..."
I mean, "All."
Uh... "How's Robbie doing
with his trumpet lessons?
"Tell him to stick with it.
The kid's got a lot of talent."
Are you sure that
letter's from Mike?
Maybe the altitude
is getting him, huh?
Yeah, maybe.
"What's Chip doing?
Still drawing pictures?
Ask him to draw one of
Tramp and send it to me."
It sure doesn't sound like Mike.
Yeah. Maybe he's
sick or something.
Well, the darned kid
doesn't say a word about
what he's doing up there.
22... 23... 24... Gotta
stay in condition.
Not gonna get flabby.
That's the great thing
about this darn job...
you can't tell the difference
between being on
duty and off duty.
Locked up in these
same four walls...
24 hours...
four hours on and
four hours off...
for four weeks... and what for?
Ow!
Now that really hurt.
Well, that's what I get for
trying to stay in condition.
Aw, the heck with it.
I'll just get fat and flabby.
Who cares?
Nobody sees me up here anyway.
Like a couple of
monkeys in a cage.
We think we're so smart.
Well, we're not!
Monkeys in a cage.
Ever since I was a kid,
they told me if I did
that, I'd get big knuckles.
Well, they're wrong.
They don't look so big to me.
See?
What do you think?
Well, I don't think
much of anything.
Oh, hi. What are
you doing up here?
Oh, I just thought I'd drop in
and see how things were going.
Oh, just fine.
Nice weather, isn't it?
Yes, it's nice and warm.
Mm-hmm. Yes!
Shh!
What's the matter?
We don't want to talk too loud.
We might disturb Joe.
Well, I'm sorry, but
every once in a while
a guy wants to talk to somebody.
Well, there is one thing
I've learned this summer.
I'm man enough to admit it, too.
You know what it is I
learned this summer?
That I'm man enough to admit?
Okay, I'll tell you.
You don't like me.
You just plain don't like me.
What do you think of that?
Well, all right, if you...
if you don't like me,
why don't you get rid of me?
If I had some green kid
working for me,
and hated his guts,
I-I'd get rid of him,
I'd fire him, yes, sir.
That's what I'd do.
I'd tell him to pack up his bags
and get out the first
thing in the morning.
Why aren't you man
enough to fire me?
Here. Take over.
Go on. I'm giving you
your chance. Fire me!
I'm gonna go down to the river,
check the level.
All right, if you
don't fire me, I quit!
Did you hear me, Joe?
I quit!
Said, did you hear
me, Joe? I quit.
I'm walking right out of here.
Yeah, I heard you.
Okay, but I suggest you do it
after the storm.
Storm?
What storm?
Joe? Joe?! Joe!
Joe?!
Needle Point Lookout.
Douglas here.
Douglas?
This is Parker down
at Silver Springs.
How you doing up there?
It's-It's really blowing.
Our power's off...
but we're still here.
That's the stuff!
Stick with it, boy!
Check you later.
"And maybe you and
Chip can spend a few days
"up here at the end of summer.
"Now that I've finally let
Joe get a word in edgewise,
he's been telling me about..."
Edgewise? What's that mean?
It means shut up and listen.
"He's been telling me
"about some caves
around here we can explore.
We had a little..."
Hey, neat! Let me see!
"We had a little
storm last night.
Nothing much.
Wind blew a little."
"But we had a storm last
night, the worst in 25 years,
"and Mike was
alone in the tower.
"I was stuck down at the river
"and couldn't get back,
but I knew what it was like
"in that tower with a
70-mile wind blowing.
Mike must've been scared green."
Boy, I'll bet he was, huh?
"And another thing.
"I'm finally beginning
"to find the ex...
ex..."
Excitement, dumbo.
Now, give it here, will you?
Hey, what did you get in
reading last time anyhow?
"A."
Boy. Grammar school
sure is a snap nowadays.
Wasn't like that
when I was a kid.
"to find the excitement...
"that I was looking for.
"And they aren't
the storms and fires,
"and big adventures
I look forward to.
"The real excitements up here
"are the sunrises
and the sunsets, and...
"Animals and..."
Wait. "Animals and..."
"and trees, and the
wildflowers and the..."
"Just do me one favor, Steve.
"Never tell Mike that it
was I who phoned the tower
"at the height of the storm.
"I called from the
field phone at the river,
"and said I was
Parker at Silver Springs.
"Remember the time in
England during the blitz
when you called me in
the airfield control tower?"
Well, now, don't stop there.
I'm sorry. I was
just thinking, Bub.
"That was the night
I was so scared,
"I was ready to pack up and run.
"I hope I have
returned the favor.
Regards from your friend Joe."
Oh, quite a letter.