Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska My favorite Alaska books

Wanted to not mess up any other threads on this. I just went through both my Kindle and other Alaska books. I have 31 that I can count. The two that really held my attention was
Fifty Years Below Zero - A Lifetime Of Adventure In The Far North
Charles D. Brower
The other was the journal of Andrew Berg. Alaska's no.1 guide: The history and journals of Andrew Berg, 1869-1939
To me these 2 are head and shoulders above the rest, even though I have read several good ones.

With retirement, I've developed an interest as well in Arctic and Antarctic accounts.

Just reading one now. The Wilderness of Denali, Sheldon, 1930.

Travels and the study of sheep in the area from the early 1900's. Simply can't envision the days when one could take 5 Dall rams in one day.

Abe's Books is a great place to find old and rare material at good prices.

And the rams close enough to pack them out to sell to the hwy/ railroad crew.

They had a railroad along the foothills of Denali in 1906-8?

Haven't got that far in the book yet.

They were building the Richardson road atop the Richardson Trail within 10 years of then.

I should have added the road houses between fbx and valdez.

I'm thinking of Glaser.

Another good read, tho not Alaska, but Canada

My Life with the Eskimo
Vilhjalmur Stefansson

believe I listed "In Search of the Kuskokwim" before as a reasonably good read... A bit weak on the actual story but a great overview of a pretty amazing guy.

https://www.amazon.com/Search-Kuskokwim-Other-Great-Endeavors/dp/1935347047

Frank Glaser by any chance? Wasn't he the fellow who owned the Black Rapids Roadhouse in the mid 1,900s? If that's the guy, there is a book about him titled, "The Alaska Wolf Man." Great read about an Alaskan who was tougher than nails.

This one?
https://www.amazon.com/Alaskas-Wolf-Man-Wilderness-Adventures/dp/1575100479

Thank you Captain Obvious...

You'r welcome, but I thought that I was responding to Ironbender. My apologies to you.

Indeed that was my reference, Ray.

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!

Not in the right format to embed, three of glazers rams. One of which is better than decent
[]http://vilda.alaska.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/cdmg2/id/3206/rec/5

Other pics here from UAA. collection.
http://vilda.alaska.edu/cdm/search/searchterm/Glaser

Outstanding! I was not aware that there were some many photos of Frank Glaser. Thanks for sharing.

By the way, long ago I read a book about a pilot and guide who would take his clients and land his aircraft out on the ice packs. If I well remember his favorite rifle was an old .30-06 (much like Frank Glaser), and his last name was "Kunkle," I believe. I should have the book somewhere around my home, but can't find it

I got that one, Trail of the Eagle by Bud Conkle, as told to Jim Rearden

I collect the old whalers accounts and diarys, gold seekers jounals, and most anything published.

My favorite is the Arctic, and further the personal accounts, no matter when, 200 years ago or yesterday. Explores and first contacts, accounts fromthe Franklin Expeditions, etc.

Of those, I love the descriptive first hand accounts of the Revenue Cutters and the scientists they brought along.
The Revenue Service (predates the Coast Guard) and the Navy both sent cartographers up the Kobuk and Noatak Rivers in the summer of 1884 and mapped the places. Kobuk River has mostly Inupiaq names, as they were accompanied by locals who could name them, though the guys who mapped the noatak had no loacls along, nor met any while they went up the river. (At that time of year people were down at the Ocean Hunting/Fishing, or on the mountain/ridges looking for Summer Caribou)

Anyways, these also came with the very first maps made of the areas, which is extra kiss kiss special, to me at least, as collecting maps is also a hobbie, and I have afew really good ones..





The map has the name ''Koowak'' spelled phonically, which was first named by the Dane Otto von Kotzebue, and its Germanic pronunciation, so its a ''long V'' rather than a ''W'' Koo-vuck'', later englishized to Kobuk..........

Good one. Those old guys were incredibly tough. There is another book about Pinnell and Talifson, who were Kodiak bear guides long ago. The title is, "Track of The Kodiak." But the story about Frank Glaser is the one I found the most interesting since I spend a lot of time on the Richardson during the summer. There was supposed to be another roadhouse about 20 miles South of the Black Rapids Roadhouse, and I have spent some time trying to find its exact location. This roadhouse was destroyed by an Avalanche (told about by Mr. Glaser). Have not found any traces of it at both sides of the Highway.

It should be somewhere near this area, but I haven't found the remains.

Sounds great// Read that book also..

The Berg book is great to me since I have spent a little time in that same country.

Also, I need to bump "Wolf man" up in my queue.

Besides the books already mentioned ALASKAN ADVENTURE by Jay Williams and BORN ON SNOWSHOES by Evelyn Bergland Shores are two other great reads.
Harry Dodges's book KODIAK ISLAND AND ITS BEARS. Is another good one.