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Ten Thousand Miles With a Dog Sled: A Narrative of Winter Travel in Interior Alaska
Though born and raised in England, explorer HUDSON STUCK (1865-1920) epitomized the adventurous New World spirit of the American West at its closing. Drawn by the wide-open spaces, Stuck, an Episcopal priest and champion of "muscular Christianity," volunteered in 1904 to serve as the archdeacon of the Yukon; his spiritual domain encompassed 250,000 square miles of interior Alaska. In this dramatic 1914 work, Stuck draws upon his eight years of continuous travels in this "great, wild country" to paint an exhilarating portrait of a rugged land and the people who lived there. This is no mild tale of priestly ministering or zealous missionary work-Stuck all but eschews discussion of his actual work to regale us with tales of the "gentle aboriginal population" and "some of the hardiest and most adventurous white men in the world," and warns against "low-down whites" with no respect for native culture or the sanctity of the land. With this beautiful and untamed land again threatened by encroaching development, this century-old book remains a fresh and vital read. ALSO AVAILABLE FROM COSIMO: Stuck's Ascent of Denali
504 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1914
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 5, 2010
Several different and quite exciting trips by dogsled are described in this book. Hudson Stuck must have been very capable to do the traveling he did, and then taking the effort to write about it. All the trips were very strenuous and extremely dangerous in places. This is the earliest description I had read yet of Alaska. It is fascinating to see which places were populated at that time, and why. The author's description of the different native groups at that time is also very interesting. So is the description of the land, especially since my contact with them is mostly by the couple of roads that go across the state and tends to be unrelated to landforms. Stuck, on the other hand, thinks only in terms of landforms. It would have been very helpful to have a map included in the book, but there are photos!
Stuck was very concerned with the welfare of the natives and had a very progressive attitude toward them. However, some of the language in the book is obviously from that time period and is downright peculiar now. The phrasing also seems to be old-fashioned, and it is sometimes takes a bit of effort to follow sentences that I would have structured differently.
The first trip was 4 and 1/2 months during the winter of 1905-06 and went from Fairbanks to Circle, Fort Yukon, Bettles, Coldfoot, Kotzebue Sound, Nome and back to Fairbanks. A short trip 3 years later is next. This one was very unplanned and dangerous, It included description of passing over flexible river ice with the ice being held up by the water underneath it. The third trip in the winter of 1909-10 was from Fort Yukon to Allakaket, Tanana, Rampart City, Nenana, Chena, Fairbanks, Salchaket, Eagle, Circle, and back to Fort Yukon during a very severe winter. The next trip in the winter of 1910-11 is from Tanana to Ididarod and to Fort Yukon.
The difficulties of travel by dog sled, camping out at night are well explained, although doing anything at 50 below zero is still unimaginable to me. Two in the Far North described the same type of travel, but with less detail. Just when I was wishing I had some idea of what kind of meals they had, I came to a section of the book where Stuck described preparation of a typical meal.
Hudson Stuck was the Archdeacon of the Yukon, and he traveled to visit missions. The travel he did was extensive and covered many totally different climatic and ethnic areas. Most of the travel routes in winter are along rivers, with portages to cut across river bends and to pass between different drainages. I don't think any of them were actual roads, and may not have been summer trails.
The book includes very recent stories of epidemics in native villages. The last trip is through territory that the author believes is very sparsely populated, even for early Alaska, because of diphtheria in 1905 and measles in 1900. He describes three locations with six, six and sixteen people each and stories he heard there of entire villages being killed by disease.
Now on to the book he wrote about his first ascent of Denali. I can hardly wait.
Stuck was very concerned with the welfare of the natives and had a very progressive attitude toward them. However, some of the language in the book is obviously from that time period and is downright peculiar now. The phrasing also seems to be old-fashioned, and it is sometimes takes a bit of effort to follow sentences that I would have structured differently.
The first trip was 4 and 1/2 months during the winter of 1905-06 and went from Fairbanks to Circle, Fort Yukon, Bettles, Coldfoot, Kotzebue Sound, Nome and back to Fairbanks. A short trip 3 years later is next. This one was very unplanned and dangerous, It included description of passing over flexible river ice with the ice being held up by the water underneath it. The third trip in the winter of 1909-10 was from Fort Yukon to Allakaket, Tanana, Rampart City, Nenana, Chena, Fairbanks, Salchaket, Eagle, Circle, and back to Fort Yukon during a very severe winter. The next trip in the winter of 1910-11 is from Tanana to Ididarod and to Fort Yukon.
The difficulties of travel by dog sled, camping out at night are well explained, although doing anything at 50 below zero is still unimaginable to me. Two in the Far North described the same type of travel, but with less detail. Just when I was wishing I had some idea of what kind of meals they had, I came to a section of the book where Stuck described preparation of a typical meal.
Hudson Stuck was the Archdeacon of the Yukon, and he traveled to visit missions. The travel he did was extensive and covered many totally different climatic and ethnic areas. Most of the travel routes in winter are along rivers, with portages to cut across river bends and to pass between different drainages. I don't think any of them were actual roads, and may not have been summer trails.
The book includes very recent stories of epidemics in native villages. The last trip is through territory that the author believes is very sparsely populated, even for early Alaska, because of diphtheria in 1905 and measles in 1900. He describes three locations with six, six and sixteen people each and stories he heard there of entire villages being killed by disease.
Now on to the book he wrote about his first ascent of Denali. I can hardly wait.
May 1, 2021
I read this for research and found it more interesting than I expected. Stuck is pedantic and an obnoxious prude, but he is very observant, passionate, and thoughtful as well.
The book consists of one large narrative and a few smaller ones describing his journeys around Alaska - followed by a few short chapters on topics Stuck found worth pontificating about. Church business is what sets him going, but the journeys are quite meandering, don't have very clear objectives, and never seem to go according to schedule. This makes for great reading - and one gets the sense that Stuck himself wasn't too nonplussed. He is in his element out there and makes the best of it. He has his share of difficulties and heartbreak as well - which also makes for more interesting reading.
The book is packed with details and makes a good chronicle of its place and time. The mundane stuff that a grander narrative would ignore - melting snow on a spit over a fire for tea; the dirty magazines one would find at the road houses; the outlandish price ($1.50!) for a rabbit dinner. A must-read for anyone interested in 19th/20th century arctic exploration
Just as a note - there is a horrible edition floating around you must be careful to avoid. The word "Alaska" is cut off on the cover, and the cover art depicts a green forest. I don't know where this came from or how it got approved for sale. The text is microscopic, and there are no photos (which particularly sucks, because Stuck was a photographer as well). There is no information on the publisher. To me, it looks like someone copied and pasted text from the kindle edition and somehow got it autopublished on Amazon or something.
The book consists of one large narrative and a few smaller ones describing his journeys around Alaska - followed by a few short chapters on topics Stuck found worth pontificating about. Church business is what sets him going, but the journeys are quite meandering, don't have very clear objectives, and never seem to go according to schedule. This makes for great reading - and one gets the sense that Stuck himself wasn't too nonplussed. He is in his element out there and makes the best of it. He has his share of difficulties and heartbreak as well - which also makes for more interesting reading.
The book is packed with details and makes a good chronicle of its place and time. The mundane stuff that a grander narrative would ignore - melting snow on a spit over a fire for tea; the dirty magazines one would find at the road houses; the outlandish price ($1.50!) for a rabbit dinner. A must-read for anyone interested in 19th/20th century arctic exploration
Just as a note - there is a horrible edition floating around you must be careful to avoid. The word "Alaska" is cut off on the cover, and the cover art depicts a green forest. I don't know where this came from or how it got approved for sale. The text is microscopic, and there are no photos (which particularly sucks, because Stuck was a photographer as well). There is no information on the publisher. To me, it looks like someone copied and pasted text from the kindle edition and somehow got it autopublished on Amazon or something.
April 7, 2021
I really liked this book mostly because it gives me a better insight into what goes on in the Iditarod sled dog race. This book was written about travels made in the early 1900s in Alaska by sled dog and the dangers, troubles on the trail and overall explanations have increased my knowledge about the current sled dog race but have raised my appreciation for just how hard it is to do what mushers do. The end of the book got more into culture, peoples and ancillary stuff about Alaska during that time and while not as interesting to me, it was still worth reading.
April 4, 2013
This book gives a wonderful glimpse into a lifestyle that I never will have an opportunity to experience. I don't mind missing out on temperatures that are 40 or 50 below zero, but I loved reading about it. I enjoyed seeing the mountains of Alaska through the author's eyes, and traveling with him on frozen rivers with incredible names like Koyukuk and Kuskokwim. I got out a map of Alaska and traced his route, which was also fun. Highly recommended for adventurers who can't always leave home.
December 9, 2018
What's not to like about Hudson Stuck? A kind, curious and intelligent individual who didn't just survive, but thrived in the Far North when it was a more primitive place that it is today. Even though his writing is more basic than literary, I still recommend his books for anybody who loves the North.
February 17, 2016
An excellent story from the mind of a man who saw it all along thousands of miles of trails. He also just happened to summit Mt. McKinley with the first group of successful climbers. Great descriptions about teaching native children, his trials on the trails, and the hardships he faced with some dogs and people.
March 11, 2016
Sorry. Not memorable. If you want an Alaska dog adventure, Winterdance by Gary Paulsen is more engaging.
January 28, 2018
Historical travel in the Alaska interior by dog sled. Fascinating as some of the routes are the same followed by the Iditarod race.
March 31, 2009
This is an amazing account of the far north by an Episcopal Bishop.
Read
April 2, 2011Winter circuit of our Arctic Coast.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 3, 2026
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February 12, 2026
How could I resist this title, growing up obsessed with Jack London's Klondike tales as I did? This didn't disappoint, with vivid descriptions of auroras, different types of ice and much more besides. There are loving word-portraits of the dogs, and a chapter at the end devoted to the different types of Alaskan canine.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews