A Texan Coming North

There's a Texan coming back to Alaska in March... Sarida Steed-Bradley is returning for this year's Iditarod after 37 years away from Alaska. To say she's excited would be an understatement; reading her weblog, Return to Alaska, A Journey North, gives some small indication of what this trip will mean for her:

Alaska has called me back. Over the past year and many months I've found my thoughts and dreams turning north as if magnetised like a compass needle. I'm almost ready to go.

And later, she reveals part of the greater impetus behind her pilgrimage:

Phil had just recently been discharged from the Army. He was back at Gramma and Grandpaw's house for a few weeks to gather his hunting and fishing gear, visit family, see friends and prepare to move. His decision had not gone over well with the family and we had hastened up the road from Austin for a weekend visit before he left. Why Alaska, for crying out loud? Nothing anyone said could change his mind, because Alaska had claimed his heart.

Sarida already has some wonderful stuff on her blog, like all the mushers drawn for the 1972 Fur Rendezvous in Anchorage, and a lovely photo of the beautiful full color patch she designed for Lance Mackey's inimitable lead dog, Larry. She shares some of her hopes for her trip, like seeing the Aurora Borealis again, and some marvelous re-writings of favorite old Alaskan-oriented songs. Get to know this lady from Texas now, and follow along as she traces her roots back into the North Country.