Alaska Dog Mushing Guide: Facts and Legends [Paperback]

Ron Wendt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1994

Not your typical dog mushing book, this book focuses on unusual stories from the past and present. The book covers dog mushing history, sled dog breeding and raising of top dog breeds attributed to Alaska’s resourceful natives. Some of the mushing history includes mail carriers and freighters from the Gold Rush era. Famous dog teams through Alaskan dog mushing history, and many comparisons from top dog mushers throughout the north.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Ron Wendt was born in the Territory of Alaska in the Interior town of Fairbanks. The author and historian has traveled all across Alaska and the Yukon collecting stories and taking photographs of Life in the Last Frontier. Wendt is the author of 20 Alaskan books and his work has appeared in publications such as; Alaska Magazine, Alaska Geographic, Christian Science Monitor, California Mining Journal, Lapidary Journal, Rock & Gem Magazine, Anchorage Daily News, Cross Country Skier, Treasure Magazine, Gold & Treasure Hunter Magazine, Western & Eastern Treasures, Lost Treasure, Iditarod Runner, Country Magazine, Yukoner Magazine, and many other publications. Wendt has worked as a newspaper reporter, photographer, gold miner & prospector, and is also an historian specializing in northern & gold rush history.

From the Author

I was raised in a gold mining camp in the Circle mining district near the Yukon River. My mentors were all old timers who had been in the gold rush or who had roamed the north in search of gold. During summer months my brothers and I collected prehistoric bones like mammoth and mastodons from ancient tailing piles and mud banks. Most of my summers are spent roaming the back country, and prospecting for gold throughout Alaska and the Yukon Territory, collecting stories about people, places, and photographing and writing about ghost towns, dog mushing, outdoor activities, and other unique northern scenes. As a child I started watching the old dog races in Interior Alaska with my parents. Eventually I covered dog races as a reporter and photographer in races such as the Iditarod Sled Dog Race from Anchorage to Nome.

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Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Goldstream Pubns (November 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1886574057
• ISBN-13: 978-1886574052
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,580,650 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #91 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Outdoor Recreation > Iditarod & Dog-Sledding

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An OK Read, March 23, 2005

By 

AlaskanKristen (Talkeetna, AK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Alaska Dog Mushing Guide: Facts and Legends (Paperback)

This was an ok book. It was full of unusual stories, but I noticed that a few facts weren't fully correct. I was also a little disappointed to see that the author only referred to Eskimo Dogs as Malamutes. He must not have known that an aboriginal dog from Canada is also referred to as the Canadian Eskimo (Inuit) Dog or Eskimo (Inuit) Husky. Other than that, it was a fast read with some good information.

3.0 out of 5 stars Not What I Was Expecting, May 5, 2006

By 

J. Overland "Overland Kennel" (Washington) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Alaska Dog Mushing Guide: Facts and Legends (Paperback)

I got an autographed and numbered copy; that was cool. But the book was a bit difficult to read at points. It was almost as if English was a second language to the author. There was plenty of information that I wasn't aware of, but it was presented in a random fashion. Take a bunch of facts from an Alaska history book, put them on individual note cards and shuffle them; that was how the book seemed to be written. Some stories were written more than once in the book, word for word, with nothing new in the story; just a space filler.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Alaska Dog Mushing Guide : Facts and Legends, November 2, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Alaska Dog Mushing Guide: Facts and Legends (Paperback)

This is a great little book packed full of very interesting and amazing information. This book is a great little read when you have a spare minute or two.