Harrowsmith – June 2019

Harrowsmith Summer 2019 | 89

InthefirstweekofJanuary 1975

inBettles,Alaska,itwasthecoldest

recordedtemperatureeverinthat

littletown,anditwas 72 degrees

belowzero.Intemperatureslike

that,thingsreallyarestrange.Ifyou

havea cupofcoffeeandthrowitin

theair,itinstantlybecomescrystals.

Ifyouspit,yourspitbounces.

Anytimeoftheyearisexciting.

Thebeautyisstaggering.

TheBrooksRangeisabout

800 miles.Itrunseastandwestinto

Canada.Alloftheparkliesabove

theArcticCircle.Therearegrizzly

bears;therearepolarbearsinthe

northernportions.Caribou,moose,

muskoxen,Arcticfoxes,wolves—

there’sa plethoraofmagnificent

animalsoutthere.Onetime,a

mothergrizzlycameby,calledher

cub,satdownandnursedher.She

didn’tdetectme;I hadthewindin

myfavour.I watchedherandcould

hearthesoundssheandthecubwere

making.Itwasdelightful.

HS What’syouradvicefor

peoplewhowanttovisit?

JW

Theheadquartersforthe

Nationa l Park Service is in

the little town of Bettles, on the

Clayoquot River, about 20 miles from

the boundaries of the park itself. The

park is total wilderness; there are no

visitor facilities of any kind. In fact,

there aren’t even any roads. One

of the standard lines of folks who live

in this area is, “The real magnificent

beauty of the Arctic wilderness

begins where roads end.” There are

no roads that even lead to the park—

you have to go in by bush plane.

You have to be very well prepared.

You have to be trained and

experienced, with someone who

is trained and experienced. Self-

sufficiency is mandatory.

I’ve done a lot of solo backpacking

through this area. The next nearest

person may be 100, 200 or more

miles away. It’s really remote. Down

here on the Lower 48, there was a

location mapped out, out in northern

Wyoming; it is the point that is the

farthest from a travelled road, and

it is 26 miles. If you go up to Alaska,

you can find places that are several

hundred miles from the nearest road.

Same is true over in the Northwest

Territories and in the Yukon.

People will say they’ve been hiking;

you can’t compare backpacking in the

Brooks Range with anything else. It

is more demanding, more dangerous

and, frankly, more rewarding. I

encourage people to take the time and

develop the skills and accumulate

the gear that is necessary. It takes a

while to do it.

HS What do you hope readers

will take away from your

book?

JW
I hopepeoplewilldetectmy
love for the beauty, for this
area. I hope they will appreciate it. I
do recommend people go there, but
they have to be prepared. It takes
a while to do all the study, saving
money and all the things to go there.
I always tell folks, there’s no
bad way to take a trip to Alaska,
whether it’s cruise ship or whatever.
There’s so much, too, that Canada
has to offer—from Whitehorse up to
Dawson. They are accessible, and
they are so beautiful. I encourage
people to—if they’re not physically
fit to backpack solo through the
Brooks Range and places like that—I
encourage them to go to whatever
wilderness they can reach, whatever
wilderness is next door to them. The
whole idea of “wilderness” is such
a precious commodity, in this time,
in modern society. It is so absolutely
precious. There are so many things
to learn from, and jewels of wisdom,
that the wilderness will provide a
visitor. The value of this exploration
on a personal level is euphoric. It
brings a feeling of humility to a
person. It’s a privilege to witness up
close the magnificence of this truly
wild and free country. H
JOE WILKINS