A friend of mine was at Haines Home Building, ordering an oil heater for a home she was building when the late lumberyard owner Bruce Gilbert interrupted her and asked, “An oil heater? What about the Challenge of the North?”
Bruce’s implication, as kindly as it surely was intended, was that real Alaskans burn wood.
My friend, an office worker who spends more time out-of-doors than most “outdoorsmen,” bought her Toyo stove anyway.
Her story introduced me to the Challenge of the North, a standard for Real Alaskanism that I was matching, but in ignorance. I always burned wood because it was cheaper and easier to get around here than oil.
Who knew that I was also rising to the Challenge of the North?
“Codes of the North” and must-do lists for Real Alaskans have always dogged me. As though the cost of living, the weather and the neighbors aren’t enough to bear, it seems there is always some new requirement or unspoken rule for living here.
I’ll be out cutting down a tree with a chainsaw and someone will come up and say something like, “Well, ya know, Real Alaskans just gnaw down trees with their own protruding front teeth, like beavers do” and again I find myself just a lame cheechako, not quite worthy of this place.
Then a few days ago I came across a published “Code of the North,” printed on the front page of “Alaska…Today,” a 1958 promotional newspaper supplement intended to introduce U.S. citizens to northern living when the Alaska Territory was about to become a state.
“Alaska…Today” is full of uplifting stories with headlines like, “Let’s Promote Alaska-Oregon Trade,” “Alaska Better Mapped Than Many States,” and my favorite, “Friendly City Is Label Given Town of Cordova.”
Unfortunately, of course, things have changed since 1958. I spent a weekend in Cordova about 15 years ago and no one there said boo to me. But the Code of the North, as published in “Alaska…Today,” seemed presciently on the mark, referencing as it does booze, bacon, dogs and mothers.
I’m republishing it here verbatim so you can print it out, clip it, and paste it on your icebox door for future reference.
“Code of the North:
Take a drink with a friend or friends when you have a chance.
When using a man’s cabin, and before leaving, wash the dishes, leave shavings and kindling and as much cut wood as you used. And close the door of the cabin. If barricaded against bears, put the barricade back.
Never ask a man what religion he has, for the great outdoors is his place of worship.
Never speak of women disrespectfully. We all had mothers.
Always give a fellow a lift if the going is tough.
Don’t abuse a dog – he is the best friend you have on the trail; be kind to dumb animals, they remember you.
Don’t kill any game wantonly, only what you have to kill for your need or for someone who is out of meat.
Call the musher in and give him a mug-up or feed, and if he is tired, give him a shakedown.
Don’t waste any ammunition by shooting at targets; the last cartridge may save your life.
Keep your matches and footgear dry on the trail and never drink whiskey or other spirits on the trail; it may be fatal to you.
Don’t wander around when the fog comes in and you can’t see where you are going; wait ’til it clears up.
Don’t leave any lights or candles burning or heavy fire in the stove when going away from the cabin.
Don’t set fire to the woods. It will destroy the wildlife and game.
Parboil your bacon before drying; it will not cause you so much rheumatism. Also, be sanitary about the camp so not to pollute the water and atmosphere.
Don’t tell the other fellow your troubles, especially love or matrimonial affairs. He may have a lot of his own.
Keep off the other fellow’s trapline, both literally and categorically speaking.”
That’s the Code of the North. It’s most of what you need to know if you’re a greenhorn around here, assuming of course that you have a mother.