Meet Mike Johnson, Greys River District, Moose Flat Campground
Second-year Ambassador Mike Johnson started coming up to the Greys River in 1988. “I camped up here with a friend that year and we were so enamored with it that we said we’d come up every year,” Mike says. “I also started bringing my kids and eventually grandkids. It’s become a family tradition every year.”
Retired from working for the city of Orem, Utah for 25 years in 2004 and from the private sector in 2023, Mike has volunteered for city and state lands for years. Last year was his first time volunteering on federal lands. He was happy to get posted to Moose Flats because that was an area he had often camped with his family. “It’s a place that has been a connection for me for most of my life,” he says. “It’s a beautiful valley and remote enough that you don’t have your cell phone and you can just get away.”
Because the Greys River area, which is the busiest spot of the BTNF’s Greys River Ranger District, is so important to him, Mike spends the time talking to and, when needed, helping educate Moose Flats campers, whether he’s on duty or off. “Even when I’m not on, I try to wear my volunteer hat whenever I can,” he says. “When I’m out ATVing or hiking, or fishing—I am an example of how to recreate responsibly on the BTNF.”
Mike is at Moose Flats with his cat, Moji. He got her just before his first summer as an Ambassador and Moji surprised him by giving birth to a litter of five kittens in early August. “She’s a fun camping buddy, but still doesn’t like driving in the car.”
Fun Facts: 1. One of his grand-daughters is named Lucy Grey, after the Greys River. 2. Mike had a tennis scholarship at college and has taught skiing at Sundance Resort.
