All Stories | Page 4 of 28 | The Filson Journal

Tonje Blomseth: From Norway to Alaska

Rumors were flying around like bugs in the small Norwegian town I lived in, and among people I didn’t necessarily want to run into at my local grocery store. I needed a break. When the opportunity to leave for a few months arose, I booked the first flight I could—a one-way ticket to Alaska. It was now just me and my dogs, a team of six malamutes.

3 Min

Field Notes

Extreme Cold Vapor Barrier Boots

The U.S. Army’s first cold weather boots were called “Mickey Mouse Boots” for their oversize appearance. Officially designated the “Type I” & “Type II” footwear model, it was first worn by soldiers and Marines during the Korean War in the 1950s as standard issue footwear.

2 Min

Profiles

The Fire Inside: Photographer Kiliii Yüyan

Award-winning National Geographic photographer Kiliii Yüyan, joined us on our recent trip to the Alaskan Arctic, where he was consumed in his mission to capture the stoic essence of a herd of musk oxen during our time together exploring the are where his ancestors originated.

3 Min

a muskox standing stoiclyon rocky snow covered ground looking off into the distance

Field Notes

The Survivors: Alaskan Arctic Musk Oxen

With no reason to fear mankind, the muskox was almost driven to extinction by the advent of guns that ripped through the slow-moving herds. In Alaska and on the rest of the planet, they simply disappeared by the late 1800s. All that was left of an animal that had been around since the time of the caveman were fuzzy stories passed down through Indigenous communities.

4 Min

four people on snow machines in the early light of day driving across an ice sheet in Alaska

Field Notes

Filson in the Field: Searching for Muskox in the Alaskan Arctic

As a company founded on equipping folks headed into the frozen desolation of the Klondike goldfields in 1897, we knew that we needed to do something that was a bit off the beaten path. With this in mind, we decided to head to the western edge of Alaska, above the Arctic Circle to tell the tale of the remarkable rebirth of an animal that was hunted to extinction in North America over a century ago, the musk ox.

4 Min

Close up portrait of Deenaalee wearing Filson

Profiles

Deenaalee Hodgdon: Preparing for Winter

For Indigenous Alaskan queer artist, and nomad Deenaalee Hodgdon, preparation is just another word for adaptation. As the seasons change, the climate changes, and the world changes, Hodgdon seeks to understand how their ancestors lived with and for the land.

2 Min

Profiles

Seth Kantner: Tracking the Herd

The day is gray and snowy on the tundra—visibility low. In the new drifts, I spot a line of tracks. For a moment my mind refuses to register caribou. The hoofprints have that freshly disturbed look, and the white crystals glint. Maybe twenty passed here, heading south an hour ago.

3 Min

a close up of a man showing a snake shed

How-To's

Dos and Don’ts of Traveling in Rattlesnake Country

Local outdoors expert & lifelong Texan, Cory Emerson, helped us navigate the desolate limestone hills and canyons of Texas Hill County to put our new gear to the test. The most important piece being the dos and don’ts of traveling in rattlesnake country.

3 Min

black and white historic photo of hockey players colliding mid ice, one falling behind the other

Field Notes

The Evolution of Hockey Gear

When a modern NHL team takes to the ice, players are protected from head to toe, the focal point of which is their large colorful sweater. The need and developments we see today are the result of decades of tinkering and improvements based on poor experiences that defined the need for such gear.

2 Min

Profiles

Trent Peterson: The Way Forward

During a trip to the Sierra Nevada’s in 2015 he first set his eyes on the mountains he now calls home while scouting the area for a planned horse traverse of the PCT. He settled into an area next to the Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, where he often gone for weeks at a time working as a Forest Service Packer and lives a mountain man way of life, living and packing in the mountains in the summer, and building lightweight packer saddles in the winter.

3 Min

Field Notes

3 Spooky Legends of the American West

In the Santa Lucia mountains of California, there have been sightings of a mysterious figure in the late afternoon sun. The figure appears suddenly as a tall, dark shape against the sky, arms spread apart, with a halo or corona of sunlight radiating from behind. Various sightings have also described a person wearing a dark billowing cloak or large hat. Once spotted, they usually disappear quickly, or sometimes turning to “follow” the viewer.

2 Min

Signature Materials

Six Crucial Pieces of Upland Hunting Gear

On a hunt for Gambel’s Quail in the Arizona desert, having the right gear makes all the difference. While traversing dusty arroyos, keeping hydrated, and avoiding cactus needles, Edgar Castillo shares six pieces of crucial gear from personal experience.

3 Min

Profiles

THE PASSION: RANGE RIDER DANIEL CURRY

As a range rider, Daniel Curry patrols the rugged wilderness of Colville National Forest in eastern Washington through all seasons and weather. He will spend weeks working tirelessly day and night with his dogs to protect both the grey wolf population and cattle that graze on public lands.

4 Min

Field Notes

Unofficial Rules of Pond Hockey

The heart and soul of hockey lives out on the ice at lakes and ponds across North America—these local proving grounds are where legends are made and communities built. For many, it’s a rite of passage. Culture. A place to gather to shake off the deep freeze. Though these tend to be unstructured matches, a few “unwritten rules” still exist. Don’t be a hoser—save your fights for the bar. Everyone’s welcome, no matter age, gender, or skill level. These are just a few from an unofficial list.

2 Min

Profiles

James Reeves: The Mule Packer

“When I walk into any pack station or ranch, I know from the get-go that I’m probably not going to look like anyone else who works there. But anyone who wants to work all day with mules is a little different anyway, and at the end of the day, all anyone cares about is if you can do the job. If you can, then no one cares how you look.”

3 Min

Vintage photo of the Seattle Metropolitans in 1919

Field Notes

125 Years of Hockey: A Diverse & Surprising History

Hockey has a diverse history that may surprise even lifelong fans. From the first professional all-Black league formed in Nova Scotia to the Pacific Coast Hockey Association, funded by two brothers during the logging era, it’s a sport with an exciting story to tell.

3 Min

an old black and white pixelated image of a white haired old bearded man, wearing a flannel wool shirt and wool pants standing next to a wood cabin using a cane to hold him up

Profiles

Moosemeat John

Moosemeat John, with a nickname earned from generosity and the skills to not only survive, but thrive on the Alaskan frontier. When we built our first Alaskan Guide Shirt in 1996, we knew it would be exactly the shirt he’d want to wear.

3 Min

black and white portrait of a black lab sitting

Profiles

DOGS WITH JOBS: Labrador Retrievers

Blessed with a perpetual grin and soft floppy ears, Labrador Retrievers have been the most popular breed of dogs in America since 1991. A virtual Swiss Army knife of a dog, this sporting breed can do almost anything.

3 Min

Profiles

Peter Henrikson: Soul of Traditional Craftsmanship

Whether it is in a timber-framed home, or a backcountry stream bridge, or a 16th-century boatshed built on the shores of a Norwegian lake, it is the invisible that makes the visible hold together. Stout timbers connect one to the other, each log hand-selected, each joint hand-fitted, each nexus of beam and truss and tie and rafter its own unique, articulated piece of hand-wrought woodworking. For many, timber framing is, in its essence, an expression of honesty.

close up image of the front of a orange and red float plane

Field Notes

Northwest Beaver Mechanics

Founded in 1988, Northwest Seaplanes is based in Renton, Washington, and has a fleet of five Beavers and one De Havilland Otter, aircraft called the “best bush planes ever built.” Crafted during a twenty-year span from 1947-1967, they were instrumental in opening up far-flung frontiers and are highly cherished aircraft that pilots still swear by today.

3 Min

black and white of a woman on the deck of a lookout towner looking out at something through binoculars

Profiles

The Woman on the Mountain: Christine Estrada

Christine Estrada, a fire lookout, having visited 93 of the remaining lookouts across Washington State, works tirelessly during fire season to spot, report and communicate with fire teams on the ground, reducing the impact of wildfires in the Methow Valley.

4 Min

How-To's

DIY 3 Legged Camp Stool

One of the best items to have on any outdoor excursion is a good seat. A seat can help keep you dry in wet weather, provide a spot to rest your legs for a bit, help keep you warm if it’s cold out, and, let’s be honest, it’s just more comfortable than sitting on hard rocks or snow. One of the simplest forms of a seat is a folding tripod. These are small because they fold when not in use, so they don’t take up much room in your pack or truck. It’s a great option for lunch breaks on the river during a day of fly fishing, a solid place to sit while glassing up wild game, or just a spot to take a load off around the campfire.

3 Min

black and white of an older white man wearing a flannel shirt, holding his eye and ear protection standing in front of his wood carving of a bear in progress

Profiles

The Carver King: A Conversation with chainsaw artist Bob King

Bob King spends his life surrounded by sawdust. It crunches underfoot, coats his clothing, and swirls about him. Each day he dons layers of protective gear and enters his workshop. His focus is upon the image he is releasing. It will be the latest in a long line of art pieces he has created as one of the most successful chainsaw artists on the planet.

3 Min

an areal photo of a yellow and red forest service plane dropping water on a raging fire above the treelike

Field Notes

We Helped Restore a Forest Service Lookout Tower That Was Almost Consumed by Flames

A team of eager and passionate Filson employees, together with the National Forest Foundation, were wrapping up a restoration project at First Butte lookout tower, the fourth tower our team has volunteered to help restore. As we were putting the final touches on the tower, we received the news that a new wildfire had started near the site.

4 Min

a black and white image of a helicopter flying up to pull the hanging log to the drop zone away from the logging site

Field Notes

A Short History of Helicopter Logging

The practice of helicopter logging is still employed in parts of the world today, including the US and Canada. Often the USFS will use it to thin forest lands in the wildland-urban interface near cities and towns to mitigate wildfire danger. Several logging companies employ it to target specific types of wood and to work in rugged, steep mountainous slopes.

2 Min

Small figure hanging from a gigantic fir tree.

Profiles

Logger Dennis Cronin’s Unexpected Legacy

In 2011, logger Dennis Cronin was flagging cutblock 7190 near Port Renfrew, British Columbia for clear-cutting when a massive tree stopped him in his tracks.

2 Min

Wide angle shot of building interior with lots of chainsaws and logging materials.

Profiles

New York’s Largest Chainsaw Collection: Hud-son Chainsaw Museum

An early morning fog rolls through the town of Barneveld just outside the Adirondacks in New York as a worker flips on the showroom lights at Hud-Son Forest Equipment. As sales start amidst the smell of gasoline and chainsaws rev to life as employees set to work on customer repairs, the history of the tools of the forestry trade hangs in the front window. These tools, some over 90 years old, represent central New York’s Chainsaw Museum, a testament to passion and a long family history in forestry that runs in Dan Hudon Jr.’s family.

3 Min

a tall Paul Bunyan statue wearing a flannel and hat, holding an axe over his shoulder and another in the opposing hand towards the ground

Field Notes

Paul Bunyan: Larger Than Life

With his trademark flannel shirt, double-bladed axe, and giant blue ox, Paul Bunyan left an indelible mark on the American consciousness. Though he may have been based in part on real-life individuals, he eventually came to represent not only the relentless drive to conquer the wild, but also the need to care for the places that were so important to his tall tales.

2 Min

two antlers mounted to wooden blocks above an old metal handsaw with The Deming Log Show printed on it along with several wooden planks with different logging sayings on them

Field Notes

For Busted Up Loggers: The Deming Log Show

A bond exists in the lumberjack community, a shared brotherhood of the saw. It comes from the long, hard hours spent in the forest, far from crowded cities and civilization. They have each other’s back.

2 Min

top down view of a green dry fishing waist pack, open full fly lure box, fly fishing rod and the completed wooden landing net

How-To's

DIY Wooden Landing Net

A wooden landing net is not only one of the angler’s best tools to ensure the swift catch—and, where necessary, release—of a fish, but also a durable part of the kit that can be passed down from generation to generation.

6 Min

Tonje Blomseth: From Norway to Alaska

Extreme Cold Vapor Barrier Boots

The Fire Inside: Photographer Kiliii Yüyan

The Survivors: Alaskan Arctic Musk Oxen

Filson in the Field: Searching for Muskox in the Alaskan Arctic

Deenaalee Hodgdon: Preparing for Winter

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Seth Kantner: Tracking the Herd

Dos and Don’ts of Traveling in Rattlesnake Country

The Evolution of Hockey Gear

Trent Peterson: The Way Forward

3 Spooky Legends of the American West

Six Crucial Pieces of Upland Hunting Gear

THE PASSION: RANGE RIDER DANIEL CURRY

Unofficial Rules of Pond Hockey

James Reeves: The Mule Packer

125 Years of Hockey: A Diverse & Surprising History

Moosemeat John

DOGS WITH JOBS: Labrador Retrievers

Peter Henrikson: Soul of Traditional Craftsmanship

Northwest Beaver Mechanics

The Woman on the Mountain: Christine Estrada

DIY 3 Legged Camp Stool

The Carver King: A Conversation with chainsaw artist Bob King

We Helped Restore a Forest Service Lookout Tower That Was Almost Consumed by Flames

A Short History of Helicopter Logging

Logger Dennis Cronin’s Unexpected Legacy

New York’s Largest Chainsaw Collection: Hud-son Chainsaw Museum

Paul Bunyan: Larger Than Life

For Busted Up Loggers: The Deming Log Show

DIY Wooden Landing Net