TRADITION that can't be called STATIC

Ruby, Alaska 2011

In these complex and hectic times where we all seem tangled in technology...sometimes the answer does beckon from the past-an authentic voice telling us to slow down, touch the marrow of life with its simple joys as we fulfill our basic needs and pleasures.
The past predicts the future. Kids will enjoy being kids despite 30 below, your home is your cozy castle and snowshoes are still the reliable means to get around on with only a trace left behind in their vanishing snow footprint.

Standard fun for these Albert boys



Standard Traditional Snowshoes

These are Standard traditional Racers with Koyukon style bindings (we do not supply bindings) on the log wall. Below are Standard Walkers leaning against the birch tree. Both are twine filled snowshoes with moose rawhide footings.  

Flash Frozen racing shots



2007 race needed stick to knock off wet snow

 



Ruby Spring Carnival 4 to 5 Mile Race

2010 frosty race on Yukon River, age 58

  
  

NAMED: "ATHABASCAN LIVING CULTURAL TREASURE"



George was named an Athabascan Living Cultural Treasure by the Alaska State Council on the Arts in 2010 by a panel of Athabascan cultural consultants.
                                                                                                 

FILLING FINELY CUT CARIBOU BABICHE 

Anaa Basee'

SNOWSHOE STYLES-Standard and Babiche



George Albert 2002 with his Racers

George makes two types of snowshoes, neither include bindings. Tanned moosehide is hard to come by, even for George. This blog will have an article on how to attach bindings to your snowshoes and boot or snowshoe moccassins. As well as snowshoe care and maintenance.
The Standard Traditional - for everyday use using nylon twine fine filling with moose rawhide footing area on a birch frame. He custom builds them in Walkers and Racers sizes for men and women as well as childrens' sizes. 
They are finished with a varathane as they are used in outdoor weather and this finish protects and expands their lifetime use against snow, UV light. This finish gives the snowshoes a golden glow to the pale Alaskan birch wood. Folks purchase them for use in recreation, races, travel, snowmobile trip back-up, cultural display, gift and potlatch giving. They are the most widely used models.
 You too can truly retrace the footsteps of the Elders when you wear them as well as lessen your carbon footprint on the earth while gaining an excellent cardio workout without floundering in the deep snows. He makes them year-round and to order. Like any valuable piece of athletic equipment, they are worth the investment to your winter outdoor life. They last for years to come.

And now he offers  the Babiche Connoisseur - once again- which are completely filled with his finely hand cut caribou or moose babiche filling. These birch frames are finished with thicker moose rawhide footing area.  He does not varnish these snowshoes, they are left in their natural wood color. These are the cultural icon of the artistic ingenuity used in ten thousand years of native thinking and living in North America's cold environments. They reflect the beauty in traditional tools, sustainable natural materials, adaptation to the environment and transportation needs which the Koyukon Athabascan peoples excelled at. Alaska's First Peoples explored and survived our Interior wilderness and these snowshoes stand firm in their use and beauty in contemporary time as well as the time of the Ancestors. The knowledge of the Elders' traditional culture endures in them. The sustainable natural materials used are gathered, hunted and built into snowshoes by this self-taught Athabascan Master Craftsman. Whether they are put to use on snow is your choice. They are exceptional representation of  an iconic Alaskan  art that evokes our hardy native and frontier spirit. Inquire about availability and prices.