In his book, Adventures Two Bucks on and the a Can Gunflint of Gas: the Gunflint Trail, Model Robert A Model Trail recalls many Olson A his adventures of family has owned since in the he was a child.
Gunflint Trail resident Robert R. Olson thinks he might have been about 10 years old when his dad and his grandpa taught him to drive their family’s treasured Model A Ford pickup. Mastery of the extremely complicated maneuvers involved in keeping the engine running was just one of the many skills Olson acquired as a result of that vehicle. It added so much to his life—and still does—that he wrote a book about it.
Two Bucks and a Can of Gas – Model A Adventures on the Gunflint Trail, published by North Shore Press and produced by Northern Wilds Media, is a tribute to a lot of things—life lessons from his elders, the exuberance of youth, the magnetic pull of the Northwoods, and the development of self-reliance and ingenuity, to name a few.
Olson waxes poetic in his description of the beauty of the north country. He describes his first deer hunt with his dad, grandpa, and uncles: “Daybreak was beautiful. While I sat in the predawn darkness, I actually closed my eyes. To prevent the chills, I nestled my head deep into my collar, folded one arm over the other, and tucked my knees together. Occasionally, when I detected a noise, I would peer out. Soft and subtle the light of dawn spread throughout the forest, revealing identifiable objects in black and white. Soon, with the advancement of the sun, birds of winter flittered about in search of sustenance. Finally, brimming with sunlight, a winter spectrum of hues materialized.”
The Model A that has been in Olson’s life all these years has been used for a lot of things – hunting along primitive trails and roadways, shelter on camping trips, ice fishing, exploring and bushwhacking, hauling cabin construction supplies, rigging up an electric ice auger, and making friends. Olson’s father and grandfather went to great lengths customizing it for its many outdoor adventures and taught him how to maintain it and fix it. With the Model A, Olson writes, he learned many “lessons for life…learning by doing, not being afraid to try, not giving up, and being able to be myself and try things for myself.”
“Exploration for hidden lakes, brook trout streams, and remote grouse habitat beckoned us,” Olson writes. “During these forays, both summer and winter, we would encounter impassable trails. Too often, we spent hours extracting the Model A from what seemed like bottomless swamps or bumper-deep snowdrifts. It was during these journeys I learned the value of various simple hand tools and mechanical devices. These years provided valuable training and confidence for the abundant dilemmas of the years to come.”
Some of those dilemmas required steep learning curves—like the time he went fishing alone at Isabella Lake, sneezed, and yanked a handkerchief out of his pocket— and the Model A ignition key flew out with it, landing at the bottom of the lake.
Olson’s parents recognized the value of responsibility, independence, and exploration and supported him as he grew by allowing him to venture alone further and further up the Shore from their home outside of Duluth, eventually to the end of the Gunflint Trail.
Olson mentions numerous Cook County legends who taught him and helped him—Irv and Tempest Benson, Charlie and Petra Boostrom, Herb Hedstrom, Neil Hall, Mike Quaife, Don Brazell, Bobby Leonard, Bill Zickrick—undoubtedly adding to the lore surrounding each of their lives.
Eventually, after achieving advanced degrees and a successful career as an educator, Olson was able to answer the call of the north. He now lives on the Gunflint Trail full-time with his wife Kay.
“Only the howl of the gray wolf could surpass the primordial sensation in me created by fast-traveling, wafer-thin clouds in front of a full moon on a cold evening when I was on my way up the Gunflint in the Ford pickup.
“…To some people, the simple way of life may imply hard and maybe laborious work. But when things broke, they weren’t hard or complicated to fix. I have learned to appreciate the simple things from Gunflint living. This philosophy was initiated by the 1930 Model A truck.
“…Thank you, Henry Ford, for creating the phenomenal, versatile American icon simply called the Model A.” Two Bucks and a Can of Gas can be purchased through both Amazon and Barnes & Noble as well as locally at Nor’Wester Lodge and Lake Superior Trading Post.
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