Today On the Dogwatch it is a tremendous pleasure to be able to talk with John Branson, who was a longtime friend of Richard “Dick” Proenneke, and the one who edited and published his journals over five volumes. John lives in Alaska just a five-minute walk from the Lake Clark visitor center for the National Park Service. The region is known for its incredible natural beauty, and as the home of Dick Proenneke, a man who moved to Alaska and eventually decided to build a cabin by hand and live by himself in the wilderness there.

In our conversation, we talk about how John met Proenneke, who Proenneke was as a person, and how he became known. We also hear stories of what it was like to be on the trail with Proenneke, his self discipline and dedication to his journals, and what we might learn from him.

A passage from Proenneke’s journal can help frame the scene. On July 10, 1978, Proenneke wrote:

“We left our gear on his beach and went scouting for raft logs close to where we hoped to cross. Luck was with us, a good blow down tree and a few dead ones still standing. I would chop out some raft logs while John got supper. The blow down still some what green and heavy. I doubted it would carry much load. I dropped a good solid dead one to go with it. By the time he called “soups on” I had the logs ready for the beach. A good meal…”

From: Branson, John, More Readings from One Man’s Wilderness: The Journals of Richard L. Proenneke 1974-1980. US Dept. of Interior.

When Lieutenant Commander Ike boards the USS Wasp, the lead amphibious assault ship in the U.S. Navy, people notice.

He’s truly unlike any other sailor but immediately commands respect. And we wouldn’t suggest directing any kind of slight at Ike, especially around the Wasp’s crew, which when full is over 3000 people. It’s true, LCDR Ike walks on four feet, chases a ball, and sometimes gets into mischief. He even pees on the deck, which is his unique right on board. But LCDR Ike provides his own significant service to the ship, which is obvious when he’s with the crew and is now even backed by rigorous studies.

Today On the Dogwatch we have the pleasure of talking with Brooke Corson, a former drill sergeant and combat specialist in the U.S. Army who founded Mutts With A Mission. A dog trainer since she was young, Brooke founded Mutts With A Mission to train and provide service dogs to support military veterans, police and first responders, and now also Expeditionary Facility Dogs on Navy ships.

In our conversation, we learn about Brooke’s unique background and training, the founding and “Mission” behind the organization, and learn what goes into training a true service dog. We of course also spend time on Brooke’s work in developing the Expeditionary Facility Dog program, and get to know LCDR Ike and what his life and service are like.

This is not one to miss, so let’s get on board with Mutts with a Mission.

There are a lot of ways of getting around in the natural world, from hiking to canoeing to biking to swimming. Parachuting is one that few of us have experience with, but is an important historical and current mode of travel. Fortunately, today we have on the podcast someone who has firsthand experience and is the author of two books that relate to paratroopers in WWII.

In our conversation, we talk with James Fenelon about his background in the military and in using parachutes, the idea of using a parachute as a tool for travel in military combat and how that has changed, as well as the historical stories of paratroopers that James has written about in both Angels Against the Sun and Four Hours of Fury. Ultimately, James uses the stories of real people and their experiences to contextualize some very important moments in our history. And what are those paratrooper boots and who gets to where them? James answers all of our questions.