Bemidji, Minnesota — September, 1972–January, 1973

En route to Wisconsin via Manitoba, I met a hippie wanna-be who offered to let me put my tipi up on his land near Lake Bemidji. Bemidji, Minnesota, the “ice-box” of the nation. This chapter relives one of the loneliest, self-searching, and tragic seasons of my life. Survival in sub-zero temperatures required courage, stamina, and insanity. God spared me from freezing to death, the tipi burned up, as did most of my belongings.