OutdoorBlogging » alaska

Dick Proenneke – Content in Alaska

braddock — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 03:36:43 +0000

Here’s a clip of Dick Proenneke at age 75 next to his cabin at Twin Lakes in Lake Clark National Park, Alaska. Dick walked into this wilderness and built his cabin with saw and axe back in 1968. He spent the rest of his days living off the land and adding to the mystique of the self-sufficient survivalist. Dick Proenneke is my inspiration to pursue a way of life that is quickly fading from existence…self-sufficiency. This clip comes from “Alaska Silence & Solitude“ produced by Bob Swerer. For more information on “Alaska Silence & Solitude“ check out www.dickproenneke.com.

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Dick Proenneke Speaks

braddock — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 16:52:54 +0000

Any time I think about Dick Proenneke I associate him with the voice of the narrator from Alone in the Wilderness. The folksy and plain stated narration blended with the beautiful images of Alaska and the skillful self-sufficiency of Dick Proenneke make Alone in the Wilderness worthy of repeated viewing. I’ll watch it every couple of weeks or whenever my stress level starts to rise. The film resets my brain chemistry to neutral every time.

Well that voice isn’t Dick’s. The narration is done by Bob Swerer. Bob produced Alone in the Wilderness along with Alaska Silence and Solitude, which documents a trip Bob made to visit Dick Proenneke at his cabin in 1997.

You’ll hear both Dick and Bob’s voices in this clip from Alaska Silence and Solitude.

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The Dick Proenneke cabin is now a museum in Alaska’s Lake Clark National Park

braddock — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 17:50:05 +0000

It’s good to see the National Park Service is going to preserve Dick Proenneke’s cabin as a museum. I hope to visit the site myself some day.

The beauty and remoteness of the Lake Clark National Park definitely puts it in my top 5 places to disappear to.

A month or two trying to survive in this wilderness would make my daily problems look ridiculous.

I put some more pictures of Dick Proenneke, his cabin, and Twin Lakes in the photo gallery.

The life of Richard “Dick” Proenneke is my new inspiration

braddock — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 03:43:51 +0000

Do you know the story of Richard “Dick” Proenneke? At age 52 Dick left the civilization of the lower 48 behind and headed into the wilds of Alaska.

He built a cabin by himself using only hand tools, and hunted and gathered for the majority of his food. He thrived in the complete isolation of Twin Lakes, Alaska for the majority of 30 years.

Dick documented the building of his cabin and his journey through the seasons at Twin Lakes on film. Alone in the Wilderness is the title of this autobiographical documentary, and you must seek it out.

Watching this man craft his cabin retreat out of white spruce using a hand saw and axe is fascinating. The man made carpentry look like art.

I have a strong desire to follow his lead and head for the wilderness myself. If I had half his courage and abilities I’d leave tomorrow.

Here’s a clip of Dick turning timber into a cabin by the lake. This clip comes from “Alone in the Wilderness“ produced by Bob Swerer. For more information on “Alone in the Wilderness“ check out www.dickproenneke.com.

[See post to watch Flash video]