Shop the Store:
- Book: Daughter Father Canoe
- Book: River Stories
- Book: Merlyn Carter Bush Pilot
- Jewelry: silver Inuit pendants, support aboriginal art
- Excerpt: Story 13 from River Stories
- How to purchase
Daughter Father Canoe
Coming of age in the sub-arctic and other stories of Snowdrift River and Nonacho Lake
Paperback
Here’s the buzz on “Daughter, Father, Canoe”
Rob Kesselring deftly mingles the story of his daughter’s “coming of age” canoe trip in the Northwest Territories with his own life experiences in the region. The result is a story that have you alternately rolling with laughter, clinging to the edge of your seat, and seeking out your own children to hold in your arms. Rob’s down-to-earth writing style lends itself perfectly to this joyful narrative. By the end of the book you will feel like you’ve shared in their incredible bonding experience. Enjoy!”
“My father-in-law stole my copy of this book… he claims it is the best outdoor writing he has read in years.”
-Royal Jaros
“Everybody who went on a long wilderness trip knows this phenomenon. To experience nature gives you a deep insight into your own soul and you open up and are able to connect. Once you get back, you realize that it was more than seeing great scenery and crystal clear water. I highly recommend reading this book. It won't take long and you might find yourself intentionally slowing you down, just to make it last longer. Besides “A Death in the Barrens” by George Grinell, "Daughter Father Canoe" is my favorite book of the last years. I read it twice.”
-Jan Dettmer, The Open Canoe Group
“Author Rob Kesselring does such a superb writing job that I laughed out loud one minute and wiped a tear of sorrow the next while reading his highly personal account of time spent on Canada’s Northwest Territories”
–Toby Berry, Canoe and Kayak magazine
“It’s a wonderful book!”
Cliff Jacobson, author of over a dozen best selling books on canoeing and camping
River Stories
Real Adventures in the North American Wilderness
paperback
Here’s the buzz on “River Stories”
“I really enjoyed it. It is such a relief to read a heartfelt bunch of stories with real opinions based on real information”
–Garrett Conover, co-author of best seller “A SnowWalkers Companion”
“We are lucky to have a book like “River Stories” to inspire us to go where only the canoe trails lead. I love Rob’s brutal honesty, sense of humor and appreciation for the journey not the destination, you won’t put this book down until you hit the backcover.”
- Stu Osthoff, writer, wilderness guide and Boundary Waters Journal publisher
“This guy can write.” -Larry Rice, outdoor author and adventurer
“I always envy Rob’s great skill with words. I also like his focus on the little things and the accurate details; it makes his stories come alive”
-Bob O’Hara, legendary arctic canoeist, “Wall of Fame” explorer
Merlyn Carter Bush Pilot
Hardcover and paperback
Merlyn Carter Bush Pilot is a rollicking read about an uncommon man in an uncommon place at an uncommon time. Before civilization came to Canada’s Northwest Territories, bush pilots rescued the injured, brought in prospectors, and hauled cargo. As a teen, Merlyn piloted a military surplus bomber overloaded with Great Slave Lake whitefish across that wilderness, sometimes in 50-below cold. He flew over trackless forest and tundra with a hand-drawn map. Over the decades, his planes crashed into trees, broke through lake ice, twice flipped and once exploded. Merlyn always walked away. While some called him lucky, many called Merlyn their best friend until a June day in 2005 when he lost a battle to the claws and jaws of a bear.
Support Aboriginal Art
Buy Inuit (Eskimo) made pendants
I purchased several of these sterling silver necklace/pendants to help out a Inuit artist cooperative in 1979 in Iqaluit, Nunavut (formerly Frobisher Bay, Northwest Territories) Canada. They have been sitting in my various attics and storage units for almost 40 years. It’s time to put them around some beautiful necks.
They are solid sterling silver, have never been worn and come packaged in a velvet box. The smallest weighs .55 ounces and the largest is almost a ounce. Just in silver content alone they are worth several dollars and will only appreciate in value with time.
There are three styles:
- Inuit hunter $35
- Inuit shaman only a few of these $60
- Inuit mother with amaut (extended hood for baby - a fertility charm) only a few of these $50
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- Inuit Shaman
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- Inuit Hunter
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- Inuit mother with amaut
“What If?”
Story 13 from River Stories
A 4600 word cautionary article. A version of this piece was first published in the spring 2004 Boundary Waters Journal. It is also Story 13 in River Stories. It is must reading for beginning wilderness canoeists and a good refresher for everyone. Although I often write about risk and courage, that never means being reckless or not following sound safety protocols. For that reason, and for people considering buying my books but would like to browse a chapter first, this download is free.