Beloved 'Ranger Bart' Anderson dies at 66

ST. GEORGE — How does a man who had polio, Parkinson's disease, a hip and knee replacement, who once got in trouble with the Forest Service for glorifying "ranger" as part of his title (they had to sit him down), played pranks (Tom Sawyer-like) on former Utah governors (and got away with it), who mixed half-truths into his storytelling (but was humble enough to research and fix), be so revered not only in St. George but by then-first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton with a regional award (one of many) for the top volunteer historian in the Western region of the United States?

It was all because of what Marge Shakespeare calls the "Bart flair." Shakespeare, a vice president of a Zions Bank branch, first met Bart Anderson almost 30 years ago as a customer and now considers him a brother.

Anderson, known as "Ranger Bart," touched many lives during his 66 years. Described as a sort of Renaissance man by hiking buddy Robert Blair, Anderson hiked his best and last hike into eternity on Monday after several years of health problems. He died of heart failure at his St. George home.

Yet some of his friends are worried he's already telling their ancestors half-truths about them. Chuckling, that's exactly how St. George Chamber of Commerce president Russell Behrmann explained it at a board meeting Thursday.

Even Tyler Anderson, 35, chortles when he remembers his father's recommendation before he served his LDS mission to Japan: "It's easier to give advice than to get permission."

"He came alive when he spoke; he almost had a photographic memory on facts and figures and history," Blair said of his friend. "I think he was prone to exaggerating on his stories. He sort of fractured the language sometimes, often used words that weren't on target, but no one cared, because he told a good story."

Bart Anderson, a blood specialist and a former Washington County medical examiner, became one of the most famous people in St. George and was known as "Ranger Bart," a name he earned by wearing a ranger hat during nature hikes and lectures. A naturalist, he led hikes, discovered trails and covered hours of Utah history. It was not unusual to see 400 to 450 people accompanying Anderson on his hikes.

"It totally consumed my life," he once said.

"He cared about other people and their experiences and wanted them to be happy," says Doug Syphus, who founded the Outback Hiking Club with Anderson.