The Search for a Sense of Wildness

In late May 1997 author Michael Ausema left civilization on a journey to Isle Royale a remote island deep in the heart of Lake Superior. As a volunteer seasonal park ranger Mike lived in a small cabin by himself at the edge of this freshwater sea. This event set in motion a life that would be anything but ordinary. Mike went on to become a paid seasonal park ranger in Isle Royale Everglades and Glacier Bay National Parks. This book details his adventures into some of the wildest places on the planet while backpacking canoeing and kayaking. Mike encountered bears moose alligators and wolves as well as some odd and fascinating visitors to the parks. At the heart of the book is a quest. Years earlier Mike had witnessed the Northern Lights on a cold dark winter night in northern Michigan. The event left him mesmerized by a hidden sense of wildness. As the author discovers that sense of wildness still lingers in some hidden corners of the world.