Heimo Korth has been a trapper for 30 years, living entirely by his wits, with the occasional little help from bushplanes.
At 19, he moved to Alaska, as far away from human civilization as possible. He met his wife Edna while living in an Eskimo whaling village on St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea.
Eventually, he convinced her to move with him to the rugged Alaskan interior, more than 150 miles from the Arctic Circle and even further from the nearest road, supermarket or school.
Two people were among the last to be allowed to live in an area the size of South Carolina. Your nearest neighbor is about 100 miles away, and the only way to get emergency medical care is to call in the military and fly in a helicopter.
Here they manage to support their family while battling the dire climate, isolation, predators and the drowning of their eldest daughter.
The Korths hike between three separate lodges each year. The rotating hut prevents them from depleting a place’s resources, ensuring there is always enough fur and meat to survive the winter.
