Calvin Rutstrum
Selected Bibliography
Way of the Wilderness (1946, later updated in 1952)
Memoranda for Canoe Country (1953)
A New Way of the Wilderness (1958)
The Wilderness Cabin (1961)
North American Canoe Country (1964)
Wilderness Route Finder (1967)
Paradise Below Zero (1968)
Challenge of the Wilderness (1970)
Greenhorns in the Southwest (1972)
Once Upon a Wilderness (1973)
The Wilderness Life (1975)
Chips From a Wilderness Log (1978)
A Wilderness Autobiography (1979)
Hiking Back to Health (1980)
Back Country (1981)
Calvin Rutstrum (October 26, 1895-February 5, 1982) was a conservationist and author of fifteen books on wilderness camping, nature, and canoeing. Though born in Indiana, Rutstrum moved with his parents to St. Paul in 1898. Before becoming a writer, Rutstrum worked as a medical corpsman in the Marine Corps, a real estate and automobile salesman in Minneapolis, and as a detective investigating bank robberies for the American Banking Association. With Sigurd Olson, he and other conservationists campaigned successfully to restrict airplane travel across the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in the 1940s.
Rutstrum began writing books after World War II. The majority of his books are how-to guides covering topics from camping in sub-zero temperatures to canoeing to building cabins, and they are still considered classics in the outdoor world today. Rutstrum’s later books include autobiographical material and philosophical musings on nature. Some of his works include Way of the Wilderness, Paradise Below Zero, and Back Country.
More information on Calvin Rutstrum from the Minnesota Historical Society.