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Charlie’s Last Flight

By Evan Swensen| 05/02/2022
Eight-five-seven Charlie was a 1948 Stinson model 108-3. She was born red. In the last year of her life, she changed her dress, and she became metallic blue, with a … 0 More

Charlie’s Last Freedom Flight

By Evan Swensen| 04/25/2022
Charlie’s pilot’s son Jesse’s first sheep hunt took place on Mt. Gordon among other snow-capped peaks of the Wrangells. It was in the days before the National Park Service entered … 0 More

Charlie’s Prince or Pauper

By Evan Swensen| 04/18/2022
Charlie’s pilot traveled to Southwest Alaska in the old 1948 Stinson Voyager, 857 Charlie. Charlie’s pilot’s daughter, her friend, and her friend’s father completed the party. They flew through scenic … 0 More

Charlie’s Ghost Moose

By Evan Swensen| 04/11/2022
“Ted,” said Charlie’s pilot, as Charlie pointed her faded red nose north, “I know a place where an old, woods-wise moose hangs out. Let’s motor over there and take a … 0 More

Charlie’s Missing Moose

By Evan Swensen| 04/04/2022
Gravel sprayed off the big tires of 857 Charlie and peppered her horizontal stabilizer. Her aeronautical designers back in 1947 never envisioned her landing on a gravel bar off the … 0 More

Charlie’s Fifth Moose

By Evan Swensen| 03/28/2022
The subsistence hunter’s moose was deposited safely with the hunter’s family, but he was still on the lake, probably spending the night with the lake’s lone resident, a trapper in … 0 More

Charlie’s Subsistence Moose

By Evan Swensen| 03/21/2022
Charlie had successfully carried her four subsistence hunters to a proper conclusion. Each had taken a moose, dressed it out, and cut it up in pieces small enough to be …

Charlie’s Missed Moose

By Evan Swensen| 03/07/2022
The late fall day dawned cold and crisp with more than a hint of winter in the air. The chill didn’t bother Charlie, though. Instead, Charlie’s pilot noticed a little … 0 More

Charlie’s Denali Moose

By Evan Swensen| 02/28/2022
Ted Pyrah has a heart big as the Matanuska Valley in which he resides. His big heart caused him to agree to accompany a lady senior citizen caribou hunter the … 0 More

Charlie’s Bear

By Evan Swensen| 02/21/2022
Morning was well underway when Lynn Dean met Charlie’s pilot at Lake Hood Airstrip. Yesterday had been a long, hard day. They’d put in most of a day’s work and …

Charlie’s Parachute Experience

By Evan Swensen| 02/14/2022
The boy scouts of Troop 188 had earned their way to a remote camping adventure on Alaska’s Lake Louise. But, as in all great adventures, much of the adventure was … 0 More

Charlie’s Afternoon Moose

By Evan Swensen| 02/07/2022
There was a recent time when Alaskans went hunting for the pleasure of the hunt and filling their freezers. It was before MacDonald’s, the oil boom, and animal activists. Charlie’s … 0 More