So... what's been on your reading list, lately? Hopefully something adventurous! Books have a pretty incredible way of transporting us from the comfort of home to anywhere in the world, in space, in time, taking us somewhere real or fictitious.
As I've been doing my research on the Yukon River, I've been getting my hands on as many books as possible. I've discovered an ENORMOUS amount of history and culture to that beautiful and rugged waterway. The peoples that have lived there, the Indigenous and white settlers, the agencies and government that have had their hands on the land, the races paddled, the Gold Rush and its Stampeders, the old sourdoughs, the oil seekers, the salmon runs and the people who rely on it, the paddle wheelers going up and down the river, and cartographers putting it all on paper. It's been incredible learning about this region and its history. I know one thing for certain, after all this reading... I fully intend on paddling this river at a much slower pace in the future.
Below is a list (in no particular order) of the resources I've been reading through and a little bit about them. I have it divided out into a few sections, so it's hopefully not too helter-skelter. Now, full disclosure... I haven't read every one of these books yet, but I fully intend to. The stuff I have read through, bookmarked, and saved has been incredibly helpful and has more than likely led me to the next book, and the next, and so on. Each book brings its own story, its own information, its owned portrait painted in words of the Yukon. Here's the list:
Stories Told by Fellow Adventurers
-Kings of the Yukon: An Alaskan River Journey by Adam Weymouth
Kings of the Yukon was a book that I couldn't put down. I read it over the summer while working in Maine and Adam Weymouth's account of his journey down the Yukon, researching and experiencing the impact of king salmon on the river and the communities up and down it, was awe-inspiring. His writing was eloquent and his descriptions were vivid. Going back and forth between adventurous and educational, this one got me excited to learn more.
-A Land Gone Lonesome: An Inland Voyage Along the Yukon River by Dan O’Neill
After Kings of the Yukon got me excited to learn more, I cracked open A Land Gone Lonesome. O'Neill writes about the cultural history of the Yukon River and the surrounding areas. Written over the course of several trips, the book takes as down the river, one historical stopping point at a time. He delves into the history of rustic cabins that provided a safe haven to travelers on their way, he discusses the once considered speedy mail trails of old. He paddles up side creeks that were once teeming with those searching for gold and adventure. He discusses the establishment of the Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve and the detrimental impact it has had on those who live by subsistence living, talking about the other side of the coin that so few want to acknowledge. Stories of successes and failures, life and death, nature and mankind fill these pages and I'm glad I picked it up.
-Paddle ‘til Dark: A Yukon River Journey by Raimonds Zvirbulis
I'll let Zvirbuils's personal summary of the book, found on Google Books, do this one for me:
"This solo wilderness, kayaking journey began many years ago, years before I even knew anything about kayaks and paddling down remote, legendary rivers. Poring over maps of those places revealed very little. The blank spaces spread far and wide. At last, after decades of dreaming, I stood on the shore of Lake Atlin in British Columbia, where the headwaters of the Yukon River are. I stood there and thought about all those hope-filled years and was thrilled at the anticipation of leaving that morning in mid-June. Crossing the expanse of Lake Atlin in a fine mist, I guided the kayak toward Graham Channel, which would take me to Tagish Lake. There I met Jim and Marion Brook at their cabin. After hot coffee and freshly baked cookies, they sent me on my way. They were the first of many people who helped me on my journey. That evening, having found the “perfect” campsite, I inspected the area for bear tracks. Finding none, I started a large campfire before setting up the tent. Supper had been eaten at a previous stop, so there was no cooking where I stayed for the night. This was the procedure I followed every night. It kept animals bigger and hungrier than me from visiting my campsites. As I paddled down the lakes, I stopped at villages such as Tagish, I paddled down Marsh Lake and down dangerous Lake Laberge, and I stopped in historic towns such as Whitehorse and Dawson City. I passed by wrecked and beached steamboats from the gold rush days and finally crossed the US/Canadian line into Alaska. I had paddled through a forest fire so immense that it took a day to pass the flames. The current carried me past Eagle, Circle City, though the Yukon flats (where the river was ten to twenty miles wide); and I crossed the Arctic Circle at Fort Yukon. Then came the small villages of Beaver, Stevens Village, and then the oil pipeline. I paddled on to Rampart, where the fierce head wind nearly drove me back upstream. Next, I passed through Tanana, where I met Emmet Peter, who won the Iditarod long ago, then on to Ruby, Galena, Nulato, and Holy Cross, where Bergie Demientieff served me coffee and gave good advice. Finally, I arrived at Russian Mission, where I ran out of time after fifty-one days and two thousand miles of paddling my kayak. There Harvey Pitka and his wife, Ester, fed me a wonderful dinner before I flew out. As the plane climbed and banked toward Bethel, I knew that I would return one day to finish my kayak trip to the Bering Sea."
By the sounds of it, a journey of epic proportions! Excited to pick this one up!
-Paddles on the Yukon by Carl T. Taylor
This one, at the time of writing this blog post, I've just begun. It is the story of the author's trip down the Yukon River with 3 other companions, starting in mid-June of 1979. So far, only a few chapters in, Taylor's writing is eloquent, the group came prepared for any and all obstacles (looking at you, Lake Laberge). He writes with a sense of wittiness that is refreshing and seems to be very observational of all that he writes about. He appreciates and respects the river and it shows in his writing. The book's dedication reads: "This book is dedicated to all who wish to preserve the treasures of this Earth. Our stewardship on Earth lasts but a short while. May this book help prolong our stewardship by providing incentive to its readers to preserve the environment for our children and our children's children. To canoe the wildest river in North America is to experience this eternal truth that lies beyond mortality."
I'm excited to continue to read through this one and to glean more insight and appreciation from Taylor and Co.
-Racing to the Yukon by Rod Price
-Upside Down in the Yukon River by Steve Cannon
"The Iditarod Trail Invitational 350 in Alaska-one of the top ten extreme ultra-endurance races in the world. He has completed the Tuscobia Winter Ultra 150 twice on his fat bike. He has three Arrowhead Ultra 135 finishes and in 2018 did so unsupported, meaning all food and water had to be carried start to finish. In 2016, Steve earned induction into the Order of the Hrimthurs, the Triple Crown for winter ultra-endurance athletes. He has run nearly 100 marathons and has taken on the worldʼs longest kayak race: The Yukon River Quest... In 2004, he rode his bike to the starting line of the Deadwood Mickelson Trail Marathon in South Dakota-beginning in Iowa-before running the marathon. He has completed over twenty Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI), five Ride-the-Rockies, and made it five times through the Dirty Kanza 200, the world's premier gravel cycling race, earning a coveted 1000 Miles of Kanza goblet in 2017. He ran the 292 miles across his home state of Iowa in eleven days and is the first person ever to run around the Lake Michigan, logging 1,037 miles in forty days-averaging a marathon's distance per day."
He puts his adventures to good use, too. His "About the Author" goes on to say, "His adventures have raised nearly $700,000 for Livestrong, Camp Kesem, and Above and Beyond Cancer."
All this is a long way of saying that Steve Cannon seems like a great guy and definitely knows what he's doing when he's out on an adventure. Regardless of that, the Yukon River is a challenge unlike any other and Cannon's account of his attempt at the Yukon River Quest in a kayak proves it. His writing is insightful as he reflects on all that he's done, all that he's feeling, and he does so with such eloquence. I was hooked on this book and blew through it. While kayaking 440 miles and canoeing 1000 miles are different, even when on the same river, I gleaned a lot of information from this book not only in what kind of preparations to go through and what to expect on the river, but also what kind of mindset it takes to tackle such a challenge.
-Yukon River by Peter Lourie
This book was a quick-reading, picture-filled firsthand account of the author's personal trip down the Yukon from Whitehorse to the Arctic Circle. It was a fast read (I knocked it out in one sitting), but it definitely fueled the excitement of seeing the river in person. The writing was thoughtful and the pictures were beautiful and alluring.
Resources for the River Paddler
This next section, I'll make a little less wordy. It consists of the small pile of guide books I've managed to acquire through my searches for more info on the physical river itself. Going into detail with these seems like it would be a little much, so I'll keep it concise. These books have been a wealth of information as I pore over them occasionally and will do so more in more in the coming weeks and months leading up to the race.
-Yukon Channel Charts by Bruce Batchelor
Old paddlewheel charts! With the occasional story written into the margins, this one (which I accidentally ordered two copies of) has been fun to look at, as the maps on each page connect to the maps on the next and previous pages.
-Paddling Alaska by Dan Maclean
-Paddling the Yukon River and its Tributaries by Dan Maclean
The second Dan Maclean title, this Yukon River specific book has been quite helpful. That's about all there is to it with this one!
-The Alaska River Guide, 3rd Edition by Karen Jettmar
The works of Mike Rourke...
This next four guidebooks are a section all their own. I had the pleasure of ordering these books directly over the phone from Rivers North Publishing and got them mailed to me here in Maine straight from BC, Canada. These guidebooks and map books seem to be, to me anyways, the definitive sources of information for traveling the Yukon River. Beautifully done and cleverly designed as flipbook-style end-to-end maps from page to page, these will be heavily dissected by Team PATR.
-Yukon River, Marsh Lake to Dawson - Guide Book - Printed Book by Mike Rourke
-Yukon River, Dawson to Circle, Alaska - Guide Book - Printed Book by Mike Rourke
-Yukon River, Marsh Lake to Dawson - Map Book - Printed Book by Mike Rourke
-Yukon River, Dawson to Circle, Alaska - Map Book - Printed Book by Mike Rourke
Getting Technical
-Canoe Poling by Al. Syl, and Frank Beletz
An old, worn book I found on the book shelf at Maine High Adventure, where I worked the summer of 2021, this book talks about the "now lost" art of canoe poling. This book, from some time in the 70s, claims that canoe poles could replace canoe paddles... Now, I may not agree with this 100%. However, after trying out canoe poling this past summer, I can say that it is an incredible activity and could certainly replace a paddle in some scenarios (going upstream in smaller, shallower streams is a great example). The MHA staff and I tooled around with the large, wooden poles we had on the property and tried to self-teach using this book. Allegedly, an alumni of the program used to come in and do an actual training session, but that connection seems to have been lost, at least for the past few years, anyways. I splurged and got myself an aluminum (much lighter!) pole from a man in Massachusetts that makes them himself. I have yet to get it wet... But come spring time, watch out!
-Canoe Racing by Peter Heed and Dick Mansfield
Finding Inspiration
-Alone Against the North by Adam Shoalts
This one comes recommended to me by Blake. Adam Shoalts writes about his account of exploring the Again River, a tributary that meets up with a larger river that eventually flows in James Bay, on the southern end of the much greater Hudson Bay. He's in a canoe and on an adventure? I'm in!
-Canoe Country: The Making of Canada by Roy MacGregor
This one fascinates me. It ties together two things that I love... canoeing and history. How the canoe affected the formation of the land that we know today as Canada. Here long before the invisible political borders of Canada were drawn, the canoe was the name of the game in North America. It certainly made its impact on our history on this continent. My favorite line from the book's description:
"Famous paddlers have been so enchanted with the canoe that one swore God made Canada as the perfect country in which to paddle it."
Seems fitting for two partners about to paddle the Yukon, eh?
-Natural Born Heroes by Christopher McDougall
Chris McDougall wrote another book that I really loved called Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen that explores the art of human endurance in running. Who says one can't apply that to paddling? McDougall dives into the history of humanity as endurance athletes, which is a pretty fascinating part of our natural history. Does this book have any deep secrets that may unlock something?? Maybe, maybe not. But it could certainly inspire. I took up running more frequently after reading Born to Run, so I'm hoping that this one can provide a similar sense of inspiration as we push our limits past the impossible.
Others I'm Looking Into...
Some of the authors above have some other incredible pieces of work that I hope to read sooner than later. While they may not directly pertain to the Yukon 1000, a good adventure read is always a good move. While my list of books to read seems to grow faster than the rate I can read them... I can try to keep up, right? Here's some of those:
-Have Paddle Will Travel by Rod Price
-Racing Around Florida by Rod Price
-40 Days: Life, Love, Loss and a Historic Run Around One of the World's Largest Lakes by Steve Cannon
Just Because...
My last few book notes because I had them on my mind...
-Canoes: A Natural History in North America by Mark Neuzil and Norman Sims comes recommended to me by one of my college professors at Northern Michigan University, an avid whitewater kayaker who grew up on the rivers of the southeastern US. It sounds like this book delves even more into the canoe's role in the history of North America, similar to the above book, Canoe Country. If Dr. Hines recommends it, it's GOTTA be good!
-On Celtic Tides and Southern Exposure by Chris Duff are two books by a living legend that account his solo kayaking adventures. In these books specifically, Duff circumnavigates the island nations of Ireland and (the southern island of) New Zealand. Also known for circumnavigating England, Iceland, and the eastern US and Canada (via the East Coast, Florida, the Mississippi, the Great Lakes, and the St Lawrence Waterway), Duff is INCREDIBLE. Not to mention his writing style is eloquent, introspective, and thought provoking. I loved these books and would pick up anything else that he writes, if I can get my hands on it.
Podcasts
Alongside printed material, we've sought out other forms of media! Blake put together a playlist of podcasts on Spotify that are absolutely worth a listen. Here's their titles. I'll let the podcasts do the talking for themselves, no descriptions needed...
The Pursuit Zone- TPZ065: Canoe Racing the Yukon 1000 with Emma Burgeson
The Pursuit Zone- TPZ129: Canoe Racing the Yukon 1000 with Ian Finch
Wicked Aloha- Episode 1.1 Yukon 1000. The World’s Longest Canoe Race
Wicked Aloha- Jon Frith, Organizer of the Yukon 1000
SUPfm- Paddling the Yukon 1000
For those of you that made it this far, thanks for reading and stay tuned for me!
-Dan
Comments
Post a Comment