What are you reading?

[Black_Fly]

Where can one find “Beyond The End of the Road: A Winter of Contentment North of the Arctic Circle?”

 

[Alan Gage]

Where can one find “Beyond The End of the Road: A Winter of Contentment North of the Arctic Circle?”

Erica provided the Amazon link in her response. Here it is again:

Amazon Link

Alan

 

[PaddlingPitt]

Where can one find “Beyond The End of the Road: A Winter of Contentment North of the Arctic Circle?”

Here is my submission on CTN: https://www.canoetripping.net/threads/our-winter-of-content-in-canadas-western-arctic.88055/

It might be enjoyable, Black Fly, to read the book first, for the full presentation, without interruptions with comments in the trip report. Then come back here for the colour images.

I still have a few books in my basement, but I can’t compete with Amazon regarding shipping charges.

 

[D J Hayes]

Just finishing up 'The Gales of November' by Bacon about the Edmund Fitzgerald. Great read with a lot of backstory about the economics, history and science that lead up to the loss of The Mighty Fitz, as well as in-depth portraits of those lost and what the lives of Great Lakes sailors were like.

I also tore through 'Indian Creek Chronicles' by Fromm about a college kid who unwittingly lands himself a job living alone in a tent in the Bitterroot Range of Idaho for 7 months of winter. I suspect many here with resonate with the tension between wanting to be ensconced in wildness and missing the company of friends and family back in civilization.

I had been anxiously awaiting a copy of "The Gales of November" from our local library and it became available to me on Monday; the 50th anniversary of the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. John U. Bacon is a great storyteller and I'm really hooked on the book. There is a recent podcast on "Canadian Geographic" about the book with Mr. Bacon that is well worth a listen.
Dan

 

[PaddlingPitt]

Below is an image of the cover of my book “Franklin, Oops, Mud and Cupcake.” Interestingly, at least to me, I had originally called it “Canoeing the Coppermine, Seal, Anderson and Snowdrift Rivers in Northern Canada,” which is now the subtitle. I wanted people to know what the book was about, but the publisher said that my proposed title was boring. So Kathleen came up with a one-word summary for each of the four rivers.

“Franklin” for the Coppermine, as we had the journals of Sir John Franklin, who descended the Coppermine in 1821. “Oops” for the Seal River, which flowed into Hudson Bay about 70 km (40 miles) north of Churchill, Manitoba. We planned to paddle south to Churchill, but two knowledgeable people advised against it, as too dangerous. A backup plan was to paddle 6 km (4 miles) north to a lodge, where we could be flown to Churchill. Neither plan worked. “Mud” for the Anderson River, as we paddled away from our winter happiness in our one-room cabin down the Anderson River during spring breakup. Very poor camping conditions pretty much all the way to the Arctic coast. “Cupcake” for the Snowdrift River, where Kathleen, more or less, acquired her nickname of Cupcake.

The book cover shows Kathleen enjoying the scenery from our lunch spot above a canyon on the Anderson River.

 

[PaddlingPitt]

To follow up on my last post, if you would like to see any of my trip reports on these four rivers, simply hit the search button, and then search by title, such as “Coppermine River.” Perhaps not everyone here on CTN has seen these reports, with lots of images.

 

[Mason]

Erica provided the Amazon link in her response. Here it is again:

Amazon Link

Alan

And his "Franklin, Oops Mud and Cupcakes" book is available on Kindle, just the thing for reading on long trips. It fits in nicely with my favorite Jim Corbett maneater books.

 

[Erica]

And his "Franklin, Oops Mud and Cupcakes" book is available on Kindle, just the thing for reading on long trips. It fits in nicely with my favorite Jim Corbett maneater books.

And right now it’s only about $4.49.

I think you can start with any of the books. There’s no required reading order.

 

[Halpc]

I just finished "The Wright Brothers" by David McCullough. It was a fascinating book and gave me much greater admiration for these incredible men. I was really surprised to learn that Wilbur hung a "14 foot canvas wrapped red canoe" under his plane the first time that he flew over water (the Hudson River in New York City). Fortunately he didn't have to crash land in the river, and there is no mention again of him using it for other flights. I don't know how he intended to get into the canoe and get free of the airplane if he had to ditch into the river- but he was a brilliant thinker and must have had some plan. There is a photo of the plane with the suspended canoe in the book.

 

[Benson Gray]

I don't know how he intended to get into the canoe and get free of the airplane if he had to ditch into the river

I suspect that he simply expected that the canoe would give him some extra time to either get rescued or free of the plane. The canoe was completely covered with canvas and solidly attached. It was not easily removable to be used like a lifeboat. The link at https://www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/wilbur-wright-and-the-statue-of-liberty-180947754/ has more details.

Benson

 

[GDahl]

What is everybody reading?

I just finished reading/ looking at "In the Footsteps of Grey Owl : Journey Into the Ancient Forest" by Gary McGuffin, Joanie McGuffin. I must say not what I had imagined but inspiring and great photos.

I just received "Lands Serene" by Peter Kazaks.

That book sounds interesting. The McGuffin name sounds familiar to me...have they written canoeing books?

In the near future I plan to read
"Canoe Atlas of the Little North" and Gordon Lightfoot biography, "Lightfoot" by Nicholas Jennings.

 

[Halpc]

Thanks for the link Benson- it did have a lot more details on the flight and the role of the canoe that we not in the book.