Ranger in E China stationed in deep forests for 40 years to protect lush mountains

Gu Decai, 59, from Anyuan county in southeast China's Jiangxi Province has spent over half of his life guarding the mountains in his hometown.

Gu Decai on a patrol mission with his colleagues. (Chinanews.com/courtesy of the publicity department of the Communist Party of China Anyuan County committee)

"When I was 8 years old, I started climbing mountains with my father, one of the first rangers in the local forestry station, on his patrol trips. Since then, I have left my footprints in almost every corner of the local forests," said Gu.

Driven by his love for the woods, Gu became a forest ranger when he was 17 years old and started performing patrol duties every day.

His daily patrol mission is arduous, as it spans two townships and three administrative villages. The lack of awareness of protecting forests among local residents also makes his work difficult.

Gu always tries to persuade people not to damage the forests whenever he sees it and constantly promotes policies on protecting forests patiently to villagers.

Gu Decai drinks water from a stream. (Chinanews.com/courtesy of the publicity department of the Communist Party of China Anyuan County committee)

In recent years, the area under Gu's surveillance has seen a growing number of infrastructure projects and migrant workers. This means Gu needs to make more efforts in fire prevention and forest protection, especially in the fire season between September and the following April, when he has to spend all day publicizing fire prevention knowledge.

Fortunately, a mobile application that records and shows real-time situations in the woods has been launched, which makes Gu's mission easier.

These days, aside from performing his regular patrol duties, Gu also provides information about pine wilt disease to the relevant departments.

"It is a glorious mission and a heavy responsibility to guard the local forests, which are essential for protecting the surrounding ecosystems," noted Gu.