HOLLERIN

The 1978 film Welcome to Spivey's Corner just got added to Folkstreams a week or so ago and, like most of the films on Folkstreams, it's absolutely amazing. The film spotlights Spivey's Corner (then pop. 49) annual Hollerin' Contest which still takes place every year in this tiny North Carolina town. What's hollerin'? From Folkstreams.net:

Hollerin' is considered by some to be the earliest form of communication between humans. It is a traditional form of communication used in rural areas before the days of telecommunications to convey long-distance messages. Evidence of hollerin', or derivations thereof such as yodeling or hunting cries, exists worldwide among many early peoples and is still be practiced in certain societies of the modern world. In one form or another, the holler has been found to exist in Europe, Africa and Asia as well as the US. Each culture used or uses hollers differently, although almost all cultures have specific hollers meant to convey warning or distress. Otherwise hollers exist for virtually any communicative purpose imaginable -- greetings, general information, pleasure, work, etc. The hollers featured at the National Hollerin' Contest typically fall into one of four categories: distress, functional, communicative or pleasure.

Spend 17 awestruck minutes here.

The Ridgerunner

As stated before, over the summer of 2009 my girlfriend Sarah and I rode our bicycles from Grand Rapids, MI to Portland, OR via the Transamerica Trail. During this trip, we rode through Northern Idaho, which unbeknownst to me is one of the most beautiful, remote places in America. We rode alongside the Lochsa River coming down off Lolo Pass, and into the Bitterroot Wilderness. We didn’t see a gas station for days, and in the thick of it met a man named Stacey who has been living off his bike for years (by choice), drinking water from these same rivers, fishing for his meals, sleeping on BLM land, and drifting where the fair weather does. We stopped at a small stand of cabins, and camped one night at the adjacent National Forest Campground. The cabins were packed, teaming with excited white water rafters and guides, the Lochsa roaring just across the road. In the morning we grabbed breakfast at the mess hall, and I bought this book in the lobby.The Ridgerunner: Elusive Loner of the Wilderness by Richard Ripley:“During the early 1940s in Idaho’s expansive Selway-Bitterroot wilderness, a few items disappeared from a tent camp, a lookout tower, and a ranger station. Eventually, the continuing loss of food and supplies at such isolated sites confirmed the presence of a mysterious solitary. For years no one saw him, even though he entered Forest Service quarters while employees slept. In the winter, when he did leave tracks, they were found on the most inhospitable ridges and earned him the regard of locals who appreciated the cost of survival under such circumstances. Once apprehended, the Ridgerunner proved to be both witty and ornery - a man who said he simply wanted “to live like a coyote,” and who was so woodswise and contentious that he vexed the government and a major timber company for the next 20 years.”I’m just about to read this book for the fourth time. Grab it.Photo: Moreland (The Ridgerunner) raising the flag in front of his shelter at Milk Creek.

The Complete Europe 72

No secret around these parts that Cold Splinters has a thing for the Good Ol' Grateful Dead. Especially for Europe 72. So a couple of weeks ago, when a friend sent us this link explaining that the Grateful Dead and Rhino Records will be releasing a huge and lavish box set of more than 60 CDs containing every show of the Europe '72 tour, mixed and mastered from the original 16-track tapes, we were more than excited. And yes, maybe this is old news to some of you, but after all the sunshine this week, it's hard not to daydream of driving with the windows down listening to "Ramble On Rose" on the way back from a three day stint in the woods.The 7,200 pre-order of the box set sold out in four days, but it seems as though the band will make the music available to anyone who wants to hear it. Thanks Bob.For those of you who weren't lucky enough to get the box set, I'll let you know how it is...MP3: Grateful Dead - Ramble on Rose

SURFWISE

Re-watched this guy this morning for probably the fifth time. A good number of you I'm sure have seen this, but those who haven't, please do so. Surfwise is a documentary that came out a couple years ago about the Paskowitz family, living under the reign of the utopia-driven father Dorian "Doc" Paskowitz. Doc gave up his practice as one of the top physicians in Hawaii in the late fifties, to devote the rest of his life to traveling the world and surfing with his family of eleven in a 24' camper trailer.Catch the trailer and pick up a copy here, or check it out on Netflix.

GORDON EASTMAN

In the late sixties and early to mid seventies, Gordon Eastman, an outdoor photographer, made a couple of films titled High, Wild & Free and The Savage Wild. Eastman starred in, filmed, photographed, directed, produced and wrote the score for both films. They were first shown exclusively in the theater, but were eventually leaked to TV in the late seventies as "nature programming". The Savage Wild is a tale about Eastman raising a litter of wild wolf pups from infancy, followed at every turn by the wolf hunters, Redbeard and his little chronie. High, Wild & Free was referred by somebody on Netflix as being "to hunting what Endless Summer is to surfing."The links above click over to streaming on Netflix. Worth a watch for sure.

WALK

Currently re-reading this 1979 book by Peter Jenkins, A Walk Across America. Perfect winter read when you're good and itchy-footed. This book was a serious bestseller back in '79 and has been reprinted a ton so there's a dusty paperback in almost every thrift store I've ever been in. Or grab one here."Five thousand miles and thirty-five pairs of shoes later..."

YUKON PASSAGE (1977)

From the National Geographic site..."It's thirty below zero in the Canadian wilderness, your long underwear is frozen stiff on the line, and you're about to relive one of the greatest adventures in North American history. Join four courageous young men on their 1,800-mile, eight-month trek to retrace the steps of the gold stampeders of 1898. You'll build a log raft and steer it through treacherous rapids, and when the river freezes you'll travel by dog sled through freezing rain and thigh-high snow-drifts. Bathe in an icy lake and share a tasty supper of moose meat. You'll reach the gold rush town of Dawson where you'll march in the annual stampeder's parade, and celebrate your thrilling journey through the Yukon Passage."Watch it online here: Parts I - VI