When Richard Nixon signed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act in 1971, eighty million acres were flagged as possible national park land. Field expeditions were tasked with recording what was contained in these vast acres. Under this decree, five men were sent into the sprawling, roadless Interior of Alaska, unsure of what they'd encounter.

"Life and Times of a Big River" weaves together the fascinating cultural and natural history of interior Alaska through the story of a field expedition conducted by 5 biologists in a 4000-square-mile, roadless area of interior Alaska. The expedition was ordered by the United States government following the signing into law of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, and was to help decide the fate of a vast area that would ultimately become the Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve.
And yet this is a human story, related through the personal experiencesthe uncertainties, discoveries, accidents, and encounters with othersrecorded by this disparate (and at one point desperate) group of biologists. Weaving in and out of this narrative is an account of the natural and cultural history of the area, told as it related to the expedition and to people living in the bush. The five scientists explore every aspect of the land itself: from fossil tree ferns to rare insects and little-known mammals, deciphering a record of change in a land often thought of as static and monotonous. Against this background the history of both aboriginal and Anglo exploitation and adaptation to a very demanding environment is also told. In the context of the expedition, the natural and cultural history takes on an uncommon relevance and insight.
This expedition may well represent the last of its kind, conducted before the explosion of satellite communications and geographic positioning technology forever changed scientific field work in remote regions."