I liked the idea of working outside, using my body and my mind together. I haven't been disappointed! Land surveying can be very physical work, but there is a strong intellectual and technological component as well.

I think that people can get caught up in the "gee-whiz" technology of surveying, which is constantly changing, and forget about the legal aspects and the professional responsibility that surveyors bear - something that hasn't changed much at all in hundreds of years.

Some field days can be tough. I've worked inside fuel tanks with 3 foot ceilings, in -42 to +42 Celsius temperatures, in snow and smoke and hail, and I've dug through snow and ice and pavement to find legal evidence. I've worked clear through the night by headlamp, and I've flown in a rickety long-islander with propane tanks strapped into the other seats. I've jury-rigged missing equipment, broken into my own truck, and cut out an emergency helicopter pad with a machete. I've been hungry, cold, tired, lost, injured, and downright hopeless!

A lot of people don't think much about what land surveyors do. In a nutshell, we are the interpreters and providers of landmarks and records that directly impact real property.

Building smart processes to streamline the workflow can make the work easier and the results more reliable, which keeps my head above water and my clients happy.

Legal land surveyors are few and far between and can find themselves in demand.

I liked the idea of working outside, using my body and my mind together. I haven't been disappointed! Land surveying can be very physical work, but there is a strong intellectual and technological component as well.