Doug Fuhlrodt

Doug Fuhlrodt

“Another of the old Backroad Explorers has hit the end of the road on this earth. Doug was one of the first members and as far as I remember, the first president of the club.” Nancy Maclean

From Bob Jaussaud – “It was with great sadness that we learned of Doug Fuhlrodt’s passing. Most Desert Explorers (DE) were not fortunate enough to know Doug but he was a significant reason the DE exists. Most of us know that the DE evolved from the Backroad Explorers, a Section of the Sierra Club (SC). Doug’s influence within the SC played a major role in our initial acceptance and he was the first chairman of the Backroad Explorers.

Doug loved the desert, especially hot springs. He also loved sailing “Windigo”, his sailboat, to Catalina where he owned a buoy in Two Harbors. Sue and I were lucky to enjoy a wonderful weekend there with Doug and his beautiful wife, Pat. Good times we thought would never end. Rest in Peace Doug.”
Doug’s formal obituary:

Born to Norman T. Fuhlrodt and Clarice (Livermore) Fuhlrodt in Freemont, Nebraska, on July 3, 1935. Doug was raised in Des Moines, Iowa. He graduated from the University of Iowa with an Engineering Degree. Immediately after graduation, he entered the U. S. Army as a 1st Lieutenant and was stationed in Germany for six years. He and his wife, Sherri, raised two children, D. B. and Zoe Anne. After discharge, he worked a few years for engineering firms. Doug began his own business, D. B. Fuhlrodt & Associates, where he was the principle sales representative for several medical device companies for 38 years, until his retirement. Doug was an avid sailor. He owned and sailed his 30′ sloop, “Windigo” for 27 years, later switching to a sportfisher, the “Wild Hare.” He owned a mooring at the Isthmus on Catalina Island where he and Pat, after retirement, spent several weeks out of the year living on their boat, making many lasting friends of fellow mooring owners and hosting weekends for their “landlubber” friends. Doug was an avid skier, hiker, boater, and general outdoors kind of guy. He met and married Pat Bennett and the two enjoyed a very active and happy lifestyle for 38 years until his passing. Travel was a lifestyle for both of them, traveling to Europe several times, all of South America, Russia, Greece, China, Southeast Asia, Alaska, and beyond. Hiking, skiing, and camping with the Sierra Club and Desert Explorers filled in the travel gaps. It was through the Sierra Club where he met and married Pat and became the beloved stepfather to Douglas Smith. The two Doug’s had an incomparable bond. Pat and Doug lived on their boat in the Long Beach Harbor for a few years, ultimately purchasing a home in Orange and became part of the Rockhurst Community. Doug is survived by his wife, Pat, their son, Douglas Edgar and wife, Gabrielle, and their children, Ryan, Sean, Jenna, and James; son, Douglas, Jr., his wife, Ruby, and their daughter, Bobbi Jo, and his daughter, Zoe Anne and son-in-law Mark Hoffman and their son, Ian Goedicke.