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The Mysterious Grand Canyon

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Episode 64: The Mysterious Grand Canyon

Since well before the “Americans” discovered the magnificent Grand Canyon, the incredible geologic formation has been shrouded in mystery. The Hopis—who live there on the southern escarpments of Black Mesa in eastern Arizona–are one of the oldest living cultures in documented history, with a past stretching back thousands of years. The Hopi trace their ancestry to the Ancient Puebloan and Basketmaker cultures, which built many stone structures and left many artifacts at the Grand Canyon and across the area of the present day Southwestern United States. Little is known about that mysterious culture beyond what they left behind.

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Meet Carl Douglass, your host for episode 64: The Mysterious Grand Canyon.

My pseudonym as an author is Carl Douglass, adopted as a means of telling stories with gripping realism—the truth of which would not bring trouble to my door. My writing of gripping, realistic fiction began after I was obligated to retire from the private practice of neurosurgery due to sudden blindness in my left eye from a retinal detachment which caused loss of stereoscopic vision. I carried with me decades-long knowledge of doctors, hospitals, and institutions of higher learning, including some less than laudatory information. My military experience during the years of the recent unpleasantness in Vietnam also gave me considerable insight. Both of those lengthy experiences provided true grist for the mill of my writing, but neither of them need to connect the stories to the lives of the real people and places where the stories took place. In that sense, I know too much and have no wish to incriminate or to bring harm or embarrassment to real individuals or institutions. My rich and varied life has provided even more fodder to feed my mind and contribute realism to my written work. In my time, I have had to work due to lacking a sugar daddy. I have been a grease monkey, a lumber mill and forest worker, a lifeguard, a slaughterhouse worker, a diener in a morgue, a lab rat, an academic writer, a medical officer in a mental hospital, a naval officer and surgeon, a brig doctor, and a deep diving officer. I have been the husband of one fine wife, the father of four children—one deceased—eleven grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren. All of them have enriched the depth and breadth of my storytelling.

 

 

With all the Chaos Surrounding it, How Was the Alaska Railroad Ever Built?

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Episode 57: With all the Chaos Surrounding it, How Was the Alaska Railroad Ever Built?

One of the greatest mysteries in Alaska – even though it is quite visible to the naked eye – is the Alaska Railroad. Every year, more than 400,000 visitors to Alaska ride the Alaska Railroad from Anchorage to Fairbanks with a stop in Denali National Park.  And it is not a modest railway. It has 656 miles of track and carries 5.11 million tons of freight annually. It has only been owned by the State of Alaska since 1985, but before that, it was the only federally owned and operated railroad.

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Meet Steve Levi, your host for Episode 57:

With all the Chaos Surrounding it, How Was the Alaska Railroad Ever Built?

 

 

Steve Levi is a 70-something writer in Alaska. He specializes in the impossible crime and the Alaska Gold Rush.  An impossible crime is one in which the detective must figure out HOW the crime was committed before he can go after the perpetrators.  As an example, in THE MATTER OF THE VANISHING GREYHOUND, the detective must figure out how a Greyhound bus with four bank robbers, a dozen hostages, and  $10 million can vanish off the Golden Gate Bridge. Steve’s books can be seen at www.authormasterminds.com/steve-levi and www.steverlevibooks.com. He also does two historical uploads a week.  Send Steve your email, and he will include it in the mailings.

The Mysterious Pig

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Episode 55: The Mysterious Pig

How did a 200-pound pig become the “darling” on an Arabian horse ranch?
Owning a ranch isn’t very mysterious. It’s a lot of plain hard work. But some mysterious things have happened here. I’m going to tell you about one of them.

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Prince Ali had everything: talent, charisma, and a devoted best friend, Becky Howard. He won every time he set a hoof in a show ring. He garnered more fans from personal and TV appearances. Becky was with him every step of the way, even riding him in the Swallows Day Parade in their hometown, San Juan Capistrano. Disaster struck when two thugs put Becky in a coma, drugged him and dragged Prince Ali off to sell for diabolical purposes. When their buyer realized who Ali was, he nixed the deal. That landed the pampered show horse high in the mountains in late March. One night, a week later, he discovered the corral gate unlatched. Prince Ali mustered every ounce of strength, courage, and stamina he had to walk into the wilderness, searching for the best friend he couldn’t live without.

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Meet Victoria Hardesty, Your Host for Episode 55: The Mysterious Pig

Victoria Hardesty has owned, bred, and shown Arabian Horses for more than 30 years. She and her husband operated their own training facility, serving many young people who loved and showed their own horses. She is the author of numerous articles in horse magazines and was the editor of two Arabian Horse Club newsletters, one of which was given the Communications Award of the Year by the Arabian Horse Association at their national convention. An avid reader from childhood, she read every horse story she could get her hands on. Victoria and her writing partner, Nancy Perez, have written seven novels about Arabian horses. Check out their website at http://www.wonderhorsebooks.com/author-bio and see their books at Victoria Hardesty and Nancy Perez | Bookshelf (authormasterminds.com).

Wall of Silver — The Lost Mine

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Episode 37: Wall of Silver — The Lost Mine

Who can resist a story about a lost mine? King Solomon’s Mine in Africa, the Lost Dutchman’s Mine in Arizona, and The Wall of Silver in Michigan. They all have a story. Historically, Michigan had vast iron ore and copper deposits in its Upper Peninsula. Gold and silver were also found there, but no mother loads were found in Michigan. Richard Kellogg says he has seen a wall of pure silver at least 90 feet long in a mine in the Keweenaw peninsula of Michigan.

Source:

Kellogg, Richard. Wall of Silver: A Treasure Hunter’s Dream. Avery Color Studios, Inc. 2004

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This podcast is sponsored by Author Masterminds and the Readers and Writers Book Club. 

Check out the Author Masterminds Website

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Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club

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Meet Valerie Winans, the host for Episode 37: Wall of Silver — The Lost Mine

Valerie Winans is a graduate of Northwestern Michigan College, a retired state government manager, and a former campground host in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Valerie is the author of three books: Alaska’s Savage River: Inside Denali National Park and Preserve, Road Trip with Remington Beagle: Michigan to Alaska and Back, and A Hero’s Journey: Life Lessons From A Dog And His Friends. A writer of both fiction and non-fiction, her books are written to inform and entertain readers of all ages. She currently resides with her husband in Traverse City, Michigan. More information can be found at www.valeriewinans.com.

 

 

Trailer for Mysterious

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Why do so many people disappear in Alaska? Who buried Sister Mary Janina in the basement of the church? How did a pig manage to calm the animals at an Arabian horse ranch? Are there stories about Bigfoot in Alaska? Was the sinking of the Clara Nevada an accident or mass murder? Can it rain blood? Where did the saying, “Another one bites the dust,” originate? What happened to the Grand Duchess Anastasia?

Join us on the podcast Mysterious and explore the mysteries in the world around us, including unsolved murders, mysteries found in nature, intriguing historical events, paranormal experiences, and baffling enigmas of space.

The author hosting each episode investigates a true mystery related to their genre. We invite you to listen to Mysterious and take a journey into the unknown.

What Happened to the Edmund Fitzgerald?

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Episode 21: What Happened to the Edmund Fitzgerald?

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down

of the big lake they called Gitchee Gumee

The lake it is said never gives up her dead

when the skies of November turn gloomy

Gordon Lightfoot’s lyrics memorialize the tragedy of the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, but the mystery remains – what sunk the great ship?

Sources:

Stonehouse, Frederick. The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Avery Color Studios, Inc. Gwinn, Michigan. 1977.

Charles River Editors. The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald: The Loss of the Largest Ship on the Great Lakes. Kindle

Schumacher, Michael. The Trial of the Edmund Fitzgerald: Eyewitness Accounts from the U.S. Coast Guard Hearings. University of Minnesota Press. Minneapolis, MN. 2019.

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This podcast is sponsored by Author Masterminds and the Readers and Writers Book Club. 

Check out the Author Masterminds Website

Get to know the authors at The Readers and Writers Book Club

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Meet Valerie Winans, your host for Episode 21: What Happened to the Edmund Fitzgerald?

Valerie Winans is a graduate of Northwestern Michigan College, a retired state government manager, and a former campground host in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Valerie is the author of three books: Alaska’s Savage River: Inside Denali National Park and Preserve, Road Trip with Remington Beagle: Michigan to Alaska and Back, and A Hero’s Journey: Life Lessons From A Dog And His Friends. A writer of both fiction and non-fiction, her books are written to inform and entertain readers of all ages. She currently resides with her husband in Traverse City, Michigan. More information can be found at www.valeriewinans.com.