Book Description

Reviews (18)

Diamonds, David and Goliath, and the Dark Side of Geology
Barren Lands by Kevin Krajick is epic nonfiction without artifice. The author does not create straw heroes or villains, but presents the story and its participants warts and all. The search for diamonds in North America is the story, and myriad searchers enter and exit during the tale's almost 500 years. The ultimate discovery of the source of North America's diamonds in the Canadian Arctic is the goal of the story. Charles E. Fipke, a person who presents a lot of reasons for the reader to dislike him, is the unlikely David in the story and De Beers, the company with a stranglehold on the World's diamond markets, is the Goliath.

Part of my interest in Barren Lands stems from my training as a geologist with an emphasis in mineral exploration. Part of the reason I became a high school earth science teacher has to do with my weakness at keeping scientific secrets. I knew that working for a mining or mineral exploration company would necessarily involve the nondisclosure of proprietary information and I knew that I couldn't do it. The tension between proprietary information and open scientific discourse is strongly portrayed in the book. Another reason for my interest comes from the fact that geology students of my generation were very aware of what these diamond deposits in North America should look like. I have been telling my 9th graders for years that somewhere in Canada there are some diamondiferous kimberlite pipes that have been glacially scoured and probably contain circular lakes, making them difficult to find. I have been telling them that someday someone would follow the diamonds in the glacial till covering northern North America back to the source of the diamonds. Barren Lands allowed me to enjoy the fact that at least one of the things I learned in college, and then passed on to my own students, was correct.

I cannot recommend this book enough. If you have an interest in geology, exploration, history, nature, and economics, this book should keep you up late at night as you eagerly read the book to its conclusion. A special recommend to anyone interested in being an exploration or mining geologist. Some mining is necessary and mining is necessarily a destructive process. Mining resources like diamonds and gold present a large challenge to any environmentally oriented person since most of the money to be made on diamonds and gold is for luxury items, things humans could do without.

Diamonds, Danger, Desire
Did you know that in about half of the states of the US people have found diamonds? Diamonds of more than two carats have been found, for example, in Ohio and Alabama, and finding them is often just child's play. Kids are the ones who pick these gems up, because kids are close to the ground and always looking for treasures. Finding a reliable supply of diamonds is much more difficult; the ones found on the ground are often chance deposits that were dropped when a glacier melted, but the glacier must have carried them from somewhere rich in diamonds. There aren't many such places, and it was a surprise that over the past decade, the Northwest Territories of Canada were deemed to be diamond mining country. The eerie, exciting, and disturbing story of how this came to be is told in _Barren Lands: An Epic Search for Diamonds in the North American Arctic_ (Times Books) by Kevin Krajick. The lure of diamonds has proved inescapable for a certain class of men for centuries, and Krajick's book tells about some of them he met while he did his research.

The Barren Lands (yes, that is the designation you will see on maps) is a half million square mile region as far north as Americans can go. There are no roads and no people, and it is called barren because it is above the northern limits which trees can reach, Since diamond exploration has started, however, it could well be populated with workers producing gold, uranium, and other minerals. At the heart of the story of exploration here is Chuck Fipke, a weird little guy who does nothing to improve the image of geologists. When Fipke was in charge of a prospecting expedition, he drove his men ruthlessly, especially his own son with distressing ferocity ("When you're not eating or sleeping, you're working for me."). Fipke was just one of a long line of explorers to the region, and their history is well covered here. The unbelievable hardships of traversing the area, or working in it, are well described in many sections of the book; bears, mosquitoes, and deerflies all supply annoyance or danger. Then there were the people. Fipke could not keep his operation secret for long, and DeBeers and other mining firms shouldered in. Fipke's team painted the plywood cubicles that held the drills with camouflage paint that would prevent detection from the air, and even ordered army-surplus camouflage nets to cover supplies. This was not paranoia; there were commercial spy planes making regular flights to see what was up.

The prospectors faced challenges from the environmentalists, who worried that the caribou, wolves, falcons, wolverines, and bears would get shoved aside by the industrialization of a previously pristine area, and the local tribes worried about water pollution, looting of artifacts left by their ancestors, and "perhaps most of all they worried that they might be left out of the profits." Barren Lands now has a hugely expensive mining factory, and will simply churn out millions of dollars worth of diamonds every year. There is a pressure to build roads and power lines to the site, which will mean more alteration of a basically natural area, but profits like these cannot be resisted. While Fipke and his partners are all now unimaginably rich, they are not unimaginably happy. Fipke alienated many of his crew, and shattered his family during the most intense of the mining preparations. He admits that putting all his energy into his mine had its price. "But that was _cool_! To do all that we did? It was _fun_!" It is not surprising that with this attitude, all the riches and all the family problems haven't made a difference: he is still out there looking for the next strike.

What's required to find a multi-billion dollar mine
-----------------------------------------------------------

Rating: "A" -- the obsession, hard work, heartbreak and good luck
required to make a multi-billion dollar discovery. Highly
recommended.

This is the story of the discovery of the Ekati diamond mine, in the
Barren Lands of the Northwest Territories, by Chuck Fipke, Hugo
Dummett, and others.

Hugo Dummett signed on with Superior Oil in 1978 to prospect for
diamonds in North America, just as the science of using indicator
minerals -- pyrope garnets, chrome diopside and chromite -- for
diamond exploration was being worked out. Superior started
prospecting around Arkansas's Crater of Diamonds -- now
inconveniently a State Park. Hugo and Mike Wolfhard hired Chuck
Fipke and his crew to sample the area. Lots of fun with jungly brush
and shotgun-toting landowners... Hugo even tried to sweet-talk Gov.
Bill Clinton into leasing him the park!

Fipke is a poster child for the space-case prospector-geologist, but he's
smart, has a sharp eye and was an *amazingly* hard worker. But a
*terrible* boss -- he drove his workers to exhaustion, and wouldn't
take elementary safety precautions, even on helicopter-supported
work. It's remarkable he didn't kill anyone [note 1].

The road to Ekati was not direct. Superior's exploration program (and
their competitors') went down the usual side tracks and dead ends --
including rediscovery of the salted site of a 19th century diamond
fraud. Then -- just as Fipke & company were developing some truly
good-looking Barren Lands prospects -- Mobil Oil bought Superior,
and summarily axed all Canadian exploration. Thud.

Fipke and Dia Met scrambled for money from family, friends and
penny-stock speculators, raising enough to stake a sizeable claim-
block near Lac de Gras, in the trackless barrens a couple hundred
miles northeast of Yellowknife. Then the money was gone, and none
of the pros were interested in Dia Met's "moose pasture." Bankruptcy
loomed -- but Dummett landed a new job with BHP, with a healthy
budget, and he quickly leased the Fipke-Dia Met ground.

Word of the BHP deal brought De Beers, Corona and others into the
area, but the *real* excitement started when BHP's first drillhole
found diamonds -- lots of diamonds! Despite strenuous secrecy
efforts, the word got out -- as it always does -- and the Great Diamond
Rush of 1991 was on! Tundra was staked by the township, and Dia
Met stock, which sold for 50c. a share in mid-91, hit $67 by the end of
1992. Fipke and his partners were paper billionaires.

The Ekati mine was commissioned in late 1998. Capital cost was
US$700 million. Sales of US$448 million (FY 2001) yielded gross
earnings of $285 million (!, EBITDA = earnings before interest, tax,
depreciation & amortization = gross profit). Mine life is expected to exceed
25 years.

District exploration costs (1989-98, Ekati-Diavik district, all companies)
exceeded US$500 million(!). A second mine, Diavik (Rio Tinto-Aber),
inconveniently located directly under Lac de Gras, is scheduled to go
into production in 2003 at an estimated capital cost of US$885 million.
Serious money is involved here. [Financial data from BHP 2001
annual report, and various web reports. Don't expect much financial
information in the book. Google is your friend.

Fipke & his longtime partner, geologist Stewart Blusson, each retain a
10%(!!) interest in the Ekati mine. (Blusson later gave $50 million to
UBC, his alma mater). When the big bucks rolled in, Fipke's marriage
fell apart, his brother sued him (as did many others), and his son
stopped speaking to him. The Big Strike had its costs.

The book's meandering start might put you off, but don't be
discouraged -- Krajick has a fine story to tell, and once he get's rolling,
this is strong stuff. No geologist who's worked in exploration -- or
anyone with a taste for an old-fashioned strike-it-rich story -- should
miss this one .
____________
Note 1) There was fatal helicopter crash at the BHP camp in 1992,
while Fipke was project manager. The apparent cause was pilot error
-- flying without reeling in the sling-line -- but Fipke wasn't directly
involved.

Happy reading!
Peter D. Tillman
Consulting Geologist, Tucson & Santa Fe (USA)

Revised review
On October 17,2001, I submitted a harsh and critical review of Barren Lands, by Kevin Krajick, which is still being presented by Amazon.com. After discussions with the author and others, I regret the too negative tone of my review and now wish to modify my comments to reflect my much more favorable opinion of the work and its intregrity. I hope that visitors to this web site will discount my earlier comments.

Sincerely,

John S. White

Diamonds and Minerals, look and you will find.
Great story of the quest for diamonds. Just goes to show you, that if you are allowed to look you can find anything society wants.

A great story about a driven geologist that does not take no for an answer. Prospecting is alive and well, if the greenies do not lock it all up! ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Women and the Klondike
In the boomtowns of the Alaska-Yukon stampedes, where gold dust was common currency, the rarest commodity was an attractive woman, and her company could be costly. Author Lael Morgan takes you into the heart of the gold rush. Authentic, humorous and sympathetic. B/W photos.

Fun history of the world's (c)oldest profession in AK
I bought this book at the University of Alaska-Fairbanks bookstore. My dad, Class of '51 at UAF (we were there for his 50th reunion), had told me some stories about "The Line" and he had had his first job with the gold mining operations, so I was curious. There's not a lot of gory detail here. It's about people and places, but it's quite a colorful history. Though never officially legal, prostitution was tolerated and it flourished in Alaska for more than 50 years. And some very famous characters pop up, like Wyatt Earp and the "Birdman of Alcatraz". Definitely worth the time.

Good Time Girls? should be called Good Time Guys
I cruised Alaska this summer and took a facinating tour of the Skagway Red Light district. After the tour, I wanted to learn more, thusly I hit a bookstore and found this book. I was thrilled to find it, as I recognized several of the names (Klondike Kate, PeaHull Annie, etc) and was looking forward to finding out more. The book promised not to leave out any "lusty and licentious parts". That couldn't be more wrong.

I found out more information about the men of the Kondike and their wenching habits, than the actual women themselves. In this case, my wonderfully guided tour gave me more information about how the women actually conducted their business (lots of interesting info about their personal hygene that are no where to be found in this book. what kind of book on prostitution doesn't talk about birth control methods and their ways of preventing VD? VD is barely brought up).

If I wanted to read about the men of the Klondike, I could pick up any random book in the Klondike History section of any bookstore. The women are often the ones forgotten about, and deserve better treatement in the annuls of history, most especially in a book supposedly about those women. If you want some good information on this type of history, go up to Alaska and take any one of the amazing Red Light District tours. Don't waste your money on this book.

Good read
This it not the type of book I typically read. But while in Skagway on a second cruise to Alaska this summer, I skimmed this book in a bookstore but did not purchase it there. I continued to think about it, so I ordered it from Amazon.com. I am not studying anthropology nor am I an avid reader of books related to historical things, so this was a "one of a kind" read for me; and an interesting one at that. However, I agree with another reviewer that the book, while well researched, was not well organized. Except for a few chapters devoted to specific women, there was considerable lack of organization and I especially found chronology confusing. But, it in addition to stories about the women in the trade, it has enlightening segments about men everyone has heard of - Al Cody and Wyatt Earp - who spent some time in Alaska. I even learned about the "Birdman of Alcataz". Interesting comparisons are made of the various gold rush "camps", the extent to which the "good time girls" were accepted in these camps and what happened to some of these women later in life. Other than an occasional mention about the two common SIDs (sexually transmitted diseases) of that era, not much is mentioned about the other health-related issues the women faced other than tuberculosis, pneumonia or plagues. For example, I don't recall any mention of pregnancies and struggles with raising children while in the trade; perhaps there was no information available on these issues.

Good Time Girls brought to life
Lael Morgan does a great job of piecing together old newspaper articles and photos to recreate the lives of these adventurous pioneers. The stories from Dawson are especially detailed (due to the resources) and give you the feeling that you know what it was like to live and work in Dawson during the gold rush. Knowing that the characters in the book were real make the stories that much more compelling. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (5)

Where' the justice?
Thes is a very interesting story.It is well written and well researched.It was also done by Rudy Weibe and Thomas P.Kelley.
Kelley also wrote "the Black Donnellys".His style was much different;more along the lines of a Pulp fiction writer;where the story is essentially the same,but greatly embellished with fictional conversation,descriptions of events and details whenever needed to tell the story as excitedly as possible.
In Johnson's Case, he had every right to refuse entry to someone without a warrant.It may not have been smart on his part,and no doubt really angered the law.So on the return visit the law was going to get him regardless;blow him away if necessary (they were armed and equipped with explosives to do it).What Johnson's mental state was ,who knows,except those who came to get him;and they tried.Don't forget they really had nothing on him at this point except their pride was damaged because of his resisting. What really happened ;there,s only their side of the story. At this point Johnson was in a no win situation and the law knew it,and so did he.I remind you again,the law was in total control when they set off this chain of events.
In the case of the Black Donnellys ;they opened their door to the demand of a constable and posse and 4 defenseless people were murdered and their home burned down on top of them.
These are two very sad stories in Canadian history ;neither one resolved,but both deserve to be known.
Without books like these, stories like these, would be swept under the carpet.
This is real history;not the stuff about trappers exploring a river in a canoe and asking students what they were called.
This brings to mind what a War Correspondant once said;
"Don't believe a politician or anyone in uniform."

Rat River Trapper: Mad or Misanthropic?
It was a bitterly cold December 26, 1931 when four members of the RCMP approached the small cabin of a mysterious trapper named Albert Johnson. There sole intent was to question Johnson about a complaint made by a neighbouring trapper concerning traps that had been tampered with. But without a word, the trapper fired upon the constables, injuring one. Shortly thereafter, Johnson had disappeared into the bush, thus instigating an epic manhunt that would last close to fifty days, and span some 150 miles.

Forty years later, author Dick North set out to document the story, and, more importantly, try and cast light on the identity of the mysterious Albert Johnson. Relying heavily on eye-witness accounts, North pieces together an interesting, sometimes rivetting story. But admittedly, there are limitations, and in the end, much is left to conjecture.

North concludes that Albert Johnson was more than likely a man who also went by the name of Arthur Nelson, and who for seven years prior to his death supposedly trapped and prospected in northern Saskatchewan and British Columbia. Alway quiet and "non-commital" this Arthur Nelson came and went mysteriously, and exhibited traits quite similar to that of the Mad Trapper.

Although disdained by some--especially women, around whom he evidently was extremely shy--many were understanding of his peculiar loner idiocincricies. But, provided that this Arthur Nelson is in fact Albert Johnson--which appears to be fairly likely--he apparently grew increasingly paranoid and suspicious of people. All of which led people to believe that he was hiding something. And as is always the case, there is much speculation as to what it was.

The author addresses this at the end of the book, but given that there is little evidence to work with, it's left to the reader to decide: was he a murderer, illegal immigrant, or simply a misanthrope caught up in events beyond his control?

All and all, a very interesting book and thrilling read, but in order to get the fully story--supposedly--of who the Mad Trapper was, one has to read Trackdown, which was published in 1989.

Trackdown is the result of twenty-odd years of North's obsessive research into the identity of the Mad Trapper. In the first part of the book, North addresses several theories of who the Mad Trapper could have been, but in each case he manages to uncover evidence that dismiss these individuals.

The turning point in his hunt comes when he was contacted by the North Dakota State Historical Society. As it turns out, there is a small article in a county history stating that the Mad Trapper may have in fact been a man by the name of Johnny Johnson.

Born Johan Konrad Jonsen in Norway in 1898, Johnson had emigrated to the USA with his parent at the age of six. Life in Dakota was a constant struggle and brought the family little gain, so at a young age Johnson reverted to crime. This resulted in several prison sentences before finally in 1923 he disappeared, presumably heading north into Canada.

Initially, I was very skeptical about this theory; to me, there was little resemblence between the three mug shots of Johnny Johnson, the 1930 Ross River photo showing Arthur Nelson and the pictures of the dead Mad Trapper. But as I read on, North did put together a compelling argument, and the more I read and the more I studied the pictures, the more plausable it all became. Interestingly, the Johnson family had in fact been in contact with the RCMP several years after the incident; Johnson's mother, having seen the picture of the Mad Trapper, was certain that he was her son. But the RCMP dismissed this claim, as it did all other such claims, leaving the mystery unsolved.

While North's argument seems plausable, I was still left with a nagging sense of doubt. While his evidence is compelling, it is far from conclusive and could quite easily be picked apart by someone with the time and resources to do so. One way to solve the matter would of course be to exhume the Mad Trapper and take DNA samples and conduct other forensic tests. North, believing that the body would still be in reasonably good shape, attempted to do this; but these efforts were stymied by the locals.

So although North presents a compelling argument for Johnny Johnson being the Mad Trapper, the case is not closed. The myth lives on.

AbbbsoLUUUUTely RRRRRiveting!!
Could NOT put the book down. Was on vacation up IN the Yukon riding on the Yukon Queen DOWN the Yukon River. And probably missed lots of great scenery because was reading this book. Read it in less than 24 hours. What a great writing style and format!!
One, after reading it, should then see the Charles Bronson/Lee Marvin move about it... The book of course gives alot more details and background but the movie is great too.
Reading the book makes you want to go out and buy a bowie knife and build a cabin!

A Northern Blockbuster
This book has been a big seller for many years... and the inspiration for motion pictures such as CHALLENGE TO BE FREE. No one knew who the "Mad Trapper" was til author Dick North tracked him down -- all spelled out in this and a later book,"Trackdown." You'll thrill to this tale of a powerful but desperate human being who led the Canadian Mounties in an incredible chase through the lofty Richardson Mountains in the dead of winter.

The Mad Trapper was the inspiration for still another book about the frozen north -- MARK OF THE WHITE WOLF, an e-book out of Blue Knight Enterprises in Hyde Park, NY.

captivating
i have read many versions of this tale since living in canada and each tale has a twist.i am interested in every tale to be printed. ... Read more

Book Description

This harrowing tale is the story of a dog musher during the Klondike and Nome gold rushes. Originally published in 1928, Walden's narrative has not diminished in impact or historical significance. It is one of the most exciting books ever written about dog mushing or the great gold rushes. Wolf Creek Classics is a series of the most interesting books about Alaska and the Yukon. These historic works have been reprinted with their original typefaces and layouts ... Read more

Reviews (1)

WOW
I was floored by this book. It is diary of a group of men traveling to the yukon in search of gold. I was amazed at the things that they went through. In our relatively easy modren life, It is good to read about what extremes people would go through in the old days. To say that they had a rough journey would be an understatement. I would recommend this to anyone who wants to get a feel for what it must have been like to ber part of the gold rush in the Yukon territory. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

one of the greatest women's adventures of all time
This is one of the greatest women's adventures of all time, and for sure, one of the greatest womens memoirs of the gold rush era. Anna de Graf is a favorite of all our readers of Gold Rush Women. ... Read more

Book Description

The story of a scientific exploration to Baffin Island in 1962.

The Calling and the Spell, a companion to Siegfried Bucher's 'Dangerous Encounters', details Bucher's adventures in the Arctic after giving up a career in Engineering. 'The Calling and the Spell' details the lure and the seduction of the vast and beautiful Arctic. ... Read more

Book Description

A memoir of childhood summers spent in a Laurentian village and of an Indian woman who lived according to her ancient code of courage and humanity. A heartwarming story. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Let's go north!
Rowley's fresh and colloquial style of narrative makes you feel at home in the arctic. While you read you can feel the cold wind in your face, you hear the dogs breathing and the ice cracking and you smell the fresh winter air. You start longing for the moment when you can meet all those friendly Inuit. And when you finally get to the arctic you will see that not much has changed. ... Read more

Book Description

Altitude introduces an unconventional Canadian with a special gift. Robert William Service lived a life of adventure. Best known for his world-famous poems such as the Shooting of Dan McGrew, he drew much of his inspiration from the great Canadian North. Despite his many adventures in Europe and around the world, the Yukon remained a strong influence on the poet until his death in 1958. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Excellent biography
Never realized that the poet Robert Service was such an adventurer and rebel until I read this book. A tightly-written biography filled with interesting information about his early life in Scotland, his life in British Columbia, California and Yukon, and then later in Europe.Author does a great job of taking the reader along as Robert Service goes after his dreams and along the way, writes some of the world's greatest poetry.

Best Biography of Robert Service
This is an well-written book that is great read for all ages. The author has produced a fascinating book that keeps you reading into the night. The book captures well the adventuresome, wanderlust side of Robert Service, weaving in stories about his family life and his career as a poet, author and novelist. Excellent book about an incredible man who has become a Canadian icon. ... Read more

Book Description

Privateer and adventurer Martin Frobisher undertook the search for a northwestern route to Asia under orders from Queen Elizabeth I. A few days after enduring a terrifying storm in July 1576, Frobisher sighted the most easterly outlier of Arctic North America and for the first time England became aware of this vast northern region. Over the next three summers it would be the scene of an adventure involving the fruitless search for a northwest passage, the first attempt by the British to establish a settlement in the New World, and the first major gold-mining fraud in North American history. Over 1200 tons of rock were mined from Baffin Island and shipped to England, where they were found to contain not an ounce of gold. Yet Frobisher's claim of possession established British interest in northern North America and was the first step in the eventual establishment of British sovereignty over the northern half of the American continent. Using reports from the men who participated in the venture, details preserved in the oral histories of the Inuit, and archaeological information recovered from the sites of Elizabethan activities on Baffin Island, Robert McGhee describes Frobisher's expeditions and offers new insights into this audacious venture. The story ends on an ironic note--the capital of the new Territory of Nunavut, which restores to the Inuit a measure of the sovereignty claimed for England by Frobisher, lies at the head of the bay named after him, where over four centuries ago the English first ventured into Arctic America. ... Read more