I often monitor some very little used frequenices programmed into natural resource agency radios when I'm in the range of simplex communications between lookout facilites. If the lookouts are remote and difficult to get to requiring the person to live there for periods of several weeks they often don't get to speak to anyone but other lookouts. Cell phones have cut down on much of the communications on these "obscure" frequencies, but many lookouts are located beyond the reach of cell phones and often are in locations where keeping cell phone batteries charged for an entire tour is not easy.
In 1980 the Cibola National Forest replaced their radio system with a multi channel system with microwave linked sites and about a dozen repeaters. The Forest Net was the one with repeaters, there was an additional frequency which could be used as a tactical or command with base stations using linked remote bases to communicate with field units, and a special tactical or work channel that the remote bases could not receive but could be used for one way transmissions to the field. The purpose of this "channel 4" being set up this way was to keep this a field only channel that base stations could not utilize except if they could not get a hold of a unit on any other channel and the situation was urgent. They would then make a one way broadcast asking a unit to switch to one of the other channels.
The field radios and many of the base stations located in lookouts and remote stations did not scan. So most of the field units kept their radios on the Forest Net unless an incident required the use of the other channels. If we passed someone on the road and wanted to have a semi-private conversation with them while mobile we used to hold up four fingers so we did not alert anyone over the air that we were going to switch to channel four. Even with this in mind we figrured that there was a remote chance someone would hear us so we kept the conversation content of such a nature that it would not do damage to anyone. The possibility of a scanner owner hearing us was low as there were not a lot of programmable scanners out there at the time with their search functions and organizations that published the results of searches were not widespread. So the public's knowledge of the frequenices added to our new system was going to take quite a while to grow.
When I first had this explained to me the first thing I thought was channel 4 would become the "lookout chit chat channel." Even though I did not have much space in my 10 channel Bearcat 210 at the time, I made sure I made channel 4 a part of my permanent program. I lived on the ranger station compound of another ranger district on the Cibola located about 75 to 100 miles from the closest of two lookouts on an adjacent district. About a week after the radio system was nearly complete I heard these two lookouts talking late one night. The ranger district office for these two lookouts is located in a small town in western New Mexico that had a very large 4th of July celebration every year with a parade, BBQ, dances, carnival, mud vollyball, skinniest legs contests, tug of wars, fireworks, and all of the neat events small town America has on the 4th.
These lookouts assumed that since the base stations could not receive them and that everyone was off duty that night, that they could speak with complete freedom, with the operative word here being "complete." Both lookouts were staffed by female employees who proceeded to talk about the guys who asked them out to the various 4th of July events. They began to compare notes on the guys they didn't like who asked them out and about the guys who didn't but they wished did. Their descriptions of the various guys and what they imagined they would do with the guys they really wished had asked them out are best related as being "graphic." The longer this went on and the later it got the more graphic the conversation became. I finally turned off the scanner around midnight and would not have listened that long unless I had the following day off. My wife and I just looked at each other with surprise as this whole event transpired.
Did I verify my thoughts about channel 4 becoming the lookout chit chat channel and keep it a secret? Keep in mind the terrain of New Mexico, which is best described as "island in the sky" topography. That is the state consists of a lot of high elevation plains with small, isolated, high elevation mountain ranges scattered about the western 2/3 of the state. Those mountain ranges were often National Forest land and many of them had lookouts on them. The ability to communicate between lookouts on simplex was incredible. Distances of 150 to 250 miles were involved. A scanner owner located between these points could often hear both sides of the conversation. With that in mind, and the image of the agency as a factor, I reluctantly reported the incident to management. It took about two days for the message to reach the two woman involved as I heard them talking the next night, but on the following night things became very quiet on the chit chat channel.
The location of these two lookouts are well covered by cell phone systems now so the likelihood of a similar situation like this is almost null. If you find yourself in a remote location such as the mountains of central Idaho (insert the MacGruder road or the middle fork of the Salmon River), the likelihood is higher, but with so many hand held scanners out there, so many sources of frequency information being available, and agency radios equipped with scanning features, the era of juicy lookout chit chat is probably over.
First a little back ground. Engine1 had just returned from a fire and was loading hose back on the engine. Half of the required hose was loaded when another call came in for a structure fire. Engine 1 responded, but not before telling the dispatcher about the hose situation.
