Two in the Far North, Revised Edition: A Conservation Champion's Story of Life, Love, and Adventure in the Wilderness

by Margaret E. Murie, Frances Beinecke (Foreword by)

Overview

Winner of the National Outdoor Book Award

A Northern classic and beloved favorite, Two in the Far North chronicles the incredible story of Margaret “Mardy” Murie, called the Grandmother of the Conservation Movement, and how she became one of the first women to embrace and champion wilderness conservation in America.

At the age of nine, Margaret Murie moved from Seattle to Fairbanks, not realizing the trajectory life would take her from there. This moving testimonial to the preservation of the Arctic wilderness comes straight from her heart as she writes about growing up in Fairbanks, becoming the first woman graduate of the Universityof Alaska, and meeting—and then marrying—noted biologist Olaus J. Murie. So begins her lifelong journey in Alaska and on to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where along with her husband and others they founded The Wilderness Society to protect nature and wildlife and speak out for ecological consciousness. From adventures of traversing over thin ice with dog sleds, camping in woods surrounded by bears, caribou, and other wildlife, to canoeing in streams with geese nearby, and more, Murie embraced nature as a close neighbor and dedicated her life to advocating for wilderness protection and conservation.

First published in 1962, this edition features a new foreword by Frances Beinecke and an afterword from Donald Murie. Margaret Murie inspires readers to join her in finding life, love, and adventure in the beautiful remote Alaskan wilderness and the natural world beyond.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781513262758
Publisher:	TURNER PUB CO
Publication date:	03/10/2020
Edition description:	6th ed.
Pages:	366
Sales rank:	328,218
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.00(d)
Lexile:	1090L (what's this?)

About the Author

Born in Seattle, Washington, in 1902, Margaret E. Murie was a naturalist, conservationist, and author who has been called the “grandmother of the conservation movement” for her efforts in helping establish the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. She received several awards for her conservation work, including the Audubon Medal, the John Muir Award, and the Robert Marshall Conservational Award. In 1998 she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Clinton, and in 2002 the J.N. Ding Darling Conservationist of the Year Award. Murie was also made an Honorary Park Ranger by the National Parks Service for her passion and commitment to preserving the natural world and wildlife. She died at her home in Moose, Wyoming, in 2003 at the age of 101.

Frances Beinecke is an environmental activist and wilderness advocate. She was appointed by President Barack Obama to the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling in 2010, and has served for organizations dedicated to nature conservation and preservation, including the Wilderness Society, the World Resources Institute, the Nature Conservancy, and more. Beinecke is the recipient of the Robert Marshall Award, the Wilderness Society's highest award presented to a private citizen who has never held federal office, as well as the Rachel Carson Award, the National Audubon's Society's honor for distinguished American women environmentalists.

Read an Excerpt

As we neared the end of the plateau, the sun was sinking and the coming of night gave us a golden world for a few minutes. Sky, clouds, mountain peaks, spruce forests, all swimming in molten gold—the hawk that winged out into the valley was a golden bird too. This faded to liquid rose and lavender, and we came whirling down the long hill into a river valley bathed in pink. Smooth ice was on the river here, but open water swirled above and below the crossing, reflecting the rose and lavender of the sky.

Table of Contents

• preface
• foreword
• part one: fairbanks
• 1 to the north
• 2 freeze-up
• 3 the town
• 4 winter
• 5 mail day
• 6 spring
• 7 summer
• 8 the trail
• 9 and over the mountains
• part two: the upper koyukuk
• 10 home to romance
• 11 anvik
• 12 nulato
• 13 willow river
• 14 alatna
• 15 “and beyond”
• 16 bettles
• 17 one day of it
• 18 on the river ice
• 19 wiseman
• 20 the mountains
• part three: the old crow river
• 22 tanana and yukon
• 23 the porcupine
• 24 the old crow
• 25 by main strength
• 26 geese
• 27 downstream
• part four: sheenjek
• 28 north again
• 29 at lobo lake
• 30 both sides of the river
• 31 up the valley
• 32 tundra and mountain
• 33 caribou
• 34 to the head of the river
• 35 autumn in august
• part five: return to the mountains
• 36 again north
• 37 sheenjek again
• part six: afterward
• 38 1967 alaska
• 39 another new alaska—1975
• 40 outside—1975 to 1989

What People are Saying About This

Robert Redford

"Simply put, Mardy Murie is a national treasure. Her life has made a certain kind of life possible for the rest of us. Generations to come will feel her imprint, though they may not know it was how she lived her life that allowed them to witness some of the last wild places on Earth. They may not know that it is because of her life that their souls and spirits can be fed by what is natural and wild. I hope those who come long after us will have TWO IN THE FAR NORTH in their satchels as they gaze upon these natural wonders and that they, too, will come away with same resolve she ad to protect these incredible gifts."

Murie Center

“Constant advocates for wild places, the Muries brought a scientific and philosophical approach to their work emphasizing not only the intangible value of the wild areas they studied, but also the inspirational, restorative qualities of nature and the power of human connections to foster change.”

Interviews

“I hope the United States of America is not so rich that she can afford to let these wildernesses pass by, or so poor she cannot afford to keep them.”

Editorial Reviews

Teton Science Schools students young and old have learned from Two in the Far North for decades. In conservation, in education, and in life, Mardy’s words are as true in the 21st century as they were over 60 years ago.

Teton Science Schools (TSS) Executive Director Chris Agnew

"This book, first written in the 1950s and still in print, is authored by the grand dame of the wilderness movement, Margaret Murie. Margaret has helped generations of men and women understand the need to preserve wild landscapes. In Two in the Far North, she describes her life in Alaska: her growing up in Anchorage and her adventurous trips into the Alaska wilderness with her husband and biologist, Olaus. It is a wonderful read and a true American wilderness classic."

Winner of the National Outdoor Book Award

"Simply put, Mardy Murie is a national treasure. Her life has made a certain kind of life possible for the rest of us. Generations to come will feel her imprint, though they may not know it was how she lived her life that allowed them to witness some of the last wild places on Earth. They may not know that it is because of her life that their souls and spirits can be fed by what is natural and wild. I hope those who come long after us will have TWO IN THE FAR NORTH in their satchels as they gaze upon these natural wonders and that they, too, will come away with same resolve she ad to protect these incredible gifts."

Robert Redford