Sophomore Robert Wolfe on his embracement of nature and frontiersmanship

Sophomore Robert Wolfe calls himself a frontiersman. Frontiersman is defined by Merriam-Webster as, “a person who lives or works on a frontier.” Frontier is defined as, “a region that forms the margin of settled or developed territory.” But how does Wolfe define frontiersman?

Wolfe defines a frontiersman as someone who is a “trail-blazer” and prefers to take their own path rather than following an existing one. He said, “I would refer to myself as a hiker, but a hiker is someone who follows the trail. I’m a frontiersman and I reckon that I’m the one who makes the trails.”

Specifically, Wolfe identifies the activities of a frontiersman as exploration-based. Wolfe said, “Frontiersman like making trails, walking trails and just exploring areas that ain’t nobody has walked before. It’s a really fun experience because you know you’re probably going to find something or uncover something that’s been lost for a really long time.”

Sophomore Maximus McTaggart said, “I’ve known Robert since the beginning of the school year. He is like Dwight Schrute from the office and he is the coolest person in our school. His frontiersmanship is gnarly.” 

Some of Wolfe’s non-outdoor-related pastimes include going to the gym and playing guitar. However, Wolfe estimates that he spends approximately 60 percent of his free time outdoors.

Wolfe said, “Being in nature, doing anything in nature, climbing trees, digging holes for no reason. They’re frontiersman activities. I like doing them.”

Wolfe didn’t always consider himself a frontiersman. He said, “I realized that I was a frontiersman when people started calling me one. When I was doing what I did I didn’t even know the word ‘frontiersman.’ I was just hiking barefoot through uncharted territory but as I got more and more educated off of books I read and such, it occurred to me that I was a frontiersman. It’s what I am.”

Wolfe believes that he is continuing the legacy of frontiersmen before him. He said, “I followed the many great past American frontiersmen. I followed Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett. I followed all them great men who had come and discovered our country and mapped it out. I’m doing what they’re doing. Trail-blazing, walking trails that ain’t been walked before. Discovering and rewalking the trails that your ancestors left is definitely a real traditional activity that I enjoy. Being a frontiersman is a family tradition. No one that my family has ever met was one, but my family roots to sum it up are cowboys and hillbillies.”

Wolfe said, “I want to discover things and walk the paths of my ancestors. I want to be more in touch with my traditional roots of being a man. I view myself as a 15 year old who likes doing outdoor stuff. I think that I’m a lot more in touch with nature than the average person my age. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve quite some folk here who are in touch with nature and all that.”

As for Wolfe’s future career plans, he plans to join the U.S. Army. Wolfe said, “When I’m out of high school I reckon it’d be good to join the army and get the benefits for me and my family. After that, welding looks pretty fun but I mainly want to be a rancher in Utah. I am a family-oriented traditionalist.”

Wolfe said, “What inspires me to keep going is the endless glory of God’s creation. The beautiful mountains, the flat warm deserts, the lush forests, each has its own personal beauty. I think that it’s an absolute accomplishment for anyone to go out, out of their house, off their phone and just explore.”