Adventurer in the Winds
I have read several histories of the California Gold Rush. A recurring theme is the failure of the vast majority of 49ers to fulfill the vision of gold riches that drew them there. Once the prospectors, who often left prospering businesses and came from privileged circumstances, had exhausted their grubstakes, they were often reduced to a subsistence living as wage-earning laborers. If they could summon the resources to make their way home, they returned as broken and defeated men. Yet the news of disappointed prospectors did not slow the arrival of hopeful men from all over the globe. Why?
On a recent trip to Alaska, I chose a book about the Klondike Gold Rush The Klondike Fever: The Life and Death of the Last Great Gold Rush by Pierre Berton to help immerse me in wild and adventurous essence that draws us to Alaska. Berton tells of the few who struck it rich, but as with any tale of a rush to riches, the heart of the story is about the majority who returned empty handed.
Berton’s father was among the many who came to Dawson City in the Yukon in 1898-9. He lingered there for many years after the rush, and Pierre himself grew up there. Because Berton lived in the Klondike very shortly after the gold rush, he was able to talk directly to many of the men who came there for gold and hear their stories first-hand.
That intimate connection to history allowed Berton to record a unique aspect of the story. Despite the failure of most of the prospectors to attain the riches they sought, virtually none of the men Berton spoke to regretted coming. Nearly to a man, they valued their time in the Yukon as a grand adventure-the key experience of their lives.
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I have come to believe that a thirst for adventure is a strong force within us-much stronger than we acknowledge, or perhaps are even aware of. Throughout history, many people left the comfort of home to chase mineral strikes around the world. Behind the pretext of seeking riches, I think a huge motivation – conscious or subconscious – was the adventure of it. Home is safe and comfortable, but it can also be boring. As these men lay in bed at night contemplating the trip to the goldfields, were they thinking about piles of gold, or were their thoughts of traveling overland or by sea to a wild and bustling frontier?
Einstein said everything is relative. Adventure is too. For an agoraphobic person, a trip to the corner drugstore is a challenging adventure. For others, it is a Himalayan peak by an unclimbed route. For the rest of us, it is somewhere in between. I just know that we don’t get enough of it.
A favorite song of mine (by Keb Mo’) points out that we are Victims of Comfort. We complain about the smallest inconvenience. In comparison, adventure is a lot of work. According to Klondike Gold Rushers, the effort is worth it.