"Toklat Tundra Grizzly" Scrimshawed on ancient Walrus Tusk in 1976 in Skagway Alaska mounted on an ancient extinct 'Bison Pricus' vertebrate"

"Engraving on a 'Walrus' tusk composed and executed in 1976 in Skagway, Alaska, one of my earliest examples of "Scrimshaw."

"Not entirely 'alone,' as a 'rival' 'Siberian  Shaman,' 'transformed into a Polar Bear, attacks the 'Hunter's' dogs and eats them, the 'Hunter's' father, also a powerful  'Yupik Shaman' transforms himself into a 'flying seal' and offers a 'Polar Bear Fang' 'Amulet' to protect him." "Pen and Ink composition." 

"Camp...amongst a prehistoric camp...for thousands of years and all around me...quiet and serene was born here...and the sun worships the 'Land' and bathes it in gold"

"Mode of travel in the Arctic...able to remain for months in camping and access to supplies in the numerous villages in route"  "To travel in any other mode, effectively, is to put a saddle on a moose."

"A treasure from the 'Bering' and 'complete.  'Orca'  tooth, a rare discovery as any ivory would be on the coast.  Perhaps the Orca was dispatched by ancient Inuit hunters centuries ago or died of natural causes,....perhaps...and now on to a new journey"

"Beach combing the coast of the Bering Sea, Alaska...Discovering an 'Orca" (Killer Whale) tooth as it lay near this 'driftwood log' in the sand"  'Nicely 'tumbled' and 'sand polished' and it too, on a 'Solo Journey.'

"Classic example of "Permafrost" or permanently frozen ground from the Ice Age (Pleistocene epoch)."  "Note; that the 'slick' surface is frozen soil and fauna of the Ice Age, preserved and eroded to expose it.  "Woolly Mammoth Tusks and Bones 'fall' from eroded banks and into rivers to begin their journey."

"Woolly Mammoth tusk tip discovered under water in this little river...this far north, it easy to 'see' them due to the absence of wood  present to be confuse with ivory...beneath the sands and gravels are bones and tusks...throughout"

"There he goes again...does not want to leave entirely as might be a treat in it somehow"

"Visiting neighbors along the river bank, hoping for lunch no doubt...but better if he does not get tempted for a snack"

"Veteran of many rivers in the Arctic and a favorite 'toy' for the local 'Toklat" grizzly bears, on a few occasions I have had to 'run off'' bears as they jump on the boat while in camp."

"A Siberian storm front visiting the Arctic in July...with snow"  "Remained in camp, reading and resting as the next day arrived, bringing clear skies as the mosquitoes return"

"On the Trail"  "Caribou Bull on migration using the same paths since the 'Pleistocene,' where fossils are still lying under the moss and lichen."  "Click" on 'Older Posts' for additional pages"

                                                                                 "Antler Gathering discarded by Caribou in migration"  

"Shaman of the "Toklat"

"Ivory from the permafrost...from the Woolly Mammoth...discovered in the "Land" and sculpted in my studio"  "The quest for ancient trails and the whispers of those that still remain...forever there"

"Journey to Winter Grounds"

"Elephants of the Arctic, woolen, and tusks for clearing snow exposing grasses.  They lived during the Ice Age, a vastly different landscape, a land of extremes."

"He walks 'alone' and in good spirits, creating his own trails, sleeping on the tundra and drinking from the 'land' that created him."  "Returning to the 'clan' and back to the trails for another time."  " I follow the distance also alone in appreciation of the language that the winds brings from a distance and the ground under my feet, yet always the vision of distant trails that nourish the "Soul." Wanderings, 'solo' and time spent with family within the group with the eyes always on the "Horizon."

"Twelve foot antlers this giant 'nomad' of the 'Ice Age' trails."

"Land invented 'Peace' and is still there, the 'Land' is practiced and distractions 'take' us into confusion, a loss that is resolved by our "return."  "Some say that 'fear' is a necessary emotion yet...People invented it...to be enlightened is to be the "Land." "Click" on "Older Posts" to view additional pages"

"My journey...summer 2010...endless shores of a land laced with trails of  Caribou,  Moose,  Muskoxen and Mammoth"  "Alaska high Arctic region 'solo' wanderings with directions all flowing into ancient and new camps placed before me."

"The earliest works of our ancestors (our family), of a time unknown to us and yet we remember memories of it."  "When we can be 'alone' and without distractions in these very remote regions, the land is our link to our memory."  "We find objects made for us 'then' on a gravel bar recently thawed from from ice as a reminder, an arrowhead or stone knife...a child's doll."

"Late seventies on the river, and a tusk"  "Just a small 'section' of this tusk was exposed enough to see, under the gravel, midnight 'blue' in color."  "My pilot 'finds' me after several weeks in the Arctic by following the river, never bring a satellite phone and in those days, no GPS."  "Even my recent sojourns have no communications,  or compass as I rely on my 'self' to continue."  "Often I climb a tall hill and feel the Earth under my soul, to look out on a scape that changed little for tens of thousands of years and see an ancient fire pit of reddened stones near me from the fires of the ancients."

"They are not known to us now, we knew them before, too many centuries ago, our distant family."  "We walked on their 'trails' that gave it's magic freely and the strength from them invented religion of 'love' grafted to us in magnificence"

"Life is composing a 'song' and is the 'art' in all of us,  awareness of this makes us."  "The best of us do so with 'love' and emotion for our 'self' realization with no room for interference, many do not, and know not of their connection to their land, to themselves, remains a mystery"

"Walking upstream north during camp and barefoot, being here is 'living a prayer' and shows me this is an answer to what I seek and sets a stage to repeat these ventures every season...'alone'...realizing my success"

"Artist on expedition discovering ancient 'Woolly Mammoth ivory near the Arctic ocean of Alaska.  These areas are abundant with the remains of these extinct elephants, 'We' were with them, on the trails."

"Specialized 'arrow point' attached to a mammoth ivory fore shaft.  Designed to remained 'embedded' within it's intended target.  The blade is made of a 'blue-green' chert (stone) discovered in the Kotzebue Sound region, Alaska...(the lacing was restored as the original was absent)"

"Rare Arctic Clovis 'fluted' projectile end blade, discovered on a ridge near the American river area of the Seward Peninsula, south of  Brevig Mission village."  "They came before us to hunt the Mammoth with this culture and succeeded, they knew the 'land' as they knew themselves...'They lived with 'Nature' and this was their 'success' for forty thousand years."

"Choris end blade projectile of colorful 'chert' from the Kotzebue, Alaska region, most blades are discovered 'on the surface' as they were left.  The Arctic has very little surface deposition over these ancient camp sites"

"He sees himself, and while he is at it takes a drink"  "Just standing across this tributary of thirty feet distant is an event"  "They are not 'shy' in any way but they do not recognize me as a 'food' source...so far"

"Well disguised 'Woolly Mammoth tooth molar mixed in with limestone and gravels on the edge of a river...must look close to see some of these specimens...easy to miss them"  

"This Mammoth tusk was in a deep hole in the river, at least ten feet deep and in ice cold water, very nice condition with just a section missing on the tip"  "Thats right, you have to take all clothes off to do this otherwise it would take a couple of days to dry them off."

"Gretchen  friend and an eighteen year companion in Alaska, always stood her ground from moose and bear.  Discovered antlers for me and learned this on her own"

"Standing By" "As I walk over to this 'immature bull Woolly Mammoth tusk lying in the gravel partially buried."
"The idea that these fossils, being over ten thousand years in age and 'still' ivory, is difficult to conceive. I understand that there are some specimens over one hundred thousand years in age found in this same tributary, in fact, as I have discovered tusks that were partially petrified, (Opaline exterior) and yet the interior was still organic." "I have also discovered 'wood' fossils that are partially petrified and partially organic, a dramatic mineralization occurred while the remaining branch remained in permafrost, in organic condition. "

"Twenty Miles to the Arctic Ocean" "Bull Woolly Mammoth Tusk as found in the river, an overall majority of fossils are considered 'Secondary Deposition,' meaning they are buried and uncovered numerous occasions by the rise of water levels as it shifts the gravels, burying tusks and exposing them continuously." "Primary Deposition is when fossils are first exposed by permafrost thaw process and are commonly in excellent condition." "I discover both and consider myself very fortunate to find a permafrost primary specimen."

"It just seems improbable that a tusk of this clarity should be discovered just lying in very shallow river bed. It takes some consideration to grasp the remote location of these areas. When this far north and 'alone,' our personality is shifted internally and we express stimulus, out loud, to what only we can hear...I listen to outside 'Nature' until surprised or impressed by something going on...in the Arctic."

"Snapping his Jaws, caught my scent and only ten feet away" "I was stranded in shallow water and could not move and did not want to until my friend here moved on. I was faced with pulling the boat to deeper water when this guy came by." " In a while he departed and even though he was skinny and no doubt hungry he made no advances towards me." "Being 'alone' is important to me in these regions and it takes confidence to 'stand' your ground."

"Young cow caribou on the river approaching camp" "A most hearty Arctic resident so resilient to seasons and landscape that is as complex as it gets for beings to be this successful. I have noticed that whenever almost any animal I come close to, 'relieves' themselves in this way. Toklat Grizzly Bears I have seen do the same, as I must be the only Human they have encountered." " I do not hunt any animal, I make provisions in advance for my expeditions and even alone I do not take fish unless it is necessary."

"From over two hundred yards distant, I saw this immature bull Woolly Mammoth tusk, as the photo illustrates, almost buried in the river's cut bank. What an absolute joy to discover such treasure as this."










"Following extraction, it is understood that there is no digging what-so-ever in discovering these wonderful fossils." "When in a camping mode, such as the high Arctic offers, one can be alone and experiencing 'Nature' without the distraction of society." "It is imperative to be alone in 'Nature' as often as possible to gain a better understanding of ourselves. I have also learned the value of all life and does indeed elevate us to a higher level of appreciation."

"In an expedition for five months alone and traversing by boat at one hundred miles per month." "This camp was a refuge for three days when a Siberian storm front made water travel impossible. "Bases in Kotzebue, Alaska, I traveled north and south solo except my dog Gretchen, a Norwegian Elkhound, she traveled on many expeditions and lived to be eighteen years."

"Creating an opportunity to be alone for weeks and even longer are experiences that change us. We recollect our prehistoric counterparts, of ancient 'hunters' of these regions. These people lived in this land and lived successfully, eventually established our 'modern' lifestyles." "We now have the opportunity to live in 'both worlds' and gain from them."

"Self timed photos, for future record and by viewing them,  can recall the 'moment.' "These areas are just miles from 'lands end' at the Arctic Ocean east of Barrow Alaska." 'Doing everything alone, this is what it takes to know the 'self.' "Packing gear every day and moving north down river."