Hiking Adventures - Jack London's Wolf House

A first for me, writing two blogs in one day! We'll see if I actually finish it. The dates on the photos show that we first toured the "House with Happy Walls" and viewed the ruins of Wolf House on February 23, 2023, so that tells you how long I've been thinking about this blog. I always try to research the topic as I write, to learn more about the subject that I can share with readers, and I imagine the research to do this blog justice would take DAYS, so we'll see how it goes. If nothing else, hopefully I can tell you enough to interest you in going to see for yourself.

One of the great things about our State Parks is they preserve land and make it available to others. Every time we go to Jack London, I learn something new about this amazing man. Touring the House with Happy Walls was probably the most interesting museum I have ever been in. I wandered through the museum, reading and learning for probably almost 2 hours. Then we took the "hike" (a 1/2 mile walk, really) to see the ruins of Wolf House. It is also well-documented, so another learning in itself.

The House With Happy Walls

Before I get into the details, I would be remiss in not telling you a little about the rest of Jack London.

When you first enter Jack London State Park, you can turn right or left to park. Before we had any familiarity with the park, we turned right and parked. There are many hikes available on that side of the park, and we took several of them, then one day we decided to turn left and park in that lot. The only "hike" available on this side of the park is the one to Wolf House. So if you're interested in exercise, you might want to turn right! But if you want to get your mind blown by learning more about Jack London, check out the House with Happy Walls.

According to the information here, Jack's wife, Charmian wrote:

"In case of my death, it is my wish that my home, "House with Happy Walls", is not to be lived in by anyone except a caretaker. This building and its arrangements are peculiarly an expression of myself and its ultimate purpose is that of a museum to Jack London and myself."

After visiting there, I would say that wish has been fulfilled. In addition to learning more about Jack and his adventures, I had never even heard of his second wife, Charmian, until this visit. She was a force in her own right, and well worth learning more about. For instance, she had a job, and was able to buy her own horse at age 23. It was highly unusual for a woman to be such an accomplished horse woman in 1893, even riding astride. I remember hearing that my Great-Aunt Hazel, who was born in 1898 and was also a horsewoman all her life, scandalized people when she rode astride in TROUSERS in the 1920's. I can just imagine the reaction to a woman doing that 30 years earlier.

Some other things I learned in my tour of the House with Happy Walls:

Jack was not just a writer, but his writing was fueled by his many adventures. For instance, at age 15 he became tired of his job at a cannery (where he worked 12-18 hour days) and borrowed money to buy a boat, which he then used to become a oyster pirate (poacher) on the San Francisco Bay.

This was just the first in many adventures that Jack had. His first published writing was a short story "Story of a Typhoon off the Coast of Japan". Another adventure, which fed directly into his writing, was his trip to the Klondike seeking his fortune in gold. This was in 1897, when he was 21 years old. He didn't strike gold, but his adventures and hardships fueled his writing. His first published book was the collection of short stories, The Son of the Wolf, in 1900.  This trip also fueled the books "White Fang" and "The Call of the Wild". I don't know about you, but those were the only books I was familiar with because they were required reading in school. Until I read more about Jack London in the museum, I had no idea he had published over 50 books between 1900 and 1916. Once Jack realized he could make money from writing, he pursued it with a passion, giving himself a goal of writing 1,000 words a day. He saw it as a way out of poverty and also wanted to share his experiences in the wild.

Jack was also an avid sportsman, not only pursuing horseback riding but also boxing, sailing, swimming, surfing, fencing and biking. Charmian did many of these activities with him, and they both found that exercise was essential for mental clarity. Not only did it fuel their own minds, but Jack's experience in Hawaii and knowledge of surfing was brought back to the mainland, the first experience anyone here had with the sport! As with many other topics, he educated others by writing about the sport. For instance, this story brought the experience to life so it could be shared with others.

One of the most compelling displays in the museum was in a tiny room, and all it held was a video on continuous play. I thought it was very well done, because it summarized the main events in Jack's and Charmian's lives, both before they met, all that they did together, and what she accomplished after his death. I think her work to preserve, protect and promote Jack's legacy was a testament to her love for him. Not only did she complete the work he was doing at the time he died, she also worked extensively to get his work translated into other languages and put into film, so it could be enjoyed by as many people as possible.

One of the things I appreciate about Jack was that he was one of the first people who understood the importance of organic farming. To read about his farming techniques, which are being hailed today as "sustainable agriculture" and to realize he was doing this OVER 100 YEARS AGO, was mind-blowing to me. It also reminded me a bit of my father, who was a life-long learner and parlayed his degree in animal husbandry into his own ranching experience. To give you an idea of the scope of what I'm talking about in terms of Jack London's learning, here is a quote from the website:

"I am rebuilding worn-out hillside lands that were worked out and destroyed by our wasteful California pioneer farmers. I believe the soil is our one indestructible asset, and by green manures, nitrogen-gathering cover crops, animal manure, rotation of crops, proper tillage and draining, I am getting results which the Chinese have demonstrated for forty centuries."

OK, in an attempt to wrap this up before dinner, I'll move onto the Wolf House. The path from the House With Happy Walls to Wolf House is easy enough that it could be done by almost anyone, and I recommend it. You really get a sense of the house from visiting it, even though it's in ruins. They do a great job of putting signage from different vantage points, to show what the house would have looked like had it not burned down. Sadly, it went up in flames only 2 weeks before they were supposed to move in, supposedly from oil soaked rags that spontaneously combusted.

Not only do you learn a lot from visiting Jack London State Park, but you have a chance to soak in the natural beauty of the place. There's a reason they called it "Beauty Ranch"!