VISIT: Lofoten, Norway

Lofoten is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Though lying within the Arctic Circle, the archipelago experiences one of the world's largest elevated temperature anomalies relative to its high latitude.

Film: Stories for Life: Lofoten Nasjonal Turistveg

Visit the official travel guide to Norway

BOOK: I Björnland by Bo Kristiansson (1978)

 

  "Här i skogen kan man i skymningen höra uven ropa. Här hör man slagugglans dova rop om natten. Här spelar tjädern om våren, och här stiger björnen ur sitt ide. De flesta av dagens skogar är påverkade av människan och kan inte visa upp det växt-och djurlive som en levande skog kan visa - när naturen själv får skapa miljön. I den här boken vill jag försöka skildra ett land, där ännu så länge allt fungerar. Här finns både lodjur, björn och många flygande vänner som alla spride liv omkring sig. Det här landet ligger mig varmt om hjärtat, och jag hoppas att boken kan påverka flera att värma om det. Väl mött i björland!"

 

 

WATCH: Heimo's Arctic Refuge (VBS.TV)

In 1980, Jimmy Carter established the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in the Alaskan Interior, cutting off 19 million acres of prime boreal wilderness from the mitts of fur trappers, oil tycoons, and would-be lodge owners alike. Only six families of white settlers were grandfathered in and allowed to keep cabins in the refuge—of them, only one still stays there year-round living off the land. His name is Heimo Korth, and he is basically the Omega Man of America’s Final Frontier.

Raised in suburban Wisconsin, Heimo set off in his teens to the Alaskan Bush to pursue the Davy Crockett lifestyle in more or less the only place it was still possible. Amid numerous setbacks and misadventures, Heimo gradually learned how to master his terrain, provide for his Eskimo wife, and rear children in one of the most inhospitable environments in North America.

In this premiere edition of Far Out, we take a bush plane to the middle of nowhere, Alaska, to catch up with Heimo and his wife, Edna—now reaching their golden years. Over the course of our ten-day stay, the Korths show us everything you need to know about fur-trapping, caribou-hunting, caribou-eating, river-crossing, boredom-staving, bear-avoidance, and bear-defense to live happily over 100 miles from the nearest neighbors. Vegans, you have been warned. Heimo’s epic journey and adventures have been documented in the critically acclaimed book, THE FINAL FRONTIERSMAN, written by Heimo’s cousin, James Campbell.