"In Search of the Kushtaka: Alaska's Other Bigfoot" by Dennis Waller

While visiting the well stocked book store, "Skaguay News Depot & Books" in Skagway Alaska, I found several interesting books on Alaska, the goldrush, trains, and other related topics.  Its a great bookstore.

Well, for $10 I picked up "In Search of the Kushtaka" by Dennis Waller.  I was also looking at another book on bigfoot in Alaska.  The other book was larger print, seemed pretty basic, AND it had a $20 price tag.  The Waller book was the easy choice.

And I made the right choice.  This is a great, jam packed book.  The author really gets in to some strange topics, not just bigfoot.  In fact, the book is about the "Kushtaka" or the "land-otter people" that have been seen/experienced in Alaska.

Waller is actually all over the place in this one....  he covers giant skeletons, reptilians, how the brain perceives things, and all sorts of other weirdness.  He digs deep.  He isn't shoveling the basics.....  he is connecting things and making sense.

I really liked this one.  It is a slim 150 pages, but the stories and information are thick.  This was a great value and just a darn good book.

 

Beneath The Streets Underground Seattle Tour Sept 2024

We did the very fun and weird "Beneath the Streets" tour while in Seattle!

Choir of Man Norwegian Cruise to Alaska 2024

We got to see a performance of the musical "Choir of Man" while on our Alaskan Cruise!

"Strange Stories of Alaska and the Yukon" by Ed Ferrell

You know me....  when I have a trip planned somewhere, I like to read a lot of books relating to the area...  especially weird ones.

I found "Strange Stories of Alaska and the Yukon" by Ed Ferrell for a couple of bucks at a thrift store and it was a great bargain!  It is a slim, and easy to read book clocking in at just over 150 pages, but the stories are fun, and you have to read them slowly and pay attention to take them in.

The book is pretty much a collection of strange and hard to believe stories collected from old papers, many going back into the late 1880s, but there are some mentions of more modern times.  A sonar image of a lake monster from the 60s comes up.

Cryptids, mysterious characters, ghosts, lost mines (this is Alaska) are in the volume.  I particularly enjoyed the stories of locals reporting encounters with mammoths!

I also enjoyed a strange story about a very detailed mirage city.  Of course, there are some stories of miners who are never heard from again.  There is a story of a captured young sasquatch.  And a verifiable story involves a frozen mammoth that is discovered!

Ketchikan to Ward Cove Bus Ride October 2024

And we took a little bus ride!

"Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer

Getting ready for our second trip to Alaska in three years, I wanted to read some classics related to the state.  I found a copy of Jon Krakauer's "Into the Wild" and dove in.

This is one of those books that just pulls you right in.   The story- and the author- insist that you stop what you are doing and follow along.  

Making that demand even more impressive is the fact that you are informed from the beginning that Chris McCandless dies.  You know that pretty much immediately.  Of course, most people that pick this volume up are probably already aware of that.

In fact, as the author acknowledges, if he had made it...  if he had survived, this wouldn't be a story.  Interest in the young man's adventure would be nil.

Krakauer also acknowledges that some will relate to Chris, and understand where he was in life, and his desire for isolated adventure...  and some will feel that he was foolish.

As for me, I could relate.  In fact there were a few moments in the story that I really felt a connection to Chris.  Especially when I was younger.

I could go on and on about this one.  This IS a great book, and if you like to read books about travel and adventure.....  You need to pick this one up.

 

Norwegian Encore Alaska Cruise October 2024

And we got to take a SECOND cruise to Alaska!  Here is the first of several videos about that wonderful trip!

Portal 31 Lynch Kentucky 2025

Here is a fairly complete tour through the "Portal 31" mine in Lynch Kentucky!

Loveland Castle Ohio 2025

The town of Loveland Ohio is really becoming a favorite of mine.  AND, they have a castle there!

Owingsville Kentucky 2025

And here is a quick drive through Owingsville Kentucky!

Paintsville UFO Encounter 2025

I tried to hunt down where the Paintsville UFO Encounter went down.

Bourbon Iron Works in Bath County Kentucky 2025

Kentucky Folk Art Center in Morehead Feb 2025

Check out the Kentucky Folk Art Center in Morehead!

Lynch Kentucky December 2024

Check out the historic town of Lynch Kentucky!

Hazard Kentucky

We recently drove through Hazard Kentucky!

Mill House Cafe Franklin Kentucky Feb 2025

Stop by Mill House Cafe in Franklin Kentucky for a great meal and some nice coffee!

Kentucky Down Under Bird and Snake Show February 2025

We enjoyed an animal show while we were at Kentucky Down Under!

Hazard Coffee Company Kentucky

Hazard Kentucky has one of the nicest, coziest coffee places around!

The Works Pizza Co Loveland Ohio

Check out this great pizza place in Loveland Ohio!  Great pizza, AND there is a train!

Lamp House Coffee Lynch Kentucky

We really enjoyed stopping by the very uniqie Lamp House Coffee in Lynch Kentucky!

Third Annual Frogman Festival Loveland Ohio 2025

For a third year in a row (out of three) we stopped by the Loveland Frogman Festival!

Lexington Comic Con 2025

Here is a brief look at this years Lexington Comic Con!

Mt. Rainier postcards

The Seattle area is extremely unique. I love this area. GREAT scenery, and friendly people. I hope to spent more quality time in the area sometime.

The postcard on top is a beautiful old linen card sent in the mail in 1954!

It reads:

Four hundred square miles of beautiful National Park playground encircles Mount Rainier. "the Mountain that was God," according to Indian legend. This towering 14,408 foot peak is exceeded by only two mountains in the United States. Mt. Rainier bears a greater number of glaciers than any mountain in this country.

The bottom postcard is a a bit newer and also shows the Space Needle!

Kentucky Down Under 2025

We had another great time at Kentucky Down Under again!

Bath County Meat Shower Festival KY March 1 2025

On March 1st, 2025, Bath County Kentucky celebrated the 149th anniversary of the famous "Kentucky Meat Shower".