Salmon in the Trees: Life in Alaska’s Tongass Rain Forest

verything about this book gets it right. Salmon in the Trees is a beautifully produced book of award-winning nature photography by native Chicagoan Amy Gulick that depicts life in the Tongass Rain Forest in Alaska. As a coffee table book, an act of conservation, and a work of art, this book hits the mark every time. In addition, last night I was lucky enough to attend an event at the Betty Notebeart Nature Museum promoting the book. Gulick gave a talk about her experience in the rain forest and shared many of her photos in large format. She was also joined by the Alaska Wilderness League, who, along with Gulick, pushed for conservation of the Tongass Rain Forest.

I’ll get back to conservation in a moment–first I’d like to share just a few words about the book. It presents a collection of photos taken by Gulick that explore how salmon nourish the trees in the Tongass. Her journey leads her through snow and ice, Native American villages, salmon-thick rivers, and productive large-tree old-growth forests. Throughout the book, the photos are spliced with essays by Gulick and others about the role this beautiful, wild place plays in their lives, be it the natural beauty of the landscape, salmon fishing, or integrating native culture into modern American lifestyles. The essays and the photos are well put together, and they work together beautifully to tell the story of one of the wildest and richest natural areas in America.

Can you tell I love Alaska? I have to admit that I’m biased–a trip to the state several years ago left me in love with the place. I’ve often said that no matter where you stand in the state, and whatever direction you look, what’s before you will be the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen. This book seems to prove that.

I also love Gulick’s spirit. Not only does she share my love of literature–as she signed my copy of the book last night, she said, “I always wonder about people who don’t read books. Who doesn’t read books? I mean, what do you do with yourself? What do you do before you go to sleep at night?”–she also shares my love of the outdoors. During her presentation she spoke of balancing herself over a salmon-rich river on a narrow log, snapping photos, keeping a wary eye out for bears, and feeling totally consumed by the moment she was attempting to capture. Her love of the Tongass is obvious both in her speech and in her writing.

And now, I must mention conservation, a topic that any book about a naturally beautiful landscape in our society must bring up. The book does a good job of highlighting the fact that the Tongass is one of the last remaining coastal temperate rain forests in the world, and as such, it needs to be protected. It also supports the largest wild salmon fishing industry in the world. The area is currently threatened by both logging and mining. If you are interested in this topic, I recommend both buying the book–some of the proceeds go toward conservation, and the book itself is green: the ink is soy based, the paper is 100% recycled, and carbon credits were purchased to offset the output of its printing–and reading up on the Alaska Wilderness League.

It was recently announced that Salmon in the Trees won an Independent Book Publishers Silver Award (IPPY), which is a huge accomplishment.  This is a highly recommended read; it might even inspire you to travel to Alaska to experience the natural beauty and salmon frenzy for yourself. As Gulick wrote in my book, along with her signature, “Long may it last.”