Pagwa, ON

My name is Ronald (Ron) Gustafson - (I used to be called Gus). I am writing this on June 15, 1999, almost 45 years since first arriving at Pagwa, Ontario, Canada. Pagwa was quite an experience so some of the following facts come real easy while others require real digging into my old age memory bank. I thank Ren L’Ecuyer for the checklist to jog my memory.

I arrived at Pagwa, then a USAF installation (913th AC&W Squadron), in early February 1955 and served a full one year tour leaving in early February 1956. I was an A/2c with less than two years in the Air Force and less than one year out of Radar Maintenance school, AFSC (specialty class) 30332. It was my first overseas (USAF classification) assignment (non voluntary) and I didn't know what I was getting into.

I left North Truro Air Force Station on Cape Cod, Massachusetts with its beautiful sandy beaches for Selfridge AFB in Detroit where I received an orientation and was issued arctic clothing (bunny boots, mukluks, parka, etc., etc.). From Detroit, I boarded a train for Windsor, Ontario and points north. As the train slowly traveled, stopping frequently at all the towns enroute, snow depths increased, the air was colder, numbers of people diminished, and finally, I think about two days later, I arrived in Hearst, a small logging town west of Kapuskasing.

In Hearst, I waited for the twice a week logging train that had one single passenger car with a pot bellied stove to go the last leg to Pagwa. This was the only way as there were no roads into Pagwa, an Indian village with a Hudson Bay store. The rail line went through dense forest and deep snow, a trip that took almost twelve hours while picking up logging cars along the route. Not much of a train but cherished by the personnel assigned to the radar station.

It carried all supplies, including cases and cases of beer, but more important, - MAIL. Off duty site personnel would walk across the railroad trestle over Pagwa River to the Hudson Bay store and ride the train back the one to two miles to the site. It was something to do. After unloading at the site, the train went on to a town approximately 80 miles west, the name, Nakina, comes to mind. The following day it turned around and headed back to Hearst. Once in a while, to get away and see something different, although there wasn't anything there, we would ride the train to Nakina and back.

As mentioned, I was a radar technician. Pagwa had radars totally different from my training (isn't that usually what happens). Fortunately, Pagwa had an FPS-3 Search, and an TPS-502 Height radar and later a third, FPS-502 (back-up search radar). These were smaller and easier sets to learn and work on than some of the other systems in the field. I think we worked a normal 4 crew/24 hour a day rotating shift schedule, but I also recall not having too much free time so I may be wrong.

We did have time to do leisure things such as fishing trips etc., so if it was a different schedule, it did allow time off if wanted or needed. One of our biggest chores in radar maintenance was keeping the deep and heavy snow off the radomes. The snow was so dry in the cold climate, we rarely used the heat lamps. They would have allowed the snow to melt and later freeze. So we dressed in all our arctic gear and trudged around the towers snapping the radome rope to knock the snow off. Naturally, it dumped down on top of us.

Speaking of the weather, the cold lasted a long time, although the short summer was pleasantly warm and we were able to play softball, walk upriver and sometimes get in the cold water, or go through the brush to a lake for fishing. I was too young to appreciate it at the time but we had some nice fish frys when those that loved fishing returned to the site. They went in a vehicle with tracks like a tank on the rear and were covered with lotion to try to ward off the no-see-ums (I think I can say they were worse than mosquitos).

Minus 60 degrees F. was common during the winter months. In fact, we were warned not to run or breath too deeply because the air was so cold. It was so cold, the snow would squeak and vehicle tires and batteries would freeze. The few vehicles we had were kept inside when not being used. Ren mentioned catwalks between buildings, but in 1955, the only existing catwalks were between the operations building and the radar towers, primarily for radar maintenance access. The buildings stood alone in the main area of the site and required shoveling' where the plows couldn't go.

When we were off duty and not hanging around the radar maintenance shop, we spent our time in the recreation buildings (the old contractor buildings). In the Rec. buildings, we had a small theater with 3 or 4 new movies every week that came in on the train, a library, a barber shop, some hobby shop activities, and I think a couple pool tables. It was just a place to hang out. Other than walking to meet the train and going in the Hudson Bay store or sitting and reading, that was all we had. It could get verrrrrry boring.

We did have the bar area in the dining hall building to socialize but that could get old in a hurry so except for special occasions, most of us stayed away. Of course, a lot of time was spent writing letters to wives, or in my case, my wife-to-be. Best of all, I was able to take leave during August, catching a flight to Kap on the single engine L-20 aircraft that happened to be there, and from Kap, a flight home through Toronto.

I estimate that we had approximately 80-90 personnel assigned to the site, very few of us in the lower grades because I remember pulling KP every 4-6 days, Easter Sunday being one of them. I think the majority were NCO's and probably half a dozen officers and a couple civilians. Food was excellent as I have found it on most isolated radar stations where cooks and bakers are friends/associates and always try to please the troops.

There was a DOT building shortly up the track but I don't remember much about it. I think there were 1-2 occupants there for some reason. It was close to our dump where the bears liked to scavenge even after we burned all trash. Maybe the garbage was pretty good to them after being cooked.

I think I have covered most detail of the "exciting" year I spent on the Pinetree line. It was beautiful country and I would love to tour it one of these days and see what has progressed over the years. I'm sure the duty was similar to most of the Pinetree radar sites but I think we were one of the most isolated. It was a memorable experience.

Ron Gustafson, SMSgt., USAF, Retired