At the million-dollar valley, the North Country collected three bombers from the US Army Air Corps in January 1942. Flying over the Far North required a unique skill set. But the Air Corps didn’t know that, and nobody thought to ask the bush pilots who did know. They were, after all, the Air Corps and …
Tag Archives: Northwest Staging Route
A Mortal Threat and the Irony of History
A mortal threat to America from Japan, inspired Canada to build the series of airfields north to Alaska known as the Northwest Staging Route. The NWSR would at least get some defense material north, and it established a rough path for the land route to come—the Alaska Highway. By 1943 the Japanese, permanently on the …
Standing on Their Heads to Sleep
Standing on their heads to sleep, the men of the Canadian company, Tomlinson Construction, would end a brutal 12-hour shift by going to sleep in a bunkhouse mounted on a crew sleigh. The sleigh typically rested nearly vertically on a steep mountainside, chained to a tree. Link to another story “Cooperation built the Alcan” Canada …
Doug Bell
Doug Bell worked the length of the Alaska Highway from its earliest days. When I first met him, I thought him one of the most fascinating and funniest men I’d ever met. Doug’s memories made life on the early Highway come alive. His eloquent stories made it real. Doug passed away on April 18. His …
The Subarctic North Lay in Wait
The subarctic north lay in wait for the soldiers of the Corps of Engineers at the end of the 1940’s. A few daring men flew over it. A primitive system of primordial trails traversed it from the farming village of Dawson Creek through a string of tiny settlements to the almost city of Whitehorse and …
The Million Dollar Valley
The million-dollar valley collected a million dollars from the US Army Air Corps in January 1942—collected it in the form of 3 B-26 Marauders at Greyling Creek near the British Columbia, Yukon border. Link to Another Story “Lend Lease and Canada’s Northwest Staging Route” In the run up to war Canada had installed the Northwest …
Sleeping Standing on their Heads
Sleeping standing on their heads? That’s just one of the things the Tomlinson men hadn’t anticipated when they headed north. Link to another story “Ft. Nelson, Chester Russell’s Passage” At the beginning of World War II, officials in Washington and Ottawa developed a propensity for dispatching men deep into the subarctic north to accomplish all …
Flying Over
Flying over the subarctic north? To those who endured difficult, dangerous, and often just plain miserable trips on the ground through that beautiful but hostile country, airplanes offered an attractive alternative. But, of course, mother nature in this part of the world makes nothing easy, including flying over it. Link to another story “Becoming a …
ALSIB (Alaska Siberia) Route
ALSIB, the Alaska Siberia Route, offered a brutal passage for pilots taking airplanes from factories in Montana to the Russian Front in Europe. But in 1943, with millions of German soldiers retreating on the Russian Front, the entire Allied war effort hinged on the Soviets. If the Soviets needed warplanes, their allies would damned well …
Heavy Trucks on a Road
Heavy trucks on a road could carry enough men and weapons across Canada to Alaska to defend North America from a Japanese assault. But in 1939 no such road existed, and airplanes could at least carry some material. Between 1939 and 1941, desperate Canadians built a string of airfields across British Columbia and Yukon Territory. …