Name: Alaska's Bush Pilots
Brand: Rob Stapleton
SKU: 9781467131834
Price: 24.99 USD
Availability: InStock

Alaska's Bush Pilots

9781467131834

$24.99

A thrilling ride alongside the daredevil aviators who first braved the unknown of Alaska's wilderness.

Bush pilots are known as rough, tough, resourceful people who fly their aircraft into tight spots in the worst of weather. Alaska's bush pilots are all of that and more. Acting as pioneers in a land with 43,000 miles of coastline and North America's largest mountains, Alaska's bush pilots were and are visionaries of a lifestyle of freedom. Flying came late to Alaska but caught on quickly. The first flight was made over a three-day exhibition at Fairbanks, July 3–5, 1913. James Martin first flew that aircraft, owned by him and his wife, Lilly, and investors Arthur Williams and R.S. McDonald. Ever since, Alaskan bush pilots have found that they were calculators of their own fate, flying in fragile aircraft over vast stretches of tundra or through towering mountain passes. This book examines the pioneer aviators and the aircraft types such as the Stearman, Stinson, and Lockheed, many of which were tested and crashed in the far north regions of Alaska.

Cover image for Alaska's Bush Pilots, isbn: 9781467131834

Alaska's Tanana Valley Railroads

9780738596679

$24.99

In a region desperate for transportation to rich, gold-bearing creeks, the narrow-gauge Tanana Mines Railroad was built over permafrost, bogs, and hills to carry miners and supplies in 1905. Reorganized as the Tanana Valley Railroad, this little line promised the survival of both gold mining and Fairbanks until Fairbanks's economic base broadened. The railroad, built with Klondike Gold Rush earnings, prospered for only a few years and was acquired by the Alaska Railroad. The narrow-gauge survived 25 years, serving as the terminus for the Alaska Railroad and ensuring the development of Interior Alaska.

Alaska's Tanana Valley Railroads book cover showing a vintage steam locomotive and railroad workers in sepia.

Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race

9780738596273

$24.99

The Yukon Quest is more than just a sled dog race. It was the dream of two Fairbanksans--a recreational musher and an amateur historian--who conceived of a race closer to the roots of Alaskan dog sledding. The Yukon Quest is a 1,000-mile slog through trails used only for this race that cross mountains, rivers, and lakes in some of the harshest weather on the planet. It celebrates the history of the dogs that carried freight and delivered mail, dogs that many times over saved lives before the advent of aviation and snowmachines made them obsolete. The inaugural Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race of 1984 was a great success with the wholehearted support of the Fairbanks community, and it has become a much-anticipated annual event ever since.

Book cover for Yukon Quest Sled Dog Race featuring a sepia photo of people with a sled dog framed in red.

The Clara Nevada

9781609492885

$21.99

February 5, 1898. Witnesses report a giant orange fireball reflected in the glacial waters of Alaska's Lynn Canal. At the height of Klondike gold fever, the Clara Nevada disappeared into an epic storm— taking passengers and priceless cargo with her. Was the explosion an accident or a robbery gone wrong? Did Captain C.H. Lewis make off with $165,000 ($13.6 million in today's currency) in raw gold? Or was the sinking a case of a sea-weary steamer meeting an untimely end? Alaska historian Steven C. Levi combs the archives to piece together the true account of the Clara Nevada's final voyage, attempting to solve the riddle of the lost steamer that resurfaced ten years after that tragic night and became known as Alaska's ghost ship.

Book cover of The Clara Nevada with turquoise mountains and a steamship on a green lake in Alaska.

Iditarod

9781467131049

$24.99

For sled dog-racing fans worldwide, the most important calendar day is the first Saturday in March, when teams convene for the start of mushing's Superbowl--the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race®. Every year, as it has since 1973, this ultimate challenge begins in the state's most populated city, Anchorage, and then dives into the Alaska Bush on a historic trail that wends over mountain ranges, along frozen rivers, and onto the Bering Sea ice. The finish line lies 1,000-plus miles away in Nome, beneath a giant, burled archway. There, dogs and their drivers are greeted by masses of locals, vacationing fans, officials, media, and other mushers who intimately know what that team has just endured. To simply finish is the goal for entrants; to win is the accomplishment of a rare few. Indeed, more people have climbed Mount Everest than have finished the Iditarod®.

Iditarod book cover with a close up portrait of a musher in a fur hood framed by a red border.

Legendary Locals of Chugiak-Eagle River

9781467101363

$24.99

Homesteading in Alaska was not an obvious lifestyle choice for most people in post-World War II America. In an age of gleeful consumerism, early settlers of Chugiak-Eagle River made a decision to live simply. Yet a simple life and an easy one were two different things. Many raised their own crops and a few, such as the Pippels, the Tatros, the Glenn Briggses, and the Vanovers, created larger-scale farming ventures. Other entrepreneurs, such as Paul Swanson, thrived in the frontier environment, taking on multiple enterprises to fill gaps in the area's services. Out of this can-do atmosphere sprang a number of artists, musicians, and performers. The Chugiak Belles dance group revved up audiences at the annual Spring Carnival, and the Chugiak Players staged a variety of dramas and comedies. Eagle River homesteaders Arthur and Eleanor Braendel helped found the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra and performed with them for 60 years. Radio host and homesteader Ruth Briggs sang and traveled with the original Anchorage Concert Chorus. As the area matured and schools grew, athletes began to thrive, creating their own legacy. More legendary locals are being minted every day.

Alaska Beer

9781626194496

$21.99

Alaska's fermented legacy retains the fiercely independent spirit that propelled the state's beer drinkers through the gold rush and sustained them through Prohibition. Today, craft brewers produce outstanding suds in some of the harshest and most remote locations on the planet. And while the beer scene in Alaska has roots that trace back to days when spirits had to have medicinal, mechanical, and scientific purposes, the contemporary crop of breweries can thank industry pioneers like the Alaskan Brewing Company for staying on the cutting edge of beer-making technology. Join beer columnist and historian Bill Howell on an exploration through this hop-filled history of the Last Frontier.