K Schubeck, Monroe Robinson’s wife, recently released a short YouTube production about their time at Dick Proenneke’s cabin.
Dick spent 31 years living alone in the Alaska wilderness, building his cabin and nearly everything he needed to survive. His adventures were documented on the program “Alone in the Wilderness” on PBS.
After Dick left his cabin, Monroe and K spent 19 summers caring for it and giving tours.
Fans of Monroe’s book, “The Handcrafted Life of Dick Proenneke,” will enjoy K’s YouTube production, which includes video content taken at Dick’s cabin as well as new photos not featured in the book. It’s a fun watch!
While Monroe’s book focuses on the tools and objects he made and includes hundreds of Dick’s journal entries along with Monroe’s commentary, it also highlights what life was like for Dick, such as this journal entry, written during a not-so-balmy August day 48 years ago, along with Monroe’s commentary.
Dick Proenneke’s journal entry:
August 2, 1979:
Clear, Calm, & 36 degrees.
I woke up at four and saw the sun light the mountains down country soon after. Another pretty day and I was up to stay at 4:15. Today would be a good day to go up Hope Creek and climb to my peak at the head of the 2nd canyon. A few clouds would only make the pictures nice but I didn’t want the Kijik River’s upper reaches in shadow.
It was going to be a warm day if it stayed clear so I would dress cool. Give those beefed up crampons the test for it is a good climb and some rock.
Clouds forming and coming over the high ridge at a good clip. A mile to go and a snow patch leading nearly to the ridge. I changed to hiking boots and crampons. The snow wet near the bottom but became more solid as I climbed and I suspect it froze a little high up. At last the ridge looking towards Redoubt and Illiamna Volcanoes. Cotton clouds, lots of them hanging about the many peaks.
The sun moved around and Redoubt was framed by clouds. A beautiful scene and worth the climb to see it. No watch along and it is seldom that I carry one any more. Illiamna Volcano came in the clear and still putting out that huge volume of steam.
Heading for home and just below the peak a very long and steep snow patch leads down. A better way if you don’t lose your grip and slide and maybe roll and tumble until you hit a rock out crop below. Otherwise it was travel the ups and downs of the ridge back to where I had climbed. Some hazards in the form of loose rock there too. I lashed on my spikes and eased over the edge. Kick a good foothold before letting go of the last one. It was slow but going down instead of scrambling over the minor peaks. The snow was wet and soft now. It would ball up under the crampons and make the spikes ineffective. Stop and rap them a good one with my walking staff to dislodge it. No spills and I was soon traveling at a rate that would take me to Hope Creek in 45 minutes.
Monroe Robinson’s commentary:
“My peak” is four-and-a-half miles up Hope Canyon, and 3,500′ above Twin Lakes on a rocky, rubble hump along the extended ridge separating the watershed of Twin Lakes from the rugged Kijik River drainage. It is not a towering mountain and this fits what I know of Dick, that it is this ridge-line peak he referred to as “my peak” or “my mountain.” We now call it Proenneke Peak. From the valley floor the peak is slightly more than a half-mile in distance and up 2,000′ of loose scree and rotten rock. Dick’s description of choosing between the “very long and steep snow patch” and “loose rock” creates an understated image of descending either route from this ridge.
Dick loved to hike to “my peak.” The view is stunning. In 2001, not knowing its significance in Dick’s life, I laid on this ridge watching a gyrfalcon escort a golden eagle out of the area more than a thousand feet above me. Once the eagle was on its way out of the gyrfalcon’s defended territory, the gyrfalcon dove on me before circling ever closer, just a hundred feet overhead. Minutes later I spotted the gyrfalcon’s fledgling sitting on the cliff below.
In 2003, Dick’s ashes were buried near a flowering spotted saxifrage on Proenneke Peak. K. and I, along with four park service employees including historian John Branson, ranger/pilot Leon Alsworth, head ranger Lee Fink and ranger Warren Hill, took part in Dick’s Last Hike. Dick’s brother Raymond was part of choosing this spot for Dick’s ashes. As we approached the peak a few Dall sheep walked from the peak. They stood below, feeding as we held a tribute to Dick.
On the way down we picked blueberries. I made sourdough blueberry pancakes using Dick’s starter. Sitting outside Spike’s cabin we looked through a spotting scope and watched the Dall sheep standing on the peak.
In 2016, K. and I, along with our friends and volunteers at the Lower Twin ranger cabin, Dan Molina and Jennifer Jones Molina, took Raymond Proenneke’s ashes to leave next to Dick’s unmarked site. Again, Dall sheep were on the peak as we approached. Having looked through the scope at Proenneke Peak dozens of times through the years, I wonder the meaning of seeing sheep there only on those two occasions.