Special Forces soldiers in Washington state climb mountain for change-of-command ceremony

An Army Special Forces unit based in Washington state managed to include a punishing workout and an assist to the U.S. Forestry Service as part of its recent change-of-command ceremony.

Three dozen soldiers with Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 4th Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), carried 880 pounds of lumber along a 4.3-mile trail to the top of Granite Mountain (elevation: 5,633 feet) as part of the July 7 ceremony, in which Capt. Wesley Wiblin took over for the outgoing boss, Capt. Joseph Bresnahan, according to a unit spokesman.  

The concept came after the Joint Base Lewis-McChord-based unit used Granite Mountain as part of its training, per an Army news release. While coordinating the training, unit leaders found out from Forestry officials that repairs to a fire lookout tower atop the mountain would require large amounts of wood.

"They didn't know how they were going to get the lumber up to the fire tower, so the soldiers from HHD volunteering to help was amazing," Park Ranger Chris Felsted said in the release.  

Each soldier carried a load of about 50 pounds up the trail, per the release, including lumber, food and water.

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