I fly to the Oilfield in North Dakota, work my job hauling water and then fly home after my shift to be with my family

In 2012 I kissed my wife goodbye and flew to North Dakota to try my luck at finding a lucrative job in the Bakken oilfield. Bakken is the last name of the guy who first discovered the oil back in the mid part of the 1900's. The shale formation that holds the petroleum rich fossil fuel known as sweet crude oil was named after this early prospecting pioneer.

It's now 2013 and I'm making great money working as a water hauler in North Dakota's booming oilfield. Thousands of people just like me have taken their Commercial Driver Licenses (CDL) and filled truck driving jobs in the 2nd largest oil producing state in the country. North Dakota is second only to Texas in oil production. In recent news the U.S. is now the worlds number one oil producer thanks to the oil extraction process known as fracking.

When I tell people about the kind of money I'm making in North Dakota, most of them tell me about friends or neighbors they know who are also making good money. There are always the skeptics who tell me that I'm full of it, but the truth is the truth and I can't deny sharing my story with others. There are too many truck drivers in this country who are barely scraping by with low wages and long, long, long hours. In North Dakota, water haulers still work the long hours, but they get high wages.

I've taken over one thousand pictures since I began work in North Dakota back in June of 2012 and I am happy to share these in my blog in hopes that my story can help inspire and give courage to other CDL holders looking for a way to improve their financial situations. There are many jobs in North Dakota that don't require a CDL that people without a CDL can do, but I think that water hauling is The Best Job. If you don't have a CDL, there is a chapter in my ebook that discloses how a person can get a CDL and what certifications would be required before that person could qualify for a high paying water hauler job.

I've commuted to North Dakota both driving and flying, but flying is my preferred mode of travel. It's a little more expensive, but I get there about four times faster. Time is money in the oil patch and the more hours I spend working, and the less hours I spend communting, means more money on payday . Flying is worth it when you live 1,000 miles away as I do. Especially when you fly with an airline with friendly staff.

 

I didn't ask the pilot or the stewardess to wave in this picture, but I thought it was hilarious! There are many tiny airports throughout the Bakken servicing the oilfield cities. A small puddle jumper twin prop plane such as this one is the norm for most oilfield workers commuting to North Dakota. I have found that the larger jets only fly into the biggest cities in North Dakota where longer runways can accomodate them.  

Once I fly into North Dakota I drive to my employers yard where the truck that I drive is parked. I drive a Kenworth Tractor pulling a 130 bbl vac trailer. Most vac water trailers in the Bakken are 130 bbl trailers due to road weight restrictions. The acronym bbl stands for barrel. An oilfield barrel equates to 42 gallons. Whenever you hear about the price of oil hovering around $100 per barrel, it's referring to the price of 42 gallons of sweet crude oil.

I like to buy groceries before heading to the oilfield, because eating out isn't always and option, and it's expensive. I load my food supplies into the sleeper of my truck. Some trucks are equipped with fridges, but I just use an ice-less cooler that plugs into a cigarette lighter. I also load in enough clothing and bedding to last for my two week shift.

I usually don't work on the day of my arrival to North Dakota, but work starts bright and early the next day. The silver lining in the oilfield of North Dakota has really changed my financial situation, but aside from the money, it's not always easy on my family for me to be a thousand miles from home. I've been a water hauler for a year and a half, but I still miss my wife and kids when I'm gone.

My employer lets me live in the truck while on the job. The truth is that it would be pointless for me to have any other living arrangement, because I work so many hours. I rarely get a solid block of sleep and so being able to lay down in the sleeper whenever I get 20 minutes is ideal. The fact that I can lay down on the job from time to time is just another reason why I feel I have The Best Job in North Dakota!