North to the Future

At age twenty, Ben Weissenbach ventured into Arctic Alaska, inspired by literary heroes and a desire to experience life beyond the screen.

His book is a highly readable mix of memoir, travelogue, and environmental journalism, set against the backdrop of Alaska’s rapidly changing wilderness.

Weissenbach joins eccentric adventurers and scientists—including the legendary Roman Dial—on expeditions through the Brooks Range, facing grizzly bears, wolves, and the stark realities of a warming Arctic.

The narrative explores the tension between resource exploitation and conservation, while the author grapples with his own place in a world where nature and technology collide.

'North to the Future' is both a personal coming-of-age story and a vivid portrait of a frontier in flux.