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It was back in the late spring of 1968 that a man by the name of Dick Proenneke
left civilization behind to carve out a new life in the remote Alaskan wilderness.
During his first year alone, Dick would cut trees and build a
log cabin and make what was needed from materials available.
He would document his adventure through written journals and on film.
Thousands have had such dreams, but Dick Proenneke lived them.
Now, with more journal entries and never-before-seen
footage, we revisit Dick's Alaskan paradise.
Join us now for Part 2, the continuing story of Alone in the Wilderness.
I had made it through my first year living alone in the wilderness.
My little cabin had kept me warm and comfortable.
With the arrival of spring, it felt good to get back to work again.
I must restock the lumberyard, for I had cache building on my mind,
something I had thought about all winter long.
I think it will be the answer to keeping those critters out of my food supply.
Folks say that axmanship is a lost art,
but I like to think I've found it again in these cool spruce woods.
The pull of the pack board straps felt comfortable against my woolen shirt
and I could feel the warmth of the spring sun on my face.
It was real bull work, but I never felt any better.
I wondered if there was anyone in the world as free and happy as I was.
I would spend the rest of the afternoon ripping boards from my well-seasoned logs.
I would need seven or eight to provide me with a solid and level foundation for the cache building.
With six boards ripped, it was time to take a break.
I would see if I could catch a fish for supper.
In the last few days, the Hope Creek has eaten a big opening into the lake ice.
I could see the pool of open water growing before my eyes.
A pair of harlequin ducks swam out fromshore as I passed by,
and began talking to me.
I worked a metal spoon deep into the current, jerked it toward me, and let it drift back.
Not a strike after several casts.
Then a snag.
Then it moved.
I knew I had a fish.
A 15-inch grayling.
Enough for my needs.
A few sticks of wood on the coals and I would be back in business again.
The little stove that Brother Jake built is good company and works well.
The proof of a good stove is in the heating, and this one is amazing.
Very little fire, but it keeps my water boiling in the kettle.
For my supper tonight, it would be fried trout and a batch of biscuits,
made from the sourdough starter that Mary Allsworth had given me last spring.
It's hard to believe it's been one year ago today that Babe brought me here to Twin Lakes in the little T craft.
I remembered it was a beautiful day, and we had sat and talked on the gravel bar at the upper end of the lower lake.
I had backpacked two loads that day to Spike's cabin,
and I had even picked up a sunburn from the sun on the snow.
It was the first day of what I believe has been the most interesting year of my life.
While waiting for my biscuits to raise
I will catch up on my journals and a few overdue letters to send back home.
Tomorrow just might be a good day to prepare for the cache building.
I had many poles to cut and peel today, before the cache construction begins.
I had cut many of them last November, on the far side of Hope Creek.
They had been seasoning all this time.
I had cut four other heavier logs about 15 feet long.
These would be my stilts, to hold the cache aloft.
I finished the post holes and set in the big stilts.
Like the fireplace and cabin, I can see the cache up on the poles already.
The first course of logs was notched and nailed to my foundation planks.
I cut notches for four stringers, and hewed the stringers to fit.
The logs fit snugly into their custom-made notches.
Thirty in place.
The cache is now 29 inches high.
Now, for some roof poles.
Everything has a good snug fit down here on the ground.
I hope it goes together with no trouble when I climb the ladder with all the pieces.
It's May 18th.
Strange to wake up before three in the morning and feel that daylight is being wasted.
This is Red Runt's country, and I am the invader.
And hardly a day passes that he does not remind me of this with his chatter.
It's good to see bears on the mountain again.
I spotted a big blonde bear, and then another chocolate color, and another.
Until there were three, standing half as tall as their mother.
Cubs, but not this year's.
I studied them through the 60-power eyepiece, and finally talked myself out of climbing up there
to see them at close range.
I had a cache to build.
I went to the woodshed and ripped out planks for the doorframe,
and some inch-and-a-half planks for the door.
I then cut two sets of hinges out of a stump of wood.
I was ready to take my little house apart and put it back together again on top of its nine-foot stilts.
I used my meat-pole ladder for a scaffold.
Soon, number one log was resting atop the stilts.
The logs fit perfectly.
Forty-penny spikes went into the heavy ends,
and sixteen pennies into the small ends.
Next, the door.
All that remained was to cut the logs in between,
and I had an opening for the door.
I finished off the roof with tar paper and a good layer of moss.
I am really proud of that piece of work.
For all practical purposes,
my miniature cabin on stilts was complete.
Today, I had better check the lake ice,
for I've been expecting Babe in with supplies any day now,
and I would hate to see him sink out of sight.
He once said to me,
when the ice is safe for landing,
put the oil drum out on the ice.
So I did.
Ten weeks later, he came in and asked,
why the oil drum on the ice?
He has a good memory, but it isn't very long.
The ice was still thirty-two inches thick,
so I formed a huge OK,
so Babe could easily see it from the air.
Today, I would take a hike up country.
My pack made up and lashed on the GI pack frame.
Along with the bolex and heavy tripod,
I packed five hundred feet of film,
some smoked fish, and the big pistol.
Around forty pounds, I would guess.
I was away by seven-thirty.
Past Bell's Point, and up the lake,
I spotted the rear half of a moose
sticking out from a spruce.
A big old cow.
And she made no effort to leave,
even though I was no more than a hundred yards.
Hiding in the brush was a new calf,
and I just had to try for pictures
of that cute little guy.
I kept trees in mind that I could get behind,
just in case the mother got ornery.
Just how much would she put up with?
Then the hackles from ears to shoulders stood on in.
And here she came,
ears back and nostrils flared.
At fifteen feet, she whirled past me
and trotted back to the calf,
bawling as she went.
That was enough to get my heart pumping.
I figured it was a good time to be moving on.
Lots of loose rock,
so it was slow climbing.
When I came to the edge of a big basin
and peeked over the edge,
three full-curled rams were staring back at me.
They had me pegged.
They were in their chosen isolation,
wild mountain dandies,
living high off the grass
and far away from the women and kids
and well out of reach from the wolves.
They watched me as if they were surprised
to see something else
as high up on the mountain as they were.
The whining sound of the boleks
seemed to make them nervous
and they disappeared up
and over the ridge with ease.
What a view from up here.
Rugged mountains as far as I could see
and many glaciers.
I walked the ridge to keep warm
and to look for more game.
To see animals,
you must move a little
and look a lot.
I came to a good view
of Allen Mountain.
So I stopped to glass it for a bear.
Right away,
I saw something not right.
And with the binoculars,
I saw it was a bear all right.
Not far away were two little cubs,
a good-looking sow grizzly with twins.
The cubs romped
and chased each other
without a care in the world.
While Mom constantly
had her nose in the air,
always on the lookout for danger.
Nothing will make a grizzly
leave the country faster
than the scent of a man.
Now, if only she would stick around
all summer.
I had wandered a long way
from the cabin today.
My pedometer read 22 miles.
It was time to head home.
I shouldered my pack
and headed down.
Today,
I feel like a man
inspired by a sermon
that came to me firsthand,
that came out of the sky
and the many moods
of the mountains.
My left foot was getting sore,
so I stopped and pulled off
my boots and socks
and buried my tired feet
in the snow
for a few minutes.
Cold for just a little while
will make your feet good
for many more miles.
The caribou seemed content today
and show no fear of me.
I wonder what he thinks about.
Is his brain just a blank
as he lies there
blinking in the sun
and chewing his cud?
I wonder if he feels,
as I do,
that this small part
of the world
is enough to think about.
I was home
and would sleep good tonight.
My gear put away
and my starving birds fed.
It had been a pretty good day.
My ladder project
had priority today,
and before I finished,
it started to snow.
Surely just a shower.
I used a perfect,
well-seasoned pole,
ripped it down the center
and put my ladder together
with the flat sides in.
The steps were short logs,
flat side up and level.
A ladder a man could walk up
instead of climb.
There was four inches on the ground
when it finally stopped.
Hopefully this was the last
good snow of spring.
The cloud cover broke
and a big blue spot
opened up in the sky,
and the sun feels good
on my face.
A good day
to do some tin bending.
I have surprised myself
with what I could make
with simple tools
when a definite need arose.
And my need today
was a new pan
to heat water
on the stove with.
My old wind is now
starting to show
a bit of rust.
I have made all kinds
of things
from empty fuel cans.
It seems that I always
have a good stockpile
of them in the woodshed.
Bush pilots have discarded
many over the years.
And like they say,
one man's trash
is another man's treasure.
I don't think a man
knows what he actually
can do
until he's challenged.
I do think a man
has missed a very deep
feeling of satisfaction
if he has never
created something
or at least completed
something with his own
two hands.
We have grown accustomed
to work on pieces
and parts of things
instead of taking things
to completion.
The emphasis
seems to be
on teamwork.
Now I realize
that man working together
can perform miracles
such as sending a man
to walk on the surface
of the moon.
And there is definitely
a need in place
for teamwork.
I would be the last
to argue that point.
We need each other
but nevertheless
in a jam.
The best friend
you have
is yourself.
It is always a pleasure
to see what you can make
instead of buying it
all packaged up
and ready-made.
My problem now is
where to store it all.
Today I would take
an overnight tour
down country
and with the ice
still in good shape
I would sled my gear
rather than carry it
on my back.
I followed close
to shore
so as not to disturb
the caribou
any more than I had to.
Yet something else
was making them uneasy.
Opposite the den opening
were grizzly bear tracks
and droppings
all old
and I felt certain
the bear was gone.
With pistol in hand
I crawled inside
for a closer inspection.
Inside I found
the bear's hibernation plug
something I had only
heard about
from the old timers.
The large black plug
was made up
of dried grass
twigs
and hair.
It was mother nature's
way of blocking
up the back door
of the bear's
digestive system
during his long
six months sleep.
I figured the bear
must be close by
and it wasn't long
before I spotted him
in the brush below.
He acted like a bear
looking for caribou calves.
When he dropped
out of sight
I followed.
Maybe this was
a foolish thing to do.
The evidence showed
this bear
had already killed
and consumed
at least one
unlucky caribou
this season.
No better company
in the wilderness
than a campfire.
Very comforting.
It is surprising
how comfortable
a bedroll
on the ground
can be
after you've
come down
off a mountain.
I was on the
home stretch now
and had the
cabin in sight.
on the trail
stood a brand
new bear-bit tree.
Hair rubbed
into the bark
and seven feet
above.
More destruction
of wood
than I have seen
in a long time.
This was no
ordinary Alaskan
brown bear.
Was the message
meant for another
bear
or was it for me?
I will have to
watch out
for that guy.
It would be
an early dinner
a fireweed salad
and the last
of my caribou meat
fried in a
well-salted skillet
topped with onions
and of course
a batch
of fresh-baked
sourdough biscuits.
I was proud
of my cabin
and cache.
The actual
cache layout
was just a shade
over $40
and that included
the window
that Babe
had flown in.
Although it was
small
at 11 by 14 feet
it was cozy
and big enough
for my needs.
Everything seems
to find its place.
However,
if I continue
to collect
souvenirs
on my travels
I will need
more mantel space.
the fireplace
really adds character
to my little cabin
and is good company
in the winter.
A Twin Lakes
holiday
Babe had made
a mail drop
while I was
away down country.
Many letters
to read
and some very good books
from my good friend
Roy Allen
and good news
from Brother Jake
the J3 Cub
is ready to fly
and he will be here
for a visit
in August.
The rest of my day
would be spent
bringing my journals
up to date.
As I glanced up
from my writing
a cow moose
and her good looking calf
strolled past
on the beach.
I do believe
it's the same cow
that was so unfriendly
a few weeks ago.
Life is so uncomplicated
here at Twin Lakes.
It is now
June 13th
and the great
ice chunks
are moving past
at the rate
of 50 feet
per minute.
Last year
the lake
was not ice free
until the 26th
of June.
I wonder
does the lake ice
melt from the top
down
or the bottom
up?
Now
after six and a half
months
the mountains
will be able
to see themselves
in the mirror again.
I would celebrate
the ice breakup today
with a trip down lake.
A pretty good breeze
going down
but that was okay.
Anything below
the white cap stage
is good.
The wind fared up
a bit
after beaching.
I left the beach
and climbed to the edge
of the timber
to get a better look
at a fine
caribou bull
I had spotted
from the canoe.
He looked to be
in prime shape.
A trophy hunter
would leave his wife
for a head like that.
I do hope
that old boy
makes it
through the hunting season.
It was a warm day
and I can hear
the many waterfalls
in the distance.
I do believe
the lake level
will rise today.
It was very buggy
down low
but very few bugs
up here.
The good breeze
gives me some relief
from those pesky
mosquitoes
and white socks.
It is a world
of beauty
at Twin Lakes.
As I rounded
a brush point
there sat a fox
at the edge
of the brush.
It was a mother
standing guard
over three pups.
Like the bear cubs
fox pups
are very different
from one another.
Some like to get out
and explore.
Others prefer
to stay close
to the den.
I sat and watched
them play
for more than an hour
and exposed
145 feet of film.
It was time
to be moving on.
I was a long
way from home.
Emerson Creek
was running
a lot of water
today.
I couldn't help
myself.
I just had to stop
and waste a few shots
with the camera.
So much beauty
all around me.
A near calm lake
as I shoved off.
It is always
enjoyable
to run the
connecting stream
between the lakes.
How many times
have I wished
the scenery
would go by
that fast
on a calm lake?
A lone young moose
appeared in the pond
next to the stream
on the left-hand side
of my canoe.
I cruised down
wondering
just how close
I could get.
I thought it odd
that this little guy
was all alone.
Where was his mother?
Curiosity
got the best
of me.
Still no sign
of the calf's mother
along the stream.
I wondered
if I had an orphan.
The first calm cove
I came to
I beached the canoe
and packed the
bolex and tripod
to high ground
above the pond.
As I reloaded
the camera
a young bull
waded in
but still
no sign
of the cow.
Then up the stream
bank
came the little guy
limping along.
The calf's
right front leg
had a big patch
of white
below the knees.
Quills.
There must have
been a hundred of them.
The culprit
was not far away.
How could something
so cute
cause so much pain?
The calf
had picked
the wrong one
to mess with.
With the help
of my walking stick
I encouraged
the porcupine
to move on
just in case
the little calf
had not learned
his lesson.
If only the calf
had left
that porcupine
alone.
Now it will have
one very sore
leg to go
with its problem
of making a living
without milk
without milk
and a wise mother
to teach it
the do's and don'ts
of the very cruel world
that nature is.
I will have to come back
and check on the calf.
I very much doubt
that it will survive
until winter.
There was a good breeze
blowing up the lake
and soon I was among
the whitecaps
and really sailing.
It would be
a fast trip home.
An hour and ten minutes
found me at my beach.
It was good
to see my cabin again.
With my gear packed in
and a fire going
I packed and labeled
a good batch
of exposed film
for brother Jake.
I expect Babe
should be flying in
any day now.
I was weary
but not too weary
to go down
to Hope Creek
to see if I could
catch a fish
to go along
with my beans.
After a few casts
one grabbed the lure.
I worked him in
slowly and carefully.
I didn't want
to lose this one.
This business of fishing
can turn serious
pretty quick
when a man is hungry.
I've learned something
from the big game
animals.
Their food is pretty
much the same
day to day
and I don't vary
my fare too much
either.
Food is fuel
and the best fuel
I've found
is oatmeal,
beans,
and fresh fish
and a caribou
or porcupine stew
once in a while.
I just season
simple food
with hunger
and I have never
felt better
in my life.
There's nothing
better than
a fresh caught
grayling
fried in
bacon grease.
The rest of my evening
would be spent
catching up
on my journals.
It was eight o'clock
when I turned out
the lantern.
I just knew
I would sleep
good tonight.
That four inches
of foam rubber
under me
never felt so good.
I slept
as if I had died
last night.
The cabin
was still warm
and the coals
in the stove
were still glowing.
For breakfast
it would be
a good stack
of hot cakes
topped with
last year's
preserves.
One of these
days I must
take a hike
up to the
Calgill bench
to see how
the blueberry crop
is faring up.
They should be
ripening up
about now.
With the dishes
washed
and my
welfare birds fed
I had a notion
to paddle down
to the lower end
again.
The flat water
looked inviting
so I packed
the necessary
gear to the beach.
A beautiful
quiet morning
for the trip.
The only sound on the lake was my paddle, and a few distant waterfalls.
I was making good time.
One hour later I had made it to the lower end of the lake and was coasting down the connecting
stream when I surprised a very large mother brown bear.
The stream bank blocked my full view of her on the marshy flat, but surely she must have
a cub or two hidden in the brush.
It was clear to me that she was irritated,
so I kept the canoe well centered in the stream,
just in case she came back to have a talk with me.
The mosquitoes were affectionate today when I beached the canoe
On up to my climb out point, and from there it was perfect hiking country.
The waterfalls had really come to life since the warm weather had arrived,
and Emerson Falls was as pretty as I have ever seen it.
If there was gold in this creek, the nuggets would be found in the deep clear pools.
I think that the real question is not whether is there gold in the creek,
but just how do I go about shutting the water off?
The red salmon were active in the creek today, a sure sign that fall was on its way.
How far had they come since leaving saltwater near Dillingham?
According to the map, probably more than 250 miles.
On the opposite side of the creek was a sow and her good-looking cub.
I walked gently and watched her closely.
I had told myself, don't surprise her, and she will probably take her cub and go.
I have heard the people who claim to know say, she isn't likely to harm you unless her cubs
are in danger, or thinks they are in danger.
I think what she thinks is the determining factor.
What I think doesn't count.
I already had one bear that was upset with me today, and I didn't need another.
On this very calm day, instead of towing the canoe the half mile upstream to the upper lake,
I would carry it.
With the canoe well balanced on my shoulders, and no wind, the chore seemed easy enough.
I think the old girl was pleased to see me move on.
I do believe that carrying the canoe is the best way up the connecting stream.
Providing, of course, the wind isn't blowing.
Not a riffle on the lake.
It will be a pleasant paddle home.
Hot cakes for breakfast, and the sky was clearing.
Today would be a blueberry picking day.
Across Hope Creek Bridge, and then I would head up the trail to the cowgill berry patch.
Hopefully the bears had not beat me to it.
I would need a good supply to see me through the winter.
In just a few weeks, the bull moose and caribou will be rubbing that soft velvet free from their antlers.
I found a real good patch, and the berries were large and sweet.
I was anxious to try out my new berry picking machine that I had made.
In no time at all, I had picked a gallon and hardly raised from my knees.
With a good supply on hand, I would have to send some to Mary, next time Babe flies in.
A young and very curious bull caribou was good company while I picked.
I think he was impressed with that new picking machine.
I had filled almost three cans when I heard a small plane.
I didn't want to get too excited yet, but could it be Brother Jake?
I had almost given up on seeing him fly in.
But when the little plane turned, I could see that it was a yellow J3 Cub.
This was the nicest thing that has happened at Twin Lakes for a long time.
I told him that I had given up and expected that he had junked the remains and hitchhiked back to California.
It was in the late summer that Dick's brother Raymond, better known as Jake,
would fly his rebuilt J3 Piper Cub airplane solo well over 2,000 miles from California to Alaska,
and then into the remote wilderness of Twin Lakes country.
Raymond would then spend the next month with Dick at his cabin and experience wilderness living firsthand.
Along with as much fresh food supplies as the little plane could carry,
Raymond would surprise Dick with a 16mm wind-up Bolex camera.
Later on, it would prove to be Dick's most important and valued possession.
The camera would allow Dick to continue to document his lifestyle and travels in this one-man wilderness.
The little two-seat airplane, the Arctic Tern, would provide a new and exciting way for the brothers
to explore the far reaches of this remote wilderness,
a region that otherwise would be difficult, if not impossible, to travel by foot.
When weather permitted, the Proenneke brothers would fly off into the unknown,
taking turns at the controls.
The vast wilderness that surrounded Twin Lakes offered countless rivers and valleys to explore,
and the Prenicke brothers wanted to see it all.
What used to take Dick days to hike on foot could now be covered in minutes.
They were now enjoying something that they had only dreamed of as boys growing up in the flat country of Iowa.
They were living that dream, and exploring the Alaskan wilderness in their own plane, and together.
On occasion, when the lack of daylight or unflyable weather prevented their return to the comfort of Dick's cabin,
Ray and Dick would welcome an excuse to make camp and sleep out under the stars on the shores of a remote lake in the middle of nowhere.
They would always manage to catch something, cook it, and simply enjoy each other's company.
Ray would soon say goodbye to Dick and fly back home to California,
Yet the brothers would remain close through countless letters.
This bond would continue over the next thirty years.
On this fine October morning, Jake was on his way back to California, and I was alone in the wilderness again.
I took my gold pan and shovel and headed up the creek, high up on the gorge where bedrock is very near the surface.
The gold should be here.
Right away, I found a good flake lying in plain sight.
Very seldom is it this easy.
Gold is not hard to recognize.
The first time that you see it, you will know that it is gold.
The rest of the morning, I washed lots of gravel and cleaned moss.
I have found the moss that grows on the bottom of the rocks in the stream is a good collector of fine gold.
The water was very cold, and that leaky boot didn't help things.
With gold now up to thirty-five dollars an ounce, I could add a few things to the grocery list.
I do hope Brother Jake enjoyed my cooking.
Said he couldn't decide whether my spicy porcupine stew tasted like Iowa rabbit or squirrel.
With a good kettle of beans bubbling on the stove, I would spend the rest of this very warm day carving out a big wooden spoon for Mary,
in exchange for all those cookies she sends me.
I dug out a good-looking stump and went to work.
The camp robbers kept me company.
Nature provides so many things, if one has the eye to notice them.
It is always a pleasure to see what you can make, instead of buying it ready-made.
Here at Twin Lakes, I have learned patience,
learned to take my time and try to do the job right by figuring it out first.
There's no sense to rush it and go off half-cocked.
There's plenty of time out here.
Two hours later, I had a spoon, a good one for dipping batter, a bit more sanding, and
it would be ready for a coat of shellac.
I do hope that Mary likes it.
Learn to use an axe and respect it, and you can't help but love it.
But abuse one, and it will wear your hands raw and open your foot like an overcooked sausage.
I enjoy working for my heat.
It seems to make my food taste better.
It's the end of October now, and the good weather is still holding.
But all signs tell me that winter is not far away.
The bears are working overtime now, bulking up on berries, preparing themselves for that
long winter sleep.
In just a few short weeks, this bear will disappear into the mountain.
And I will not see him again for six months.
I will miss his company.
The fall season at Twin Lakes is the pretty one, but always too short.
The blueberry leaves fall at the touch now.
I could not help but waste some film on these two fine-looking caribou bulls before heading
back to the cabin.
I am happy to see that they have survived another hunting season.
A stiff breeze and some big waves, it's as rough as I have seen it.
I think a change is coming.
Now at 7.30 it has stopped snowing.
A fresh coat of shellac, and the webs looked ready for miles of trail.
I could see the big bear from my cabin door.
It appeared to me that he was searching for a den site.
The question is, would he use the same den as last year, or would he dig a new one?
Dead calm and six degrees.
As cold and still as it is, the water has now become too thick to stir with a paddle.
The canoe looks out of place on the beach with so much snow.
It will do me no good now.
So I towed it up to the point and wrestled it into Spike's cabin.
A tight squeeze, but at least it was covered.
An ideal day to work at my wood supply.
Making wood is never a waste of time in cold weather.
The dead tree was a good one, not completely dry, which is better for holding fire.
The little pumpkin seed sled that I found floating in the lake last spring has proved to be a very
valuable find and was making this job a real pleasure.
Six good sled loads when I got it all to the woodshed.
And it began to snow again.
There is nothing like watching a real wilderness storm from the window of a snug little cabin.
With all this snow, I can't help but wonder about the sheep on the mountain.
It must take a lot of digging for very little feed.
Really a beautiful sight this morning.
It must have snowed all night as there was 12 inches of new snow to shovel from my paths.
Today I must go down lake to check for tracks.
I tried to make a sneak on a good bunch of caribou for some close-up pictures.
A sudden shift in the wind, and it was the beginning of the end.
A spooky old cow must have cried wolf.
I was nearly to Glacier Creek when I spotted sheep tracks in the snow.
Two young rams kept their eye on me as I made my way up the canyon.
The going was easy enough without the webs.
The snow got deeper.
But not so much a problem with the coarse rock under the snow to give me traction.
Further up the creek I saw ravens flying.
A bad sign.
I hadn't climbed far when I saw the spot of red up on the slope.
One animal had died so another could live.
The tracks told me that the wolverine had been first at the scene.
The glutton had eaten his fill and would certainly return for another meal.
I could see just how it happened.
A snowslide had caught the unsuspecting ram and carried him over the edge and onto the
rocks below.
I have often thought to myself about getting caught in a snowslide or falling from a rock
face.
If that happened, I would probably perish on the mountain in much the same way that the
old ram did.
I would be long gone before anyone found me.
My only wish would be that folks wouldn't spend a lot of time searching.
When the time comes for a man to look his maker in the eye, where better place could the meeting
be held than in the wilderness?
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