# My outdoors world



## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

Hello all. I'm new so thought I'd share a bit about our world. The outdoors are a large part of my life. I moved to Alaska in 1981. Worked as a wildfire fire fighter for the summer n was hooked. Met the most wonderful lady in the world for me in 83. He built our little homestead n homeschooled our 2 . Now my most important job is hanging out with our grandkids. N teaching them about the outdoors will happen. 
We staked 20 acres of remote property. And hauled many loads of freight over several years. Eventually ending up with a 16'x24' log cabin. I can now go hang out out there. 2-3 months at a time when I can. Got 5 weeks in last moose season. Moose season is a must. Glad it lasts 5 weeks. Plenty of wolves to go around too. 
Transportation to the cabin in non frozen months is by a bush plane on floats. 185 Cessna. Land on remote uninhabited lake. Then 2 mile walk north. Great views of Denali. Just look up. In the frozen months. Trailer up the snogos n drive 1-1/2 hours. Nice scenic drive with lots of huge moose to view guaranteed. Unload n pack freight sleds. Then cruise on out to cabin. 
I've been training our grandsons Chesapeake Bay Retriever to hunt moose antlers. Can't wait to get her out there with grandkids n find some antlers. 
I could probably go on for a while. And living a lifetime ot outdoors in AK has been a real blessing. 
Remember folks take one make one !


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## mrghostwalker (Feb 6, 2011)

Awesome! Please share some photos with us!


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)




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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)




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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

One of my favorites


















.
Here's a few for now


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Very nice. That track vehicle is neat, what is it?
Thanks for sharing.


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

1959 Activ snotrac . It was made in Sweden by actual craftsman. They used Volkswagen parts. Its has a 1200 cc industrial engine. Runs good. I need to slim down on the toys so going to have to let this one go.
My buggy is a 1958 or so GMC with NAPCO axles.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

Welcome to the forum....Now get out of here and don't come back-- You're embarrassing us posers who imagine ourselves as wild mountain men.

I always held my grandparents in awe. Peasant farmers in the old country, they packed it all up and migrated here a century ago, not knowing anyone here or what they were getting into...Your move in '81 was of the same caliber. Very cool.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

doc- said:


> Welcome to the forum....Now get out of here and don't come back-- You're embarrassing us posers who imagine ourselves as wild mountain men.
> 
> I always held my grandparents in awe. Peasant farmers in the old country, they packed it all up and migrated here a century ago, not knowing anyone here or what they were getting into...Your move in '81 was of the same caliber. Very cool.


I hope the op sees that you are joking about not coming back.

I love reading posts by people who do live in the wilderness. It's something I dreamed of doing but physical limitations made it impossible.


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

Hello all. doc , all cool here man. BTW my grandparents migrated to America from Luxembourg. And were farmers. 
Yeah I look back in life n realize how blessed I am. I have a fascination with everything wild. And living on the end of the road with access to Alaska was a great starting place. We got into gardening n raising meat animals to reduce our costs. I hunted n fished . Was able to keep us fed with moose, caribou, bear, salmon, halibut n such. We didn't have a lot of money so it worked out ok. Homeschooling allowed us to raise our kids with an awareness about nutrition n food quality. Both are now great cooks. 
Danaus29, I also have a few issues. Daily pain is just a part of my life. I live on my wins man. I will say a prayer for you. 
Heck it gets even better ! Our grandson n his mama live with us. Our daughter is a truck driver, equipment operator n has several welding certifications under her belt. She is currently working in the arctic. So it works great for all. When our son got married, we gave them an acre of land behind us. Now he n his beautiful wife n our fabulous little granddaughter live right behind us. And the plan is for us to build a small retirement home this spring n get this big one to our daughter. We will all be neighbors . We will be homeschooling our grandkids. 
Most blessed man in the world ! Surrounded by family. And the couple neighbors we have are nice folks. Young couple next door have chickens n Nigerian dwarf goats so kids have them to play with. 
Today is get 1959 case backhoe running. I welded up some tabs in the bucket so I could mount a snowplow blade in it. My normally reliable 1976 F-250 blew a tyranny seal. 
Get rabbits poo cleaned up n on compost pile. Going to start breeding them next week. Goal is to put up 250 pounds of bunny meat. Need to get to cabin. Lynx to trap , hopefully. Kids want to make some hats. I want the meat. Couple beavers would be good too. I still have a black bear hide in the freezer to tan. 
Need a bunch of freight hauled out to the cabin before the snow bridges collapse. The creeks already have overflow. Dangerous because you can't see them under the snow. 
Feeling really guilty about not spending enough time training our grandsons chessy. 
But then again, I may just hang out with my beautiful wife n grandkids all day. 
I came across a nice picture of mom's pond. Named after my beautiful wife.








Most blessed man in the world.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

They say most people don't appreciate what they have until they lose it...You are indeed a blessed man to be self-reflective and appreciate it while you have it...Happiness is not a destination, but a way of traveling.


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

Yeppers doc. I've learned that I'm a better person if. I live on my wins. Thinking about issues out of my control seems to be a waste of time. 
I've got a mountain of cool projects to work on, take my pick. One of my favorites is hanging with my grandson. He's 4 1/2 now and really into speed. Papa going to have fun building a hot engine for our 79 El Camino. 327 ? Who knows, I do know that the opportunity exists. That's all it takes. More cool stuff to think about. 
Of course taking a nap with our beautiful little granddaughter is always up near the top.
One of the biggest drivers towards building a remote cabin was another opportunity for spending time together with family. And in a spot that is truly remarkable, middle of nowhere Alaska. And was a huge effort with huge risk. And worth it. 
Now getting out there is one of my biggest issues.


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

Hello all. Glad to report that we made it out to our cabin. The weather was fantastic and the views even better. Mt Denali was out in full glory with the Denali range n Talkeetna Mts as landmarks. The snow conditions were kinda questionable as it was what we call sugar snow. Real fine. And 5-8 feet deep. 
We were able to haul out our fuel for the year. Around 80 gallons I hope it lasts anyhow. We need to freight it in during snow season and I was getting kinda worried about the snow conditions. They were great. Even started out on a groomed trail. And the snow bridges were in good shape. Then the trail gets narrower as we get closer to our cabin n further away from others. Until brush is scraping your face. Then we have to break our own trail. Nobody got stuck or hurt. 
Best of all. I got to spend the day with our daughter. And watch her take the lead. Made this ol man feel real proud ! 
We harvested a pound or so of chaga to top it off.


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

Been a while since I've updated this thread. I haven't been able to get to the cabin yet but break up is just finishing up. And then there's the garden to plant. 
But I guess our outdoors world includes our home. We had a cow moose trying to get into our rabbits hay. 
Our cabin is never far from my mind. So always planning something.


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

Hello all. Happy New Year ! I got sidelined for a bit with some bones in my neck so haven't been cagettingn out like I used to, yet. Learning that going slow means going faster. Whatever that is. Still getting out as much as I can. Our 5 year old grandson got a 4 wheeler for Christmas. Suzuki 90cc. It finally warmed up 20 above n papa got it out. He did great. He can drive down the driveway n around. Just like his mama did. My beautiful wife got on another one n they went for a little ride. So nice to see both of them out together. I was busy getting a new plow truck built. 
Planning out a little trip to go find some chaga, ice fishing off the snogos. And what to start training his chessy to pull him in a sled. 
Always planning improvements for the cabin. Want to finish out the inside. TnG pine on the upstairs lid. Same for the kitchen cabinets. Sand all the walls n topcoat. Finish pounding in the sand point well so we will have running water at the kitchen tap n such.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

Thanks for bumping this interesting thread up...I hadn't seen the last couple posts....Aren't you over-doing it a little in that last picture with the CoViD mask?...or have you blocked your face out as a courtesy to us because you're so ugly? If so, then thanks. You're a real gentleman.

The automotive theme runs strong in your series of posts...How do you obtain & store fuel? Any special techniques or tricks to ensure cold starts?

...and Happy New Year!


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

Thanks for the upgrade doc. Yeah I need to use equipment to get things done. Especially when I had over 50 thousand pounds of stuff to freight cross country for miles. And knowing how to keep the stuff running properly is important. And I hate having to leave my beautiful wife alone in the bush while I go get parts or help. 
But plenty to boot time on the ground. 
To maintain the fuel I use sta bil brand fuel stabilizer and heet in the red bottle for absorbing water. Always use premium grade. No corn. 
I'm spred too thin though. And generally all my stuff doesn't get put away properly. So I get better at cleaning carburetors often. 
But I do get to spend a bit of time just in the bush. I enjoy waking through the woods, look at every tree. And enjoy watching the wildlife. Harvesting n processing wild game n fishes. Moose, salmon mainly to feed my family. And spending time researching the plants around me and how to use them is enjoyable. I am comfortable in the bush n feel at peace


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## Kiamichi Kid (Apr 9, 2009)

You’re making me nostalgic for Alaska… I’ve been gone for far too long now.


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## muleskinner2 (Oct 7, 2007)

Very nice. I lived in Alaska in the 90's, should have stayed.


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## Kiamichi Kid (Apr 9, 2009)

muleskinner2 said:


> Very nice. I lived in Alaska in the 90's, should have stayed.


I left in 95.


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## Olhomestead (Mar 3, 2021)

I often see folks who left n came back. And hear from others about how they wish they stayed. 
Hey ak can be tough ! And if you can't make ends meet financially it's worse. A lot of work. I was blessed to be kinda driven to hunting n fishing, gardening n such. To help make ends meet. 
But there is no other place like ak. A lot less government is the best. Until enough folks from Anchorage move out to get closer to the bush then try to make it a city. 
I ask a buddy of mine once. How come lots of folks in AK don't have a lawn, he says that it would take away time from salmon fishing. 
And then there's the outdoors n mountains n such. But only 700,000 folks in this state. So still some elbow room. 
But mostly there's less government, though some folks just can't resist trying to make the world better in their eyes. I'm just glad I was, am here while I have the chance feeling pretty blessed


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## mrghostwalker (Feb 6, 2011)

Awesome pictures! The kids look like they are having a great time!


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