the animal's journal

[Western Red Cedar]

How did you come to Alaska and your current location? (I’ve not yet had a chance to do a deep dive through your journal.)

You should probably drop what you are doing and read this journal from the beginning @M2aS. This is the ERE story that inspired me to transition from forum lurker to forum participant. He's got links to an external blog if you want to go further down the rabbit hole.

[theanimal]

Thank you @WRC. I'm happy to hear that my musings here serve as inspiration. It's the least I could do to give back after getting so much from Jacob and everyone here.

@M2S- Thank you, and come on up!

How did you come to Alaska and your current location? (I’ve not yet had a chance to do a deep dive through your journal.)

In 2013, while going to school in the Midwest, I came across Dick Proenneke's book "One Man's Wilderneess" and decided I wanted to do that. I had zero related skills having grown up in well to do suburbia but happened to come across the NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) Semester in Alaska while perusing National Geographic's article on best adventures within the 50 states. I took the course the following summer, spending 75 days in the Alaskan wilderness sea kayaking, backpacking and glacial mountaineering. I fell in love with the state and gained a base level of experience in the outdoors that I did not previously have. The following summer after graduating, I returned to AK on my own in an attempt to walk across the Brooks Range (Arctic Alaska). I had lofty goals, a decent sized ego and the wisdom that comes with being 21 years old. I came nowhere close to achieving what I wanted to do but experienced the Arctic and deepened my desire to live in Alaska full time. After a year living with my mom in Illinois, I went back to the Arctic, living there full time while working as a tour guide (cultural/scenic mountain/river/northern lights tours) out of a truck stop, population 20. A year and a half later, I decided to move further up the valley to a small subsistence community (pop 14) to try my hand at living my dream in a 1930s built 12 x 12 log cabin. I learned a lot during this time but found that the Arctic was too much for me alone. I spent almost all my time alone and the eventual loneliness and dread of going through another dark solo winter drove me in search of a greater community, 250 miles south to the nearest urban area (pop ~50k), where I live now.

If you ever have a desire to read more, this entire journey is more or less contained in this journal.

[RoamingFrancis]

Sounds like my experience when I read "One River." Though I'm still at the "living at my mom's house" stage of my journey XD

[Married2aSwabian]

Inspiring! I enjoyed reading through the first 2 years of your journal, as well as several recent entries on your blog. Congratulations on finding love in AK and your engagement! I had to smile at the pic of you and your bride to be with chainsaws. I got DW got a cordless “lady chainsaw” for our 30th anniversary in 2020! Hey, it’s what she wanted.
I was often reminded of Drop City by TC Boyle while reading through your journal so far…the eventual hero and heroine in the second half, who are prepared for AK, as opposed to the hippies who are not.
I’m also originally from Chicago area and always loved being outdoors. I guess it’s better to figure out how to spend more time there (the outdoors, not Chicago ) later in life than not at all.

@WRC, you’re absolutely right - after having a majority of meetings with management postponed or cancelled this past week, I will do the same next week: I’ve got more important ERE reading to do!

[theanimal]

@RF- You'll get there.

@M2S- Thank you very much! My DF is the chainsaw expert and aficionado in our house. All of our saws are hers and I take orders from her. Usually that just means I get to pick up and move the things she cuts . I haven't heard of Drop City before, I'll have to check that out. While it's not the same as big wilderness, each time I go back to IL to visit, I try to check out some new natural areas around the state. Most recently was checking out the Midewin Natural Tall Grass Prairie and seeing all the buffalo. Very cool! If the state didn't get so developed (and on the financial brink) I'd be content to live there among oak savannas and tall grass prairies, but alas...

[jacob]

Most recently was checking out the Midewin Natural Tall Grass Prairie and seeing all the buffalo.

We've been there multiple times. (It's one of the AVA walks.) Buffaloes about 2/3s of the time. If not, there's also the string of old munitions bunkers in one of the side-loops which is full of osage orange and more secluded.

[theanimal]

@jacob-Yes, we did the bigger outer loop last time and had to stop and identify the osage orange/brain fruit trees as none of us were familiar with them. I’d like to check out Goose Lake Prairie and Matthiessen State Park next time. Any recommendations from other state parks you’ve enjoyed? I’ve been to Starved Rock but not many others.

[jacob]

Any recommendations from other state parks you’ve enjoyed?

Chain'o'Lakes is our go to. We even have a favorite camping spot marked out This is also within range of Wisconsin and parts of the Ice Age Trial.

We mostly do local forest preserves though. Fullersburg Woods (deer if you show up early), Busse Woods (elk, ditto), or Palos (lots of people and horseshit ).

If you like the tall grass environment, try Jim Edgar Panther Creek down south and pick one of the primitive camping sites---you might be lucky enough to have the whole thing for yourself. Bring a map. It's outside of cellphone reception. Plenty of ways to get lost in the corn maze.

[RoamingFrancis]

Devil's Lake in Wisconsin is one of my favorite spots.

[theanimal]

Thanks for the suggestions. I used to go to Willow Springs Forest Preserve (immediately north of Palos FP) every day when I lived there in 2014 and it’s still the one I frequent most when I’m in the area. Most of my trips there were during fall/winter/spring and I found outside of weekends I had the place more or less to myself. The county has tried to make it more appealing to the masses recently with developing the trails more for mountain bikes and parking lot campgrounds/facilities. I’ve still found there to be almost nobody else there during the colder seasons.

[theanimal]

PFD Year: Month 2
Total Monthly Spending-$502.99
Monthly spending as percentage of monthly target- 159%
YTD-$882.22

• Food-151.18 Nearly half of this is 4 meals that I either cooked for my family or paid for at restaurants. Most of it was avoidable with better alternatives. DF and I took a trip this month that renewed my dislike for almost all restaurants so this should remain an outlier month in this category.

• Dog- 42.8

• Gas- 0

• Car Insurance- 55

• Phone- 8.25

• Garmin Inreach-12

• Spotify-6.5

• Propane- 17.5 for Kitchen/Grill

• Misc-209.76 Bike parts. bus tickets. 1 night at hotel. 1 night at campground. Sunscreen. Paper towels/TP Hotel and campground make up the bulk of expenses. More details below.

We got Covid at the beginning of the month after ending our house/dog sitting stint. DF got it first, I took care of her and biked on the most glorious trail conditions of the winter yet at sunset. That night I began to become sick and proceeded to spend all but 2 hours of the next 4 days on the couch, dealing with fever, headache, earache, congestion, sore throat etc. So much for enjoying the trails .

I applied for a job as part time bike mechanic at a nearby outdoor rec shop but never heard anything back. I was excited as I figured it was a good chance to further my skillset and deliver some more meaning, but oh well. I'm still keeping my eye out for similar opportunities. My current job is beyond easy, boring, devoid of any meaning, has a incredibly flexible schedule and pays very well. I'm trying to find things to do that are actually useful, deliver value and can help further a skillset. An example would be part time bike mechanic and volunteering as a firefighter. I'm still exploring what other options I could pursue. Money is not a concern, I would simply like to do something that is more fulfilling. For the indefinite future, I don't plan on leaving my current job. For the mid to long term future, I do.

Mid month we went down to CA for my cousins wedding, staying with my immediate family and seeing a large portion of my extended family. We left immediately after the wedding, heading south to San Diego where we embarked on a ~10 day bike touring/packing trip in the desert to the east. Our hostel in SD messed up our reservation in their system, booking us for the next night. That left us scrambling to find a place to stay on the Sunday of President’s Day Weekend. Eventually we capitulated, paying more than double for a shitty hotel. Oh well, lessons for next time.

DF worked in Anza Borrego Desert State Park during her years on trail crew so that was the focal point when coming up with our route. We loosely followed the Stagecoach 400 race route. Two days in, we were forced to hunker down in a campground for 1.5 days, enduring pouring rain and hail as snow fell on the mountains above. So much for warm and sun of southern California! The snow forced us to change our route frequently, resulting in more time on the pavement as the trails and dirt roads we wished to take were covered in snow.



We made it out to Anza Borrego and spent 3 days around the area, hiking around the desert and playing cards. There were some abandoned fruit fields in this area that were producing and we were able to feast on perfectly ripe oranges/clementines. We made our way back to the coast over the next few days, enjoying the long stretches of downhills away for the mountains. We camped exclusively in our tent throughout the trip. Half of the time on public land in the form of state parks, 2/3 of the other half camping in quasi legal areas and 2 nights stealthily camping in areas where it definitely is not allowed. One of the best camp sites was our last, somewhat stealthily camped on sandstone cliffs above the Pacific Ocean in a small sunset park, just blocks from the ritzy downtown community of Del Mar.

I made a short video about the trip if anyone is interested in seeing some of the terrain. I really, really enjoyed the travel by bike. I'd like to bike across the country at some point.

Prior to this trip, I had only spent one week in CA many years ago. While there were many bike lanes, even in small towns well over a hundred miles away from the cities, walking was surprisingly not easy in some urban areas and required some adventuring. DF and I were both surprised by the prices of everything. On the lower end, the cost of many produce items (15 avocados for $5!) and on the higher gas prices ($5-5.50/gal!!) higher than almost everywhere in Alaska besides some communities hundreds of miles from the nearest road.

Before and after the trip we had the pleasure of spending time with @Ego and Mrs. Ego. @Ego is one of the most generous people that DF and I have come across and was a huge help in logistical factors of our trip. DF was speechless for a few moments as we walked away from our first visit, remarking that their character serves as a testament to the high reaches that humans can attain when unencumbered by many of the self-imposed superficial stresses that constitute daily life for the majority of the western world. The lifestyle they have set up for themselves is inspirational and we very much enjoyed getting to know both of them.

And saved for last is the best news of all. There will be a new animal arriving in September of this year. DF is pregnant with our first! We are very excited and looking forward to the adventures ahead. We have our next appointment in a few days where DF and bb animal will undergo a series of tests to determine if there are any possible genetic complications and the sex. So far it does not seem like we will have to buy a thing. As DF’s older friends and family members want to send us boxes of all kinds of things, from clothes to car seats. We have been reading some parenting books and have particularly enjoyed/will be trying to model our parenting style after two of them in particularly. The Continuum (more of a traditional approach (ie. Non western) for roughly the first year of age) and Unconditional Parenting (moving away from praise and punishment, loving the child unconditionally). We have similar values and these books go along with that, all in hopes of providing the best family dynamic and leading a more soul filled, rather than ego filled lifestyle.



Not much formally planned for the near future. I'm planning on spending more time with the ukulele, exercising, more time outside enjoying the abundance of light for the last month or 2 of winter and getting things ready for planting in the spring. This is one of my favorite seasons of the year. Trails are hardpacked, light is nearing never ending status and temperatures are becoming much more mild. Fun times!

Thanks for reading.

[mountainFrugal]

Such an amazing update! Congrats!

[Western Red Cedar]

Congratulations to you and DF! Really excited for you and the upcoming adventures with another member in the Animal tribe.

[Quadalupe]

Congratulations to you both, sounds like you are starting one of the greatest adventures there is!

[Ego]

It may not be readily apparent from the photo but take my word for it.... this kid is going to be extraordinary.

I think everyone here has know for years that @theanimal is one of those level-headed, kind, capable, decent people we all would want as a neighbor and friend. Well somehow he caught a woman in the wilds of Alaska who is his equal. Seriously, if someone would have said.... let's design the perfect woman for @theanimal, it would have been her. Heck, she's has some Alaskan adventure stories that rival those of Dick Proenneke and Jack London.

I made a short video about the trip if anyone is interested in seeing some of the terrain. I really, really enjoyed the travel by bike. I'd like to bike across the country at some point.

Beautiful! We haven't ridden out that way in a while.

The two 1990s mountain bikes are available free of charge (at your own risk) to any regular forum member who would like to do a bikepacking tour of Southern California. PM me. We are close to the airport and train station. Bus stops in front of our building and bike lanes run up our street. Here is the route @theanimals followed.
https://bikepacking.com/routes/stagecoa ... ing-route/

[Married2aSwabian]

Congratulations, theanimal! Life-changing event for you and DF. Great to have some positive news in the world this week.

Like the ultrasound pic being held in place by a metal file (that’s what it looks like anyway) - an early indicator that this little animal will be tough!

[MBBboy]

Woohoo!

[Seppia]

That is so cool! Big hugs from across the ocean.
Also, not sure why but I’m about 0% surprised to read that Ego and DW are great people.

[7Wannabe5]

Congratulations! They grow so fast. Savor every moment.

[theanimal]

Thank you all for your well wishes and kind words. It is very much appreciated!