Return to the Wilderness: The Final Years off the Grid

Growing Up Wild #4

by Janette Ross Riehle, Vernon Ross (Narrator), Sylvia Ross (Narrator)

Vernon and Sylvia continue to live off the grid except for two school years in Palmer, where the kids attend public school. But Vernon must return to the trapline to support his family and several of the children, especially Janette, become dangerously ill while he is gone. After Sylvia’s father dies a year later, the family returns to Alexander Creek, while continuing to fish on Cook Inlet each summer.
At age 12, Janette begins fishing commercially along with her parents and helps to bring in income for the family. Although she loves her life in the wilderness, she feels lonely at times and is beginning to ask deep questions about life.
While written for the general public, this book, as well as the others in the series, is also suitable for older children who are interested in how families lived in earlier times and in far different circumstances than their own. They are written in part from the perspective of the children, as well as that of the adults.

Genres: Nonfiction

157 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 8, 2016

About the author

Janette Ross Riehle was born in Anchorage, Alaska, as the oldest of four children. For the first six years of her life she and her family lived in a log cabin, forty miles from Anchorage by air and a two-day trip across Cook Inlet and up Alexander Creek by boat. She learned to read when she was five years old and has been an avid reader ever since. In addition, writing, in one form or another, has held a lifelong fascination for her. Having spent most of her childhood living in and exploring the outdoors, she still enjoys hiking, fishing, and (occasionally) hunting. She also puts in a large garden each summer, growing both vegetables and lots of flowers.

After graduating from Anchorage High School (now West High) in 1956, she went on to Lewis and Clark College in Portland, OR on a National Merit Scholarship. She married Wallace Riehle during her senior year of college. Five years later, Wallace's job with the US Department of Agriculture took the family, which now included two daughters and one son, back to Palmer, Alaska. By the time they left the state in 1980, they had also lived in Wrangell, Juneau, and Soldotna.

In 1982, with her children grown, Janette returned to college in Indiana and during the next several years earned two Master's degrees in counseling. In addition to being ordained, pastoring one church and later serving on staff at another, she was also credentialed with the American Association of Pastoral Counseling. Returning to Alaska in 1993, she and her husband pastored a church in Homer for several years and she continued to do private practice counseling until 2010. The couple moved back to Palmer in 2000 and now live on several acres of her grandparents' original homestead. Over the more than 50 years of their marriage, their family has grown to include eight grandchildren and three great granddaughters.

In 2005, fulfilling a lifelong dream of telling the story of her family's part in the history of Alaska, she published the paperback Tales of the Trapline. The sequel, Tales of the Fishing Beach, came out in 2010. She has recently re-edited the books and created the 4-book Growing up Wild series of e-books.

Reviews

[Jessica Pentecost · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the whole series-such a great story

I found this series accidentally but was soon hooked. Of course it reads differently than a novel- but the story of life in Alaska was interesting and the straight forward telling with no unnecessary twists and turns was refreshing. Don’t write it off as a young adult book a few pages in-give it a chance. Aside from the historic value of a look at life in Alaska in those years, the strong thread of family love and solidarity and the matter of fact view of hardships as part of life through the whole series was heart warming.

[Jackson H Bates · Rating 5 out of 5]

Priceless History

Even though I am nearly 80 years old, I loved this book. I have been to Alaska twice fishing from rafts and camping on shoreline. Alaska is a beautiful state. This series of books elaborates what year round living in the wilderness is like. My dad was an Eagle Scout and loved fishing more than he did working as a dentist. I would love to sit and visit with this author. I thank her for these wonderful stories.

[Walter Boomsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this series and read it quickly. It's a hard-to-put-down work. The books have been an easy read with one exception. Occasionally, the flow is hard to follow. Chapters are organized by month, but sometimes the content isn't. In this particular book, most of the photos were blank spaces. (Admittedly, photos and ebooks are problematic in general, but it was particularly disappointing because the captions were visible.) Also, this book contained quite a few typos.

[candace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great narrative of bush life in Alaska

I have read all four books of the series. Each one gives a great description of living in the wilderness of Alaska - the hardships and rewards, as time unfolds. The lifestyle required resilience and ingenuity, and the author provides great details of how her family lived successfully over a period of years. Highly recommend.

[Daniel W. Arnold · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book

Such a wonderful tale of a life lived in a time when things were much simpler, though there was a lot of hard work. They seemed much happier than many young people are today. Thanks for sharing your awesome life story.

[Christine Arrowsmith Hartman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Refreshing and enjoyable

After reading all four books in this series, I am left with a smile on my face. I would like to congratulate the author on completing this delightful memoir.

[Pam Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome

A very good series on this family's life. Great adventures had by all. Sad for the series to end. A series all will enjoy

[cathy ostrowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

I really enjoyed this glimpse of the authors childhood, experiences and family life. All four books in the series are well written and very enjoyable.

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pioneers

Loved all four books. It is hard to imagine living in such a wild, uninhabited piece of the World. What an amazing family! Good read...al four books.

[sandy potter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Return to the Wilderness

I read all 4 wonderful books. Hated for them to end. Would like to know about the children's lives , how and where they ended up.

[todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic Series

I loved the whole life story. What a rich experience. But…as a pastor, I found the last paragraph the most thrilling. God bless you, Janette.

[Paige Lounsberry · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this series, but this book spans a few years in a short time and ends abruptly, so probably my least favorite of the lot.

[mary m miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book almost made me feel like I was out on the Alaskan Frontier right along with the Ross Family. While the sequencing of things was sometimes a little difficult to follow, it really gives you a feel for that lifestyle - joys, warts and all! It was an honest recounting of their family's trials and tribulations and hey, it got me up to read at 5:30 a.m. because I wanted to see what happened next! The whole series is a must read for anyone who enjoys the t.v. show "Alaska, the Last Frontier", and anyone who has traveled to Alaska and were enchanted by its beauty and story.

[Shelley Sands · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Great Series

If you like true Alaskan stories then this is a read you will enjoy. I highly recommend this family adventure!