In 1958, logger Russ Russell made the front page of The Cordova Times for his epic three-day adventure trying to deliver a well-roasted goose to a friend at a nearby camp. While battling high seas and darkness in a work skiff powered by oars after his outboard broke down, he zigzagged across what is now the main traffic lane for tankers entering and leaving the Valdez Trans Alaska Pipeline Terminus. When he was finally spotted by a rescue plane, he waved the goose before eating it.
Just this week, delivering birds to remote friends made state and national news. In this case, the birds were frozen turkeys being air-bombed from a small plane. Yes, the main course for Thanksgiving dinner had be dug out of the snow.
For three years, Alaskan Esther Keim has completed this mission, flying low in a small plane she rebuilt with her father. Keim grew up on an Alaska homestead, and a family friend would airdrop turkeys and other supplies to her family and others nearby.
She was inspired to renew the tradition by hearing of a family of three that was living off the land and having a squirrel for Thanksgiving dinner. One wonders who had the honor of carving this feast.
The airdrops continue and have grown. This year more than 30 turkeys were delivered to people living year-round in cabins with no road access.
Keim gathers 20 birds at a time, usually by donations. She wraps them in plastic bags and keeps them frozen in the back of her pickup until she can arrange a flight.
She contacts families on social media and buzzes their cabins so the recipients come out to see where the bird-bombs land. Finding a frozen turkey in deep snow is difficult. It took five days to find one bird, and a ham is still AWOL, probably providing a nice repast for a wandering coyote.
Keim confesses to not having good aim, saying she is getting better, and has never hit a building, person, or dog.
Her reward is the thanks and responses she gets from families, even including videos of the drops.
Unlike the tale of the logger who rowed all around Prince William Sound trying to deliver and received little publicity for his efforts (he did eat the goose), Keim is receiving well-deserved national recognition.
To see it live, Google “Airdropped frozen turkeys.”
