In the summer of 1981, 64-year-old Helen Broomell, mother of six and grandmother of ten, set off with an old aluminum canoe that had been shortened by cutting and riveting. She had found a ride on a ride board from her home in Wisconsin to Dawson, British Columbia, and the Yukon River. After three weeks paddling 600 miles by herself, she spent the next four months exploring Alaska by plane, train, Alaska Ferry, hitchhiking, river rafting, and dogsledding. Two years later, Helen returned and picked up her canoe at the gas station by the pipeline bridge where she had left it, and paddled another 750 miles by herself. When the weather got bad before she reached her destination (about 100 miles from the Bering Sea), she traded her canoe for a boat ride, and again spent several months traveling all over Alaska by any means available. This book combines her journals from both trips into one volume, and includes unforgettable anecdotes about bears, native villages, making friends, and being self-reliant.

Leaving Skagway, Alaska, in June 1990, Townsend followed the footsteps of the Klondike goldrushers across the Yukon's rugged mountains, wild rivers, and muskeg swamps. Focusing on the Yukon's history, geology, and wildlife, Townsend finds reminders of the gaunt men chronicled by Robert Service almost a century ago. 15 illustrations.

Stories and anecdotes about a remarkable woman who paddled down the entire Yukon River by herself at ages 64 and 66-and that was just the beginning of her adventures! The book will be an inspiration to anybody who wants to live a life full of joy, even in the face of adversity.

Chris Townsend left Skagway, Alaska, in June 1990, following in the footsteps of the Klondike goldrushers for a time before finally ending his trek 83 days later at the Arctic Circle.

"This collection of women's memoirs of canoeing experiences comes as a welcome alternative to the many outdoors books that seem geared to men. Despite the differences in time and settingfrom 1905 to the 1980s, from Mexico to the Hudson Baymany of the contributions share a common theme: that of women shedding societal roles and surviving by their wits and strength. Many of the accounts are compelling, but some are couched in New Age jargon that blunts their impact ("I feel my center reach out to meet/tap/mingle with/give-to that water energy"). The editorializing could be more literate, and the book's chummy tone seems more appropriate to a community newsletter. Still, this collection is sure to give much-needed inspiration to readers who have felt that the wilderness couldn't be enjoyed by the "weaker" sex."--Pub. desc.