Young man loved the outdoors and a good chat

Folks needed to pull up a chair when Brandon L. Hooper-Engbrecht was on the other end of the phone.

It could be a three-hour chatting marathon.

There was usually plenty to talk about with Mr. Adventure. He grew up in Machias, rode dirt bikes, loved the outdoors, competed in motocross and had just taken a logging job in Ketchikan, Alaska.

The family did talk him out of joining the U.S. Marines at this time of war, his mother said, when so many young people were losing their lives. Her son would have marched off in a flash, she added.

Her son talked about gunsmithing, or going to a trade school, then headed to Montana and lived with friends.

“He met new people,” Robin Engbrecht said. “He made friends wherever he went.”

He died Sept. 19 in a fall off a cliff in Ketchikan.

Hooper-Engbrecht was born Nov. 27, 1985, in Arlington. He grew up in Machias, and explored every inch of the Pilchuck River and forest. The family moved to Snohomish and he attended Snohomish High School.

His hobbies included hunting, fishing, dirt-bike racing, four-wheeling, guns and hiking. He saved his money one summer, working at an organic farm, and worked out a deal to rent a bulldozer, before he even had his driver’s license. He got a quick lesson on using the machine, then carved out his own dirt-bike racing course.

His sister, Kristin Engbrecht, used to sit in a tree and time his laps.

As a hunting enthusiast, Hooper-Engbrecht read books about the hobby. His family enjoyed elk hunting, but the young man never shot one. When the group would return to camp for lunch, Hooper-Engbrecht would disdain taking a break and passed the time target shooting while others ate hot dogs around the fire.

They had to take along plenty of bullets when Hooper-­Engbrecht went hunting.

Another passion was Elvis. He collected Elvis memorabilia and movies and watched them for hours. One time his buddies found an abandoned cabin in the woods. They went to great lengths, and did a lot of hauling, to decorate the shack with furniture and a stove.

He loved the outdoors.

His oak casket featured a carved deer head.

Aunt Dawn Nations said her nephew was an outgoing, always smiling, kind young man. He mowed the lawn for an elderly neighbor, just to help out. He was partial to her young sons, Zachary and Ethan, and their cousin was not opposed to getting his hands in Play-Doh.

“He took time for little people,” Nations said. “He had a big heart.’

When her nephew would call his aunt, she would clear the decks for his famous, long conversations. He also used the phone for business. When Hooper-Engbrecht, who wore jeans, T-shirts and always a ball cap, needed help with his dirt bike, he would simply dial Lynn­wood Yamaha and engage the staff for hours, his mother said.

They would gave him free advice over the phone.

No matter how long the young man spent talking to his family, he always said “I love you” before he hung up.”

Reporter Kristi O’Harran: 425-339-3451 or oharran@heraldnet.com.