If you're an Alaskan or a pilot, or both--

[Recluse]

You need to read CloudDancer's Alaskan Chronicles.

This guy is a free-wheeling, adventurous Texan who left home in 1971 to fly the untamed bush country of the Last Frontier and who now claims Alaska as his home state.

The writing is about like we talk here--sitting around a warm Franklin stove, sipping an adult beverage and recalling the crazy things we did years earlier--marveling at how we not only survived, but seemingly didn't learn anything from it and amazingly enough, repeated the deeds again and once more came out unscathed. . . or mostly so.

Great descriptions of life in rural Alaska and what it was like to fly it back then.

CloudDancer's Alaskan Chronicles (http://clouddancer.org/about.htm)

I received the entire four-volume set, personally autographed on New Year's Eve. Just finished up the last volume. It was like finishing a trip you didn't want to end.

The author will gladly autograph the books for you as he carries some around with him on the "real and boring airline job" he's chained to these days.

Enjoy.

:coffee:

[starmac]

I will have to look these up. I have read several books about the original bush pilots, they were a daring breed for sure, and had to be pretty adept at improvising to get home at times. We still lose a few every year too.

[429421Cowboy]

I also will look this up, I have more time for books lately and I like reading about Alaska and the bush pilots in the early days.

Another great book of the same vein is Flying Alaska Gold, which is pretty much the same deal, a Montana boy in the '70's decided to go up there and open a gold mine and do all the flying for the mine, and his adventures.

I will look the series up!

[popper]

Recluse - you see that news bit about the 80 yr old who lost his prop. He said if he hadn't hit that ditch he'd just get a new prop & fly it home. Some really good stories from the 'barn-stormer' days too.
I see some videos of the take-of/landing competition up there. Those guys are crazy!

[snuffy]

So what's with the bag over his head, and no real name? I can understand wanting to be private or anonymous, or is just his schtick?

That's 75 bucks plus shipping, a lot more than I'm willing to lay out without some prior background.

I see his second book on kindle for 4 bucks. I may buy that, if I like it, buy the books.

I debated becoming a bush pilot after I got my commercial license and most of the instrumental. Would have meant leaving home with an uncertain future. Kudos to those brave souls that did it, and God rest the souls that died in crashes.

[Recluse]

So what's with the bag over his head, and no real name? I can understand wanting to be private or anonymous, or is just his schtick?

A little of both.

At the time of original writings on his website (plus, he started and owns www.supercub.org), he was on the promotion path at a major airline. In his writings, he gets a bit irreverent of the FARs (read: FAA) and he reveals (admits) to doing some things that probably wouldn't endear him to the promotion boards and chief pilot, so he tried to stay somewhat anonymous.

It turned into a schtick that he keeps up now as it helps keep people focused on "CloudDancer" rather than his real name. I only know his real name because of some shipping snafus on getting the books and having to trade e-mails and phone calls.

But trust me--it's more fun with him being this faceless "anybody" that goes by CloudDancer. :)

:coffee:

[snuffy]

Well, I refined the search @ Amazon, found all 4 books on Kindle, downloaded all four! Looks like I have some reading to do!

I'll dive into book 1 later today, if it's as good as JD said, and I suspect, I may be reading into the wee hours of Saturday!

Took a look at supercubs.org, I'll join there as well. Might just force me to do what I've been threatening to do,,-- that is go over to the little airport I learned at, go for a lesson with an instructor. See just how rusty my skills are after 40+ years since I flew an airplane!

[snuffy]

Bump^
I'm about ½ way through the first book. I never laughed so hard, though I might bust a blood vessel in my head!

I also have to quit reading, I'm not getting anything done, like cast/loading.

This guy can write! His style is the back home variety, not the kind those that raise a pinky when drinking their fruit of the vine. Proper English wazzat? I love it, kind of irrelevant, but the good kind.

Thanks JD for the heads up, makes me wish I had gone north in '73, I might have crossed paths with cloud dancer! Maybe even shared an airplane with him!?

[Recluse]

"Hey Pilot, I gotta PEE!"

And then there's Fred the Polar Bear.

Classic bush stories.

:coffee:

[gkainz]

I like Sandy Jamieson's art ... not-so-subtle satire in his art http://www.sandyjamieson.com/

and this book - Alaska's Sky Follies, The Funny Side of Flying in the Far North, by Joe Rychetnik uses some of Jamieson's art