Two weeks after I met Merlyn Carter, he was tying my 17-foot Old Town Royalex Tripper to a float on his De Havilland Single Otter bush plane. A year later he was my best friend. Our friendship continued unabated for 30 years until he lost a battle and his life to an unprovoked and predatory assault by a bear on the shores of Nonacho Lake, Northwest Territories.
I know most of my blog readers are canoeists. At first glance, you may not be interested in an aviator. But Merlyn’s life is a story every wilderness traveler, every adventurer, every dreamer needs to read.
The hard cover, library edition of Merlyn Carter Bush Pilot is finally complete and published. Researching, writing and finding a publisher for this book was a four-year journey. I traveled the Northwest Territories, Northern Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Toronto, Washington DC and everywhere in between to do research, conduct interviews, and seek publishers. I even went out on frozen Great Slave Lake with Marius McCallum for a day of commercial fishing 1950’s style with gill nets, needle bars, and a bug. I inspected every type of airplane Merlyn flew (except the Anson) and have flown in most. Best of all was a week in Hay River, NWT, in the dead of winter, eating Jean Carter’s cooking, and listening to her stories. Jean is certainly a big part of Merlyn’s success and fame. I am proud of this book, but what author isn’t proud of their book? Here is an early review by Cliff Jacobson, a bestselling author of 15 books:
“Merlyn Carter Bush Pilot is more than just a true-life story of one of Canada’s most famous bush pilots. It is a deeply moving, historical account of a bygone time when bush planes ruled the skies of northern Canada. A riveting read; it is by far, Kesselring’s finest work.”
The book is over 200 pages in length and includes many historical photos. This library edition of the book will be officially released April 1, 2018, but is already available from the publisher. CLICK HERE if you wish to order it directly from the publisher. To order an autographed copy directly from me CLICK HERE.
Rob Kesselring
Guide Service Anywhere
rob@robkesselring.com
