It’s so visually fitting that on our final stop in Alaska at Denali National Park the clouds parted and a rainbow arced across the sky for several hours. The overcast kept us from seeing that awe-inspiring mountain up close, but the rainbow was a wonderful final gift.
As my time in amazing Alaska comes to an end, I want to thank the people of our 49th state for their gracious hospitality. Everywhere my family and I went we were greeted with warmth and goodwill. So many times I asked residents, “Do you get tired of the landscape? Does the beauty here begin to fall on jaded eyes?” Without exception, the answer was, “We choose to live here because we never stop seeing its beauty.” Which I can relate to. It’s why I call Minnesota home.
In my time here, I’ve been gifted with the sight of moose, grizzlies, orca pods, a she-bear showing her cubs how to fish for salmon, a glacier calving, grazing mountain goats, sea otters cavorting, salmon battling upstream to spawn, Denali so magnificent even from 250 miles away, Athabascans doing a fine job of preserving their culture, and artists of every kind following their hearts and creating their own kind of beauty.
As I prepare to head home and get myself ready to launch on a national signing tour for my next novel The River We Remember, I’ll hold all these memories in my heart, warm embers ready to flame again when I return to this Last Frontier. And rest assured, I shall return.
I just finished The River We Remember. Like all your books, it was a marvelous read. Anything more in the pipeline?
That is stunning! You touch so many lives. I can’t wait to attend your Anoka appearance. I just finished The River We Remember not 15 minutes ago. It is such an astonishingly piece of story-telling. Thanks!
Beautiful pictures of Alaska!
I love your books. I am currently listening to the audio version of “Northwest Angle” and I’m greatly enjoying it. As with all your books, I frequently stop reading and Google something mentioned…an Indian tribe, a place, a lake, etc. I then go down a rabbit hole searching for maps and pictures of the places and learning about its history. That’s why I love good fiction! I learn so much.
Thank you for making Minnesota come alive for this life-long Tennessean. It seems like an amazing place.
I’m on your final Cork O’Connor book and hope there’s another one percolating! Have read them all and found great comfort and wisdom with Henry Meloux. Thank you!