3 Days Camping & Fishing Alaska's Wilderness (Near Dick Proenneke's Cabin)

Luke here with the Outdoor Boys YouTube channel and welcome to Alaska. Me and my boys are going to be dropped off by a float plane and camp here for the next three days. We're going to be fishing

three days. We're going to be fishing for Dolly Varden, lake trout, and articling, hiking, pack rafting, and exploring the homestead of Dick Preny, the original bushcrafting YouTuber.

There's our plane.

[Music]

Sounds good. All right.

Sounds good. All right.

[Music]

[Music] Heat. Heat.

Heat. Heat.

[Music] Well, guys, that's it. We're all by ourselves. He's not going to come and

ourselves. He's not going to come and get us for uh 3 days. Welcome to Twin Lakes.

We had to fly about an hour and a half in a float plane to get here. And this

is very much remote Alaskan wilderness.

Weather forecast says it's going to be raining on and off. So, I want to find a place to build my shelter.

All right. You guys like this spot, huh?

Let's drop it.

>> You guys think you can go grab the other stuff?

Let's see.

[Applause] >> Tommy, you're going fishing?

>> Yeah.

>> Grab your bear spray.

It's something tube.

>> No, >> I got one on.

>> Yeah.

>> Look at that.

Oh. Oh, yeah. Let some line out. Let

some line out. That is a char. That's a

Dolly baron. You going to eat him for dinner?

>> Yep.

>> Okay.

>> Also, I can bunk him behind it. I have a fish bunker now. But that right there, that's a Dolly Bon. See how he's got the pink spots?

>> Oh, yeah.

>> He's a member of the Char family. Okay.

There you go. Don't

>> There you go. There's your dinner, buddy.

>> Yeah. Oh, this is a dolly, isn't it?

>> Yeah, it's a Dolly B.

>> Got one, Tom.

Let me see what you got. I

>> think I got a dolly.

>> Oh, it's another lovely dolly. Shall we

let this one go since we already got a fish?

>> Actually, never mind.

>> Hey. Hey. Nice.

>> All right. Go get another one.

>> Hey, Tommy. I'm going to make lunch. You

want to stay and fish?

>> Yep.

>> I wonder what this guy's been eating.

His stomach's full. Little mosquitoes

and flies. Just thousands and thousands of bugs.

There we go.

I forgot >> to be a tent to think of that.

>> Hot chocolate mix irritates my throat. It

>> everything.

>> That's hot. Just hold it and it'll warm up your hands first.

>> Oh my goodness. My hurt. Put all your shells in here so we don't attract bears and stuff.

>> Yeah.

>> I'm sure you guys are pretty hungry, right?

>> Oh, yeah. Please. No.

>> And then add another bite.

>> Put that fish in the boiling broth.

You ready for some some ramen flavored dolly here?

>> Yeah. Let's go. That wing dolly tastes a lot like trout or salmon.

>> Yeah. Do you want a little salt on it?

>> Yes, please.

>> Oh, yeah. A little salt and pepper is good.

>> All right. All right. Let's do some dishes.

Look at that. That's nice.

>> Oh, you got one. Good job, Tom. Well,

Tom's doing pretty well. He just landed another dolly down at the stream.

Sun's come out and it's beautiful, but we've got more rain coming in about 30 minutes, maybe an hour. It's how it is.

If you don't like the weather in Alaska, wait five minutes.

>> Like a fly. It's funny. It's really

>> starting to rain again. Is it?

>> Yeah. And those clouds look angry.

>> Yeah. Looks like it might rain a little bit.

>> Rain's picking up. I think I'm going to retreat.

>> I got out there.

>> Lizard, guys, you want to get ready for bed or you want to wait a little bit?

>> Wait a little bit. You guys want to have a little dessert while we wait?

>> Oh, yeah. What is it?

>> We got some brownies.

>> Yes.

>> We're allowed one a day.

[Applause] The salmon come up these rivers and into lakes to spawn, and the trout love to feast on the salmon eggs. So, salmon

eggs make excellent bait.

Look at that.

>> You're yinking it out of my >> He is 18 in. Now check out his girth. 9

and 12 in around. He is fat here. Here

Nathan, you pull up his fin.

>> See, look at that. That is a beautiful arctic grailing. We're going to let him

arctic grailing. We're going to let him go. This one is

go. This one is >> mountain.

>> That was pretty cool.

>> Yeah. Look at that.

>> Nice.

>> Nice. Will you hold this for >> Look how beautiful.

>> There you go.

>> They're gone.

>> That's number three, Tom.

>> Number three for me.

>> Hey, guys.

>> Let's see. It's like that. He's

a little cramped, but got three bags set up. And I got a an emergency bivvie

up. And I got a an emergency bivvie around each bag, so if a little wind or rain gets under the tarp, it won't be a big deal.

All right, guys. It's late. We're going

to bed. We're going to see you guys in the morning.

It's actually not.

And here's your hot chocolate. All

right, we're going to hard boil three eggs and then we're going to steam three eggs.

Egg.

It's down here.

Okay.

Think about my >> little egg sandwich with the hard-boiled egg >> sitting here.

>> Oh my goodness.

>> You eat like an anaconda.

Ah, >> it looks like a laker.

>> Yeah, look at that. Nice. Kind of a small average size lake trout right there. They get up to like 30 40 lbs.

there. They get up to like 30 40 lbs.

Well, uh, we want to do a little exploring, so we're going to bust the rafts out.

doesn't >> just sit down into the seat. Okay. Then

flip it laces.

>> Hey How you doing, Nathan? You okay? You

doing okay back there?

>> You guys want to go see a cool cabin?

>> Yeah.

>> We're going to go see Dick Fricki's cabin.

>> All right, hop out, Nate.

For those of you guys who don't know, Dick Prrenicki is a famous outdoorsman here in Alaska. In 1968, he came here to Twin Lakes and built this log cabin by hand. Lived here for 30 years. And the

hand. Lived here for 30 years. And the

cool part is is he filmed a lot of the process of making this and living out here. And that was turned into a PBS

here. And that was turned into a PBS series. There was also several books

series. There was also several books written about him and written from his journal entries. But after he moved out,

journal entries. But after he moved out, the National Park Service took it over and now the public can come and visit it. They check it out. They got the sod

it. They check it out. They got the sod roof. They got tar paper underneath. And

roof. They got tar paper underneath. And

that right there is his food cache. Dick

would get large amounts of foods flown in from Port Olsworth. And he'd put it up there in the food cache. And that's

the ladder to get up in there. Metal

bands from an old gas tin around the leg so that the squirrels and wolverines have a hard time getting up it.

Look at this old fishing rods up here.

Look at the ice cleat.

Oh, check this out, Thomas. This is a shovel. See this right here? Yeah. You

shovel. See this right here? Yeah. You

can see he's made the handle.

And then this uh >> outhouse.

>> This is the old outhouse. I think it's being used for storage now. That is a good looking outhouse.

>> You guys want to go check it out inside?

>> Mhm.

>> See this? This is his door handle. He

made a bearproof door latch. There's the

locking mechanism. And there's the actual handle. And it's a and it's a

actual handle. And it's a and it's a Dutch door. He made the hinges out of

Dutch door. He made the hinges out of the root ball of a spruce tree. It's his

old his old fishing hook. A number three meeps. Man, I've caught a lot of fish on

meeps. Man, I've caught a lot of fish on those.

>> Yeah, that's what I'm using. Like a

number three blue fox.

>> There's some trapping wire. And you can see handmade little net. Oh, you can see his fishing rod stuck in the bag.

>> This is a a can key for opening up canned food. Look at these logs. These

canned food. Look at these logs. These

are all hand fitted. He had to custom make each one of these notches for the logs. And you can see his original

logs. And you can see his original pencil marks right there. Look at that.

There's hardly any chinking.

He really fit these logs together tight.

He put them all together in 10 days.

It's pretty impressive.

>> Check it out. I got the snow machine tread doormat.

>> Got your phone >> here. Can I borrow your phone?

>> here. Can I borrow your phone?

>> The park service maintains it with his original stuff still in here. And

there's a few things like a old photos.

Oh yeah. Yeah. Look at that. You see how the middle two claws are further forward? Well, that's for black bears.

forward? Well, that's for black bears.

For grizzly bears, they're all straight across in a line. Oh, look at that.

There's his clothes. That's the clothes he wore in his videos right there.

Oh, that is way cool.

>> In the video, we saw the the hammer and that thing.

>> Look at that. And there's his draw knife.

>> And that thing.

>> Oh, there's his packboard.

>> We got a Wolverine. Uh, is that a Raven?

All right. The eagle maybe. Oh, there's

his his snowshoes.

Look at this cabinet's all handmade.

Look at the the hinges are made out of a piece of a gas can. That's so cool.

Little solar panel right there.

>> That's old.

>> Yeah. Little little charger solar panel.

>> That >> Yeah, that's way cool.

>> I had that book when I was a kid. You

can see the tar paper under the sod up there.

This is way cool.

Look at that.

Hey smile Nathan.

>> Oh, hello.

>> Oh, hey there.

>> Hi. How you doing?

>> Doing just fine.

>> This is Russell. He's the park ranger here. So, you look after the cabin here,

here. So, you look after the cabin here, right?

>> Absolutely. Uh, we look after the cabin as National Park Rangers. Try to keep the place safe.

>> Now, you live out here, right?

>> Yes, sir.

>> How long have you been living out here?

I've been out here for a little over a month and I'm going to be out here till the end of September.

>> When Dick Prreniki was building his cabin, he was staying at his buddy Spike's cabin which is nearby. And the

park rangers who live here, they stay in Spike's cabin as their private residence. And Russell's been kind

residence. And Russell's been kind enough to give us a little tour.

>> Hey, a few days ago.

>> Yeah.

>> Oh, this is nice.

>> Uh there's not really much to say about Spike's cabin. Obviously, it's a lot

Spike's cabin. Obviously, it's a lot more purpose-built, I guess you could say. Look at how much chinking material

say. Look at how much chinking material there is on the inside there.

>> Loads of cheeking. You notice as that the the logs aren't as uniform.

>> Exactly.

>> Looks like you got plenty of bare claw marks on the outside. Look at that. All

the claw marks. Well, hey Russell, thank you for the tour and showing us around.

>> Happy to do it, guys.

>> Well, guys, you want to go do some fishing? The weather's half decent.

fishing? The weather's half decent.

You're probably hungry for some lunch, too.

>> Yeah, I wouldn't mind eating a dolly.

>> Hey, we'll see you guys around, guys.

Have fun out there. All right.

>> Thank you.

Let's see if you can help me get in.

>> All right, Nathan, help out. I'm okay

with that, Tom.

>> Looks like Tom just got a fish here. Why

don't you bring it over here?

>> Look at that. Ooh, gorgeous lake trout.

>> Do they taste anything?

>> They taste great.

>> Nice fish. More than enough for my needs.

>> Can I hold it?

>> Beautiful fish here.

>> You're fragile, though. All right, you lift it up and down because all you're doing is showing me.

>> I'll just >> There you go. That's what fish number four.

[Applause] Oh, look at that. Hey, grab that. Grab

that.

Oh, >> he popped it.

>> Big one.

Actually, I can't tell.

Nate. Yeah. Nice. Yeah, it's a dolly.

>> You guys want to eat them?

>> Sure.

>> Yeah, let's eat him.

>> Throw him in the net.

>> Can I bunk him?

>> See? Take him like this.

>> And see, he's in the water, but he's trapped. And that'll keep him fresh.

trapped. And that'll keep him fresh.

>> Why'd you take your shirt off, Nathan?

Here.

Don't. Oh, no. No. Don't get it wet.

Here. Toss it here.

>> I have two backups.

Woo. That's about 42 40°. I dare you. I

dare you to swim around.

>> You lay out in the warm rocks. It would

take a large amount of money to get me to do that. We're going to dry out Nathan's clothes.

Get this place cleaned up. Use this

sunshine to dry out all our gear.

Is he still on? Nathan's got a big fish.

All right. Oh, hell no.

Thank you.

>> Nathan had about a 10 lb lake trout on and it broke off right at shore.

>> Oh boy. Like what the freaking bit?

>> That's number seven for me.

>> Whoa. Looks like the boys got another fish. They've been pulling them in hand

fish. They've been pulling them in hand over fist. Oh, beautiful lake trout.

over fist. Oh, beautiful lake trout.

>> Yeah. Do you got the pliers? Oh, this

like Domby's just paddling around. What a

beautiful day to do it.

[Music] I got two bags of rice boiling in the pot. And I've got some vacuum sealed

pot. And I've got some vacuum sealed pork ribs from Tommy's Wild Boar that he shot in Hawaii. We're going to heat this up in the pot. Like got barbecue sauce and stuff.

I'm going to save the head on this dolly and use it as bait for a big lake trout.

>> Sorry, didn't catch it.

here. Nathan, do you want some lunch?

>> Excited to try my fish? Let's start with that.

>> Oh, hold on.

Okay, he's on there. Yeah, go get him.

He's mad now.

>> That is a beautiful lake trout. Nathan,

you want a picture with that guy?

>> Yeah.

>> Right one.

>> Okay, there we go, Nathan. Congratulations.

>> Still like crap.

>> Put him back in that. Put him in the water. He is just barely 18 in. He's the

water. He is just barely 18 in. He's the

same size that Graing now. Lay him down, but don't throw him. Just let him and hold him until he's ready to swim off on his own. Okay, there you go.

his own. Okay, there you go.

>> See, it's so cute when fish swim away.

It's like I >> like this net. This thing was 35 bucks and it's worked really well.

>> You know, let you guys >> It's hot out here. We need some more water.

>> A liter of clean water. Is a powdered drink mix for a sports drink in Japan that the kids really like.

>> Is that good or what?

All right, there we go. Got a dolly head on there. Anything grabs that, it's

on there. Anything grabs that, it's going to be a big fish. These lake truck get 30 lbs or so. But those big boys, man, they feed on dollies.

Dang.

It's got to be a big fish to take that.

Oh, I want to see that rod bend over.

That tells me those lake trout really like dolly meat. Reel, reel, reel hard, hard. That's hard.

hard. That's hard.

>> Oh, it's coming off.

>> Yeah, you do. That's that big chunk of dolly tail.

>> That is a nice lake trout. All right,

now give me slack. Grip him like he owes you money. Look at that. That is a nice

you money. Look at that. That is a nice fish.

>> Yeah, we still got our bait. Sweet.

>> Yeah.

[Applause] Oh.

Oh, that that is a beauty.

Just gorgeous lake trout. They're just

inhaling this dolly. Another 18-in 17in lake trout. I mean, we've caught what,

lake trout. I mean, we've caught what, 12 of those today, I swear. Give it some reels. Strong. Three strong reels.

reels. Strong. Three strong reels.

Oh, >> well, it's almost 7:00. I think it's time to wrap this up and get some dinner going. All right, Tom, why don't you

going. All right, Tom, why don't you take that stuff over to the camp?

>> Starting to look a lot better in there.

Just kind of getting everything all straightened up. You go, Nathan, you

straightened up. You go, Nathan, you feel like you got more room this time?

>> Yeah.

>> We're not allowed to cut standing deadwood. So that those dead trees over

deadwood. So that those dead trees over there, we can't cut them down. It's

>> already cut off. Oh,

another piece.

>> There we go, >> guys. I got a nice little fire out here.

>> guys. I got a nice little fire out here.

Hey raindrops.

Watch this one.

>> Got some meat sauce that I vacuum sealed. Before coming out on this camp

sealed. Before coming out on this camp out, I froze all of my perishable food and put it in this little cooler to keep it cold, but it's all pretty uh room temperature now. So, I am going to

temperature now. So, I am going to switch gears.

This water's about 42°, so it's pretty close to refrigerator temperature. Just

got to remember where I put it.

>> Yeah.

>> Oh, that's that's the tail fin. Reel it.

Oh, he's tangled up. You tangled him up in the line. Oh, he spit. He's

go or >> I'll take both of those, please.

>> Oh, no.

>> Let's get our teeth brushed and get ready for bed, guys.

Oh, look at that one.

>> Dad, do you think Do you think I could skip multiple at once?

>> I don't.

Do you want to get into bed and watch a movie?

>> Yep.

>> What about I mean like what >> remind me of a little bit?

>> I don't watch violence.

Do the chickens have large talons?

>> They have what?

>> Go get it, get it, get it. Go, go, go, go, go, go, go. Hold on. Hold on. Is

that the one that doesn't look like it is on at all?

>> It was.

>> Well, we need to reel it up for the night anyways. All right, guys. It's

night anyways. All right, guys. It's

about 9:30 and way past her bedtime.

It's time to get to sleep. I'll see you guys in the morning. And we got lots more adventuring to do.

All right. Pick up some.

>> Hey, good morning, guys. You awake?

We'll have uh we'll have breakfast ready here in a little bit. Got a little bit of a hodge podge for breakfast. We got

some Scottish oatmeal and I've got some boiling bag rice. So, I'm going to kind of mix them together and do a little bit of a rice pudding oatmeal mix. Boys have

gotten a lot bigger and they eat a lot more than the last time I took them camping. So, we're going to get all the

camping. So, we're going to get all the food we can.

Put a little butter in.

>> Get me out of here. I feel

[Music] Yep. Yeah.

Yep. Yeah.

>> Oh, >> that was good. But we need to clean up a little bit. Today is our last day. We

little bit. Today is our last day. We

still got plenty of time before the float plane comes. But I figure we better clean up while the weather's good.

>> You flip this up.

>> I like the shoes.

All righty, let's take the canoes down the coast a little bit, explore, and then we'll get out and do the hike and uh and then if we have time left over, we can just hang out and fish until the plane comes.

>> Plane's going to pick us up in front of Dick Prrenicky's cabin. So, I'm going to take a load of gear over to the cabin so that me and the boys can explore in empty canoes.

>> Be back in a little bit.

>> Oh, see a little in a little bit.

Oh, looks like you guys made it back.

Okay.

>> Should we go do a hike?

>> Yeah.

No, I can make a >> We'll just hang this up right here and it'll be waiting for us when we come back.

>> Oh, my little Captain Kirks have already gone shirtless. It's hot.

gone shirtless. It's hot.

>> Yeah, >> it's like 65°.

>> Yes.

>> Here, Nathan.

Really nice.

Oh my god you >> a cool picture.

Oh yeah, it's balance.

>> Yeah, it's teetering.

>> Oh, >> we got a float plane coming. We better

get back down if you guys want to have lunch before we leave.

>> Let's go.

Dang it.

>> Yeah, these are reindeer sausage hot dogs. I can hear a plane coming. I think

dogs. I can hear a plane coming. I think

that might be our ride.

>> Do you have a good flight, Jake?

>> No, I got motion sickness.

The rest of my family and some friends decided to fly out with the plane to meet us.

>> Might as well. It's a beautiful day. All

right, guys. Make room for mom off the pontoon. Come on.

pontoon. Come on.

>> All right.

>> Oh, yeah. There we go. Here. Take a bun out. And there's your ketchup.

out. And there's your ketchup.

>> One of us breaks it up, but he's not.

>> Like I said, not nearly as pretty as this one, but still very well constructed. You really wanted to build

constructed. You really wanted to build the And >> hey boys, look around. Make sure you didn't forget anything.

>> Had a great time. This is lovely. The

cabin's amazing.

>> Thank you.

[Music] >> Thank you.

[Music]

Did you guys have fun?

>> It was awesome.

>> It was so fun.

>> Got to see some beluga whales, too.

Nice.

>> We did.

>> That was a good trip. But I just got a text message from my buddy Gabe. Says he

just found a dead walrus. I think I'm need to go on another adventure. But

that's all for this video. I'll see you guys in a little bit. If you like that video, make sure to check out the Outdoor Boys YouTube channel where we have hundreds of videos just like this.

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