When we think of human progress on the landscape, images of housing developments, shopping centers and skyscrapers come to mind. Disappearance of human occupation on the land altogether? That wouldn’t seem a likely scenario, but it’s exactly what happened along Alaska’s upper Yukon River. Progress came in the way of the Federal Government’s designation of the … [Read more...] about Life and Times of a Big River
Alaska Wildnerness Living
81 Days Below Zero
If you were dropped in the middle of the wilderness, alone, could you survive? What if you had no tools, no food, and improper equipment? And what if that wilderness was the Alaska bush, and the setting was midwinter? Survival stories in harsh environments are fascinating, particularly when the odds are stacked against a positive outcome. The story of Leon Crane was truly … [Read more...] about 81 Days Below Zero
Trails of an Alaska Trapper
Running a trapline in the remote Alaskan bush sounds like a pretty sweet gig for a young man seeking adventure and independence. But how would you go about finding such a place? All of the good ground must be claimed by other trappers, right? Ray Tremblay, a young man from the Lower 48, found himself in the arctic in the late 1940’s. He’d dreamed of running a trapline … [Read more...] about Trails of an Alaska Trapper
Born on Snowshoes
Three girls, their mother and an old man, 280 miles deep in the wilderness, running traplines for a living. It may seem like an odd combination, but it was reality for much of Evelyn Berglund Shore’s young life. George Berglund and his brother caught gold fever during the Klondike gold rush of 1898. They returned years later to work mining claims, searching for riches along … [Read more...] about Born on Snowshoes
Above the Arctic Circle: James Carroll
Most of the early Alaskan pioneers moved up from the Lower 48 for seeking opportunity and adventure. The majority left when times got tough, but the best and the toughest stayed on, and helped make the frontier what it is today. Minnesota-born James Carroll was one of those guys. Carroll journeyed to Alaska in 1910, in search of opportunities made possible by the gold rush. … [Read more...] about Above the Arctic Circle: James Carroll