Theodora C. Stanwell-Fletcher (1906–2000)

This is one of the most unique and interesting books I have ever read. I was also pleasantly surprised to find that the author grew up a few miles from where I grew up in Northeast PA and that her conservation efforts allowed me to enjoy some of the same places that she did. Her descriptions of the Northern wilderness and the animals that she found there have stirred my curiosity to explore and learn more. The back of my book includes a bibliography and I'm glad it does.

Based on journal entries, this is the story of a husband and wife who lived in a cabin (built themselves) in a remote mountain valley in Northern Canada. So far north that winter lasts six or seven months out of the year, twenty-foot snowfalls are common, nobody lives for miles and miles around except the Indians and of course the wildlife. They traveled there to study the plants and animals, to take samples for a museum. The book is full of details about how they lived, surviving the show more elements, hunting their own food, trying to get along with their Indian neighbors, reveling in the beauty of the wilderness and the northern lights. They had no radio, no running water, chopped wood for their heat, etc. It was a life of hard work, but they loved it. This is a book with a big heart, full of love for the wilderness. There's lots of adventures as every time they traveled to meet a plane or explore a new area they had to pack all their gear and food on their backs, and walk all the way on snowshoes.

from the Dogear Diary show less

A gift from Helen Cruickshank. Her sister tells the story that succeeded the book. It was discovered after publication that the male subject of the book was a British deserter--the adventure was his way of hiding. The publication unintentionally exposed him. The author, a friend of Helen's, did not know of the man's hidden past.