True North: Exploring the Great Wilderness by Bush Plane

“Erickson, a rugged individualist if ever there was one, knows his stuff. Erickson misses little, describing the natural wonders of the region, the people who dwell at the remote outposts where gasoline costs nearly as much as good cognac, and the adventures of the first explorers to the great White North, including trappers, Jesuits and prospectors for gold.”
–Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

“A blend of stunning landscapes, wildlife, myths, and experience, True North reveals Erickson’s love of nature and his passion for truth.”
— The Humanist

Leaving behind the comforts of civilized life and armed with only a few essentials, dentist-turned-bush pilot GEORGE ERICKSON captures the exhilarating thrill of roughing it in the wild, flying his Piper Cub Special seaplane into the far reaches of the north. Nearly losing his life–twice–Erickson sets up camp on unexplored lakes and rivers, fishes for trout, struggles with bad weather, dodges forest fires, and and mingles with polar bears, killer whales, musk oxen, and caribou.

In the spirit of Antoine de Saint-Exupery, Charles Lindbergh, and other great aviators, he is an engaging traveling companion. This is much more than a travelogue, however, as Canada’s Reader’s Showcase aptly “Erickson applies a rare love to the rough, dangerous, and frankly, really, really far-flung lands of the Canadian sub-Arctic. He proves himself to be an expert and avid pilot, storyteller, philosopher, environmentalist, dreamer, and perhaps most impressively, fashioner of some really cool fishing lures.”

Replete with personal detail, scientific observation, and historical facts–the most chilling being the story of a group of explorers who starved to death in the very cabin he is visiting–TRUE NORTH is an extraordinary travel narrative that will appeal to flying enthusiasts and armchair travelers alike.