Boganmeldelse: En sommer i Alaska

Af: Morten Strange
Udgivet 1980
124 sider

 

I bogen fortæller Morten Strange om sine oplevelser fra foråret til efteråret i Alaska. Han rejser i Canada og Alaska for at arbejde og opleve naturen. Hans helt store interesse er fugle, og er det stadig den dag idag.

Blaffende i Canada, bliver han tilbudt en lift af en rolig og eftertænksom herrer: den amerikanske guldgraver Bill. Sammen kører de gennem resten af Canada, til Alaska.
Han bliver hurtigt tilbudt arbejde i Bills lejr i Emma Creek, hvor han søger guld. Hvilket passer Morten fint, da han så kan få set Brooks Range bjergkæden, som Emma Creek er nær.
Morten bliver hurtig overladt ansvaret af at gøre lejren klar til den kommende sæson og er nogle uger alene i lejren. Dog nyder han dette til fulde og får hurtigt klaret opgaverne og nydt naturen.
Vi følger hans arbejde i lejren sammen med Bill, møder Bills kamerater og andre lokale fra små samfund.

Men Morten rejser senere videre nordpå for at se de nordligste egne af Alaska, og har et par triste oplevelser med "indfødte" der af historiske årsager ikke er helt glade for "den hvide mand". Vi følger ham også på den sidste vandretur tilbage til Emma Creek gennem de store skove.

Bogens indhold er som titlen angiver, hans fortælling af én sommer i Alaska.
Så den slutter da han ud på efteråret stikker næsen tilbage til Danmark for at studere og arbejde.
Bogen er en rigtig fin og interessant fortælling om hans oplevelser gennem den sommer.
For de der ikke har interesse i natur, Alaska
Jeg synes godt om bogen og ville da være glad hvis han havde oplevet og skrevet mere om sine oplevelser i Canada og Alaska.
, vandring (trekking) og eventyr i vildmarken og øde egne er det nok lidt begrænset hvor fængende den vil være.
Den er skrevet på godt, sammenhængende, let forståelig og med nogle enkelte fotos. Den er desværre lidt hurtigt læst, men noget enhver kan give sig i kast med.
Billederne i bogen er desværre ret mørke og i sort/hvid. Trykket af disse kunne havde været langt bedre. Men måske var det standarten for 80'er bøger?! En skam da der må havde været så mange spændende ting at se fra Emma Creek og omegn.
Om det er til at opdrive bogen udenfor bibliotekerne ved jeg ikke. Har selv fundet den som en udgået biblioteksbog, og er glad for den. Er nok dér eller hos antikvariater den kan opdrives.
Har forsøgt at søge den på internettet, men kan ikke finde den til salg nogle steder.

Han har dog skrevet nogle bøger om fugle og har en fan-side på facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Morten-Strange/133739676665064?fref=ts

Så herfra skal denne gamle og måske lidt glemte bog om en oplevelsesrig sommer i Alaska have en anerkendende THUMBS UP :-) Forstår godt han har ville dele sine oplevelser med andre.
Så TAK fordi du skrev en bog og delte med os andre Morten :-)

Bookreview: THE FINAL FRONTIERSMAN

By: James Campbell
Published: 2004
300 pages

My rating

Heimo is a german-american who grew up in Wisconsin, USA. With a violent father, loving mother, and a younger brother.He early discovered a huge love and facination of nature and wildlife, and dreamt about living in the wilderness of Alaska.

James Campbell has written his book after living with the Korths from time to time, during a year.
Campbell is Heimos first coussin.
This book is about his violent and troublesome childhood, the dream of leaving for Alaska, and finally managing to leave to work for a trapper.
Also about living in the bush, living with eskimoes in Savoonga, there meeting his wife to be (Edna), and settling down in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (while still legal). Moving around between 3 cabins to make sure wildlife regerates from his trapping, and that they can make a living of the land.

It's a true story all the way. About loosing their firstborn child at age 4 in the Coleen river, but later succesfully raising two daugthers Rhonda and Krin in the wild.
We learn about living in the rough unforgiving wilderness, with extreem cold, and dangerous wildlife roaming the woods. But the Korths still has brought some comforts from civilized world: computer, music, VCR aso.


James Campbell follows Heimo on his traplines and talks about how Alaska is changing due to laws, oil and nature preservation. Campbell also interviews old trappers and friends of the Korths.
Heimo can best be described as: a big man, with a big heart and love for his children, wife and the wilderness :o)

Some parts of the book has too much talk about politics and alaskan history. (a bit boring and difficult if english is not ones native language) and mine isn't. But if you're english, you will have no problems!

But othervise a GOOD BOOK for those who dream about, or enjoy reading about people living in the wild, living of nature...far from the rest of the world. Only 14 pictures in the book :o/
But pretty sure I'll read the book again some day :oD

See Campbells page here with pics from the korth family: http://www.jamesmcampbell.net/docs/photography.html

The Heimo Korth Fan Club on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Heimo-Korth-Fan-Club/235442092169

VBS.TV has in 2010 made a television show about Heimo and Edna. See it below. (Krin and Rhonda has grown up and moved away.)

Proenneke: My "HERO" - min "helt"

Richard Louis "Dick" Proenneke (May 4, 1916–April 20, 2003) MY HERO!!!! - MIN HELT!!!


Der går næsten ikke en dag, hvor jeg ikke falder i søvn til en dvd om ham og hans liv ved Twin Lakes, eller læser lidt i en af hans to bøger. 


Hardly a day passes by where I don't fall a sleep to one of his movies, or read in one of his two books.

WIKIPEDIA SAYS:

Richard Louis "Dick" Proenneke (May 4, 1916–April 20, 2003) was a naturalist who lived alone in the high mountains of Alaska at a place called Twin Lakes. Living in a log cabin he constructed by hand, Proenneke made valuable recordings of both meteorological and natural data.^[1]

Proenneke's father, William Christian Proenneke, served in World War I and later made his living as a well driller. His mother, Laura (née Bonn) worked as ahomemaker. His parents married in late 1909, or early 1910, and had three daughters and three sons: Robert, Helen, Lorene, Richard, Florence, and Raymond. The year of Richard's birth is often given as 1917, but social security and census records prove him to have been born in Primrose, Harrison Township, Lee County, Iowa, on May 4, 1916.[edit]Life

Proenneke served in the United States Navy as a carpenter during World War II. It was during this service that he contracted rheumatic fever and was bedridden for nearly six months.^[1] According to Sam Keith, a life-long friend from Duxbury, Massachusetts, this illness was very revealing for Proenneke, who decided to devote the rest of his life to the strength and health of his body.

Following his discharge from the Navy, Proenneke went to school to become a diesel mechanic. The combination of his high intelligence, adaptability, and strong work ethic turned him into a very skilled mechanic. Though quite adept at his trade, Proenneke succumbed to his love of nature and moved to Oregon to work at a sheep ranch. He moved to Shuyak Island, Alaska, in 1950.

For several years, he worked as a heavy equipment operator and repairman on the naval base at Kodiak. Proenneke spent the next several years working throughout the state of Alaska as both a salmon fisherman and diesel mechanic. He worked for the Fish and Wildlife Service at King Salmon on the Alaska Peninsula. His skills as a mechanic were well-known and extremely sought after, and he was able to put away a modest nest egg for retirement. Proenneke retired to Twin Lakes.

[edit]Retirement

Proenneke's cabin

On May 21, 1968, Proenneke arrived at his new place of retirement at Twin Lakes. Before arriving at the lakes, he made arrangements to use a cabin on the upper lake of Twin Lakes owned by a retired Navy captain, Spike Carrithers, and his wife Hope from Kodiak, (in whose care he had left his camper). This cabin was well situated on the lake and close to the site which Proenneke chose for the construction of his own cabin. Proenneke's bush pilot friend, Babe Alsworth, returned occasionally to bring food and orders that Proenneke placed through him to Sears.

Proenneke remained at Twin Lakes for the next 16 months, when he left to go home for a time to visit relatives and secure more supplies. He returned to the lakes in the following spring and remained there for most of the next 30 years, going to the lower 48 only occasionally to be with his family. He made a film record of his solitary life, which was later recut and made into a documentary.

[edit]Death and legacy

In 1999, at age 82, Proenneke returned to civilization and lived the remainder of his life with his brother in California. He died of a stroke April 20, 2003 at the age of 86. He left his cabin to the National Park Service, and it remains a popular visitor attraction in the still-remote Twin Lakes region.

In 1973, Sam Keith edited the book One Man's Wilderness: An Alaskan Odyssey, from Proenneke's journals and photography. After years in print it was re-issued in a new format in 1999, and won the 1999 National Outdoor Book Award (NOBA). In 2003, some of the copyrighted text from the book used with permission and some of Proenneke's film was used in Alone in the Wilderness[1], which began appearing on U.S. Public Television. The film centers around Proenneke building a cabin from the surrounding natural resources and includes his film footage and narration of wildlife, weather, and the natural scenery while he goes about his daily routine over the course of the winter months.

In 2005, the National Park Service and the Alaska Natural History Association published More Readings From One Man's Wilderness, another volume of Proenneke's journal entries. The book, edited by John Branson, a longtime Lake Clark National Park employee and friend of Proenneke, covers the years when the park was established. Dick had a very close relationship with the Park Service, assisting them in videotaping sensitive areas and notifying them if poachers were in the area.

Bucktrack videos

 (english scroll down)

For nogle år siden faldt jeg over nogle videoklip på youtube. Det var om natur, trekking og jagt i det store, smukke men barske Alaska.
De var uploadet af profilen youalaska, og var hans egne eventyr og produktion. Blev "venner" med ham derinde, og måtte da lige skrive til ham, og rose ham for videoerne.

Fandt ham senere hen på facebook, da jeg fik fat i hans navn. Og der var jeg så heldig at blive "ven" med ham også. Han er en pensioneret faldskærms-røgdykker. Sådan en brandmand der spring ned i skovbrande, i faldskærm.
Men fra hans site http://www.bucktrack.com/ bestilte jeg så en af hans dvd'er for et lille år siden. Og det har jeg ikke fortrudt. Det er denne herunder

Nu har jeg netop bestilt desværre den sidst af hans egen dvd'er. Glæder mig til at få den :o)

Det er så klippet herunder

Ville selv meget gerne prøve sådan en rejse gennem alaska. Men ikke alene. Skulle jeg en dag få sådant tilbud, vil jeg hoppe af glæde. Du kan følge hans blog på blogspot her: http://bucktrack.blogspot.com/

A few years ago, I came across some nice videos on youtube. It was made and uploadet by an american guy, who used to be a smokejumper. Just had to write him and compliment the nice and facinateing videos.
Was lucky.. he accepted me as a youtube-friend too. And today he is even a facebook-friend :o)
Not that I know him personally, but enjoy watching what he experiences in alaska. Guess I'm kind of a fan.
Dreaming myself about living over there, (canada or alaska). Due to all that beautiful, but rough, nature and wilderness. But wouldn't want to go trekking or camping alone though.

About a year ago I ordered the first video in the top of this text. Today I finally ordered the video just above this text. But sorry to see there isn't any more of his adventures on dvd. But looking forward to getting the dvd by mail. Have a look....if you enjoy nature and wilderness... you'll like this!!! :oD