Anders Morley - This Land of Snow

PRAISE FOR THIS LAND OF SNOW

Morleys keen observations, candid reflections, and wry humor make him an ideal guide for a vicarious trek across a Canadian winterlandone full of warmth and a community of strangers.

Ken Ilgunas, author of This Land Is Our Land: How
We Lost the Right to Roam and How to Take It Back

From the first page, you want to travel with Anders Morley as he skis off alone yoked to a sled with 100 pounds of gear. He is self-effacing and poetic, with a pitch-perfect ear for the friendly Canadians he meets along the way. Theres plenty of snow and quiet and room for Morleys fierce self-questioning. This is a journey into the wilderness and homeward. Hes moved by necessity. Hes attempting it, not because its there, but because he is. Morley is a tough and tender voyager.

Howard Mansfield, author of The Habit of Turning the World Upside Down

The experience of winter, the world of white, is changing quickly. Anders Morley, crossing Canada, has chosen this moment well to chronicle his life on skis and his many unexpected encountersboth human and non-human. The purpose of winter is to reveal weaknesses in living things, he writes. If you want to feel the snow stinging your cheeks, but prefer not to get your shoes wet, I highly and warmly recommend that you follow Morleys tracks across the map.

Bernd Brunner, author of Winterlust: Finding Beauty in the Fiercest Season

A fascinating story of a man who decides to break from his ordinary life and follow a lifelong dream to cross the Canadian wilderness on skis. With determination, courage, and a fine poetic awareness of the landscape that surrounds him, Anders Morley delivers a story that makes you want to pack your bags, leave civilization behind, and journey into the great unknown.

Torbjrn Ekelund, author of In Praise of Paths: A Journey Through Time and Nature

An epic adventure, and of a kind that may not be possible much longer. For those who love snow and winter, this is a good book to read by the fire on a cold nightperhaps it will persuade you to go to work trying to save that precious season.

Bill McKibben, author of Falter: Has the Human Game Begun to Play Itself Out?

This Land of Snow invites readers along for the glide, the trudge, the effort and elation, and the ceaseless discovery of a solo ski trip into deep Canadian winter. There are cold snaps, whiteout storms, and moments when the clouds part and a way forward becomes clear. There are drunk loggers and broken hearts. Its exhilarating and vivid, a real pleasure.

Leath Tonino, author of The Animal One Thousand Miles Long

THIS

A JOURNEY

LAND

ACROSS THE NORTH

OF

IN WINTER

SNOW

ANDERSMORLEY

MOUNTAINEERS BOOKS is dedicated to the exploration, preservation, and enjoyment of outdoor and wilderness areas.

1001 SW Klickitat Way, Suite 201, Seattle, WA 98134

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Copyright 2020 by Anders Morley

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form, or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, without the prior

written permission of the publisher.

Mountaineers Books and its colophon are registered trademarks of

The Mountaineers organization.

Printed in the United States of America

Distributed in the United Kingdom by Cordee, www.cordee.co.uk

23 22 21 201 2 3 4 5

Copyeditor: Ellen Wheat

Cover and interior design: Jen Grable

Cartographer: Bart Wright, Lohnes + Wright

Cover illustration: Jen Grable

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Morley, Anders, 1978 author.

Title: This land of snow : a journey across the north in winter / Anders Morley.

Description: Seattle, WA : Mountaineers Books, [2020] | Includes bibliographical

references. | Summary: A coming-of-middle-age story in which the author skis across

Canada in winter Provided by publisher. Identifiers: LCCN 2020004781 (print) |

LCCN 2020004782 (ebook) | ISBN 9781680512724 (trade paperback) |

ISBN 9781680512731 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Morley, Anders, 1978 | SkiersCanadaBiography. |

Skis and skiingCanada.

Classification: LCC GV854.2.M67 A3 2020 (print) | LCC GV854.2.M67 (ebook) |

DDC 796.93092 [B]dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020004781

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020004782

Mountaineers Books titles may be purchased for corporate, educational, or other promotional sales, and our authors are available for a wide range of events. For information on special discounts or booking an author, contact our customer service at 800-553-4453 or .

Printed on recycled paper

ISBN (paperback): 978-1-68051-272-4

ISBN (ebook): 978-1-68051-273-1

Per la Mau (19672013),
che era un pezzo di torta

Always the same, when on a fated night

At last the gathered snow lets down as white

As may be in dark woods, and with a song

It shall not make again all winter long

Of hissing on the yet uncovered ground,

I almost stumble looking up and round,

As one who overtaken by the end

Gives up his errand, and lets death descend

Upon him where he is, with nothing done

To evil, no important triumph won,

More than if life had never been begun.

Robert Frost, The Onset

The events and conversations in this book are told as I remember them. Most were carefully set down in my diary within a day or two of happening. I have taken some small liberties with chronology for the sake of clarity, and a very few names and minor identifying facts have been altered to protect privacy. What has changed significantly in the years between the first and final drafts is perspective. For any resulting discomfort or hurt feelings all I can offer are apologies and regret.

Although Canada officially underwent metrication in the 1970s, throughout most of this book I have preferred imperial units. The reason is partly practical: more Canadian readers will be familiar with the imperial system than US readers will be with the metric. For those of us raised using miles and Fahrenheit degrees, moreover, metric units have a way of flattering us with an inflated sense of our own strength and accomplishment, especially in the context of a self-propelled journey made in winter; metric feels like cheating. Twenty miles may not sound like muchbut thirty-two kilometers gets respect. Conversely, while on the centigrade scale its below zero for half the year in much of Canada, in Fahrenheit below zero is still a meaningful expression. It means winter is finally starting to tighten its grip.