Looking from atop the Devil’s Backbone down into the Current River Valley as an early spring thunderstorm breaks up is a wilderness scene that truly exceeds the descriptive boundaries of human language. While the mist still hangs heavily in the river valley below, the sun breaks through the parting clouds, illuminating the entire valley in cascades of sunlight as if there were a great rustic crystal chandelier hanging from the heavens created just for the Ozark wilderness. It is nothing short of treasure for the soul. These soul treasures are what a mountain man seeks out his entire life. They are gifts from the Creator more valuable than the greatest treasures of man’s economy and industry’s fires. It is these treasures for which a mountain man lives and continually seeks out in his journey through life. And, it is experiencing and enjoying the journey, not just impatiently awaiting some eventual destination, which continually pays dividends to the tuned-in collector of soul treasures.In terms of soul treasures a southern Missouri mountain man could be rich beyond his wildest dreams right here in the Ozarks if he were able to control his wanderlust for what’s over the next ridge, beyond the next river valley, or even on the other side of the continent. The problem is, there are always treasures over there that would otherwise go unfound if a soul did not venture. I am a seeker of these treasures and I have come to understand that I am drawn to the search and the subsequent soul-fix that accompanies discovery, just like the great gravitational pull of celestial bodies that create the very tides of earth's oceans. With that said, all my life my soul has been drawn to the last great frontier for a mountain man, the great land of Alaska.
It is a unique type of person who finds his soul in the vast, quiet, open places of this world. Such a being generally prefers, at least some of the time, to get away from society, government, industry, and the like. I have found that I share those characterisics and traits with a fairly high concentration of folks here in the Ozarks. We are able to better tune in the Creator and understand His message when we are miles upon miles from civilization. In the Ozarks there are many places where we seek out the solitude and counsel of the wilderness and we are rewarded with treasures that are burned into our souls. In Alaska these same places exist in exponential numbers and size. If the Creator speaks to you in the wilderness like he does with me, in Alaska he will grab you by the ears and scream in your face so loudly that you are able to hear it at the deepest depths of your consciousness.
The grand gateway into Alaska starts on a trip up the Inside Passage. Departing from Bellingham, Washington on a four day and three night ferry ride to Haines, Alaska (arguably one of the most beautiful places on earth) an adventurer is introduced to some of the most breathtaking scenery in the world. While travelling through the Inside Passage the ferry will zigzag through hundreds of mist capped, evergreen
covered islands, sometimes with the shore line just a few hundred yards to either side of the boat. Glacial waterfalls pour out into the ocean from the jagged cliffs of many islands. Bald eagles, with their brilliant white heads shining and whales, with their easily recognizable blow spouts blasting up from the water are commonplace along the route. After several days of travelling through this misty, surreal, water-filled landscape the traveler begins to feel as if he were steaming back into primeval times. As the journey draws close to Haines, Alaska, the waters turn emerald green and the mountains thrust straight up from the coastline all the way to the clouds above. Mountain goats are visible on the jagged points and in the avalanche shoots high up on the snow covered mountains. Once again, the full summation of the experience defies description in human language.Alaska is a place, like the Missouri Ozarks, that eludes the descriptive boundaries of human language. The only difference is infinity. The vastness of the land and its diverse landscapes are incomprehensible. Alaskans agree with the saying coined in Texas, “Size does matter.” Because, compared to everywhere else in our country, including Texas, Alaska is infinity. The vast size of the Alaskan wilderness boggles the mind. How does one wrap the mind around infinity? Just one national park in Alaska…just one, the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, is larger than the country of Switzerland and it has higher mountains than the Alps of Switzerland. The park is the home of 4 converging mountain ranges that contain 9 of the 16 highest peaks in North America. It dwarfs Yellowstone, equaling fully 6 Yellowstones in size. Within its boundaries are huge glaciers, vast ice fields, surging rivers, crashing ocean coastlines, an active volcano, abundant wildlife, and beautiful and vast mountain forests. There are very few roads and the land is so enormous that people depend on subsistence from the land for survival as opposed to society's conveniences. This is the land of Nature’s Economy. The Wrangell-St. Elias, let alone the entirety of Alaska, is truly a mountain man’s Shangri-La.
If you are a mountain man in your soul and need some soul time, and we all do, I strongly encourage you to seek out Alaska. Once you see it you will realize it has always been calling you. Alaska, like the Ozarks, is a soul treasure that will change your life. See you in the Great Outdoors. Good luck, be safe, and get a big one.
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