Where did your family sleep? Were there beds for everyone? Did the uncle stay in the smaller cabin?

This is just fascinating!

It's reassuring to know that there are still places like this and it's even more impressive that you embraced it all.

mms: What a great report! Must rank with the best as all-time unique adventures!

Thanks so much for sharing! Couldn't stop reading and when you said it was the last day, I thought "Oh, no!"

I once had a boyfriend who went to live in the wilds of Canada, 40 miles from the next person. He made the greatest bread (something about bread in the wilderness?) and he made his own snowshoes. He carried everything to his tiny cabin - anyhow I was too chicken to go and live that way.

Any pictures?

stw--A little different than our Paris trips, huh? LOL!

Samsaf--Both DS and DD are good shots, so I was glad to be with them:D

worth_topping--Our uncle kept wanting to find us a bear (from a distance), lol.

iceeu2--Glad you saw this!

travelgirl2--In the cabin there is a platform that has a foam pad on it. There is also a loft area that is about 8x14 and has a hole in the middle you cannot stand up up there, but he has it laid out really well. The four of us slept up there and our uncle slept on the platform thing downstairs. We didn't use the other cabin as it only sleeps 1/2 and it would require using the wood stove for heat, and you don't want to waste anything. So we all just made it work. It wasn't too cramped, surprisingly. There is a ladder that you can prop to get up to the loft, and during the day you cab prop it back up into the loft area.

edjim--I am itching to go back too! I love all kinds of trips, but really love mountains and DH loves to get away from lots of people, so this was perfect for us.

easytraveler--Awe, thanks:) I will see about putting pics on some site.

A few random thoughts. Our cousins DH grew up in a cabin 18 miles from this one. Her FIL wanted a mattress once, and of course it was too big to go by plane, so he undid the entire thing, and retied it all back at the cabin. Talk about determination!

You can go via canoe between the cabins, but it is about 8 miles on the river, plus a few miles over land. Our cousin and her young DD did this a year or two ago(just the 2 of them, no men along), and so she has invited us to come visit them at their cabin whenever we get the chance to go back. It sounds interesting!

Last night I ordered two books from Amazon. One was the one I read this week, that I mentioned above. The other is one that DD read up there and said was really good, so I want to read it. That one is "Alaska Wilderness Exploring The Central Brooks Range" by Robert Marshall. I have a feeling both of these books will make the rounds with all of our family. It really is amazing how remote this area is. Words and pictures just do not do it justice at all.

I will vouch for the fabulous photos !

You've seen them already, Scarlett? How come you get to see them first? Wahhhh!

This is a CLASSIC trip report. I guess the award category would be "off the beaten path" trip reports.

5 stars. Awesome report. I read it in its entirety to DH yesterday while driving back from seeing our DD at college.

DH and I have been watching "Mountain Men" on TV . . . I could just picture you and your crew in the Alaska part! Thank you for posting/sharing this wonderful trip, it is a great read.

Sandy (in Denton)

GREAT trip report! Even with knee problems you did an amazing job. That's a lot of difficult hiking. What an amazing experience for your family.

Yes, definitely "off the beaten path"!

Thanks for all the kind words:)

I had to laugh. DD is as girly as they come and she just sent me a text that she was checking out jobs online and found her dream job in Alaska! She said she doesn't have the experience for it, but I told her to go for it anyway. It would involve traveling all over, including to remote areas, and I told her that most people have not done that and she has this little bit of experience. I never would have guessed this would have interested her, but I am excited that this trip had such an impact on her!

Sandy--What channel is "Mountain Men" on? I have been watching "Yukon Men" and the episode I watched today on the DVR showed a cabin very similar to the one we were at.

Mms! My husband was telling me about Yukon Men and I told him about your report (actually read some of it to him). He swears your husband's uncle must be on tv (his name isn't Otto is it?) As I was reading your report, my husband just kept saying, "you'd never do that!". (lol). He's right, but I like a good adventure and yours was a great one!

STW--LOL!!! No, not Otto:) At least on Yukon Men there is a community. Our uncle is all by himself. I still cannot imagine, lol! Thanks for the kind words:)

Hey, MMS, are there photos?

Also, is your uncle planning to put photos in his book?

5alive--I don't have photos anywhere yet. New computer and still trying to figure out the basics, lol. I don't know if he will do photos or not, but would assume so???

I still cannot get this trip out of my mind. I notice differences between our day to day life and his day to day life almost daily.

Of course, I'd love to see the photos. My techie guys just moved me to Windows 7 and also a new photo manager since Kodak is going bankrupt so I can feel your pain on that front!

As to your uncle's book, it really makes a difference what kind of publisher he would seek. I am not sure I want to post my ideas here but maybe I think I have a couple of Fodors' regulars' emails and they can forward to you. I will look.

What an adventure! I enjoyed hearing about it.

I've been to remote Alaska but to a place that is on a river and has a landing strip so there are way more amenities but that area of the country is just so beautiful (even if you aren't using a pit latrine :) ).

Good luck to your son and daughter in finding a way to enjoy it more!

"Alaska the Final Frontier" is also a very good cable show about extended family living in remote area of Alaska. They have 4 months a yr. to get ready for 8 months of winter. It is fascinating. The singer Jewel was raised in that family.

Any plans to go back?

I heard from DD today and she is wanting to concentrate her job search up in Alaska. She graduates from college in June and she said she just really fell in love with Alaska. She is as girly as they come too:)

I have seen a few episodes of "Alaska The Final Frontier". I really like watching these shows now and comparing it to how our uncle lives. I had no idea that Jewel was raised there.

Yes, we are absolutely going back! Right now it looks like DS might be caretaker of the cabin for a bit later next summer. We would all go back, and hopefully for longer!