The Cast of Characters

It's probably simpler to provide the character list up front, along with some basic info. It might save a lot of explanation later!

The travelers:

• Ken: 66 years old, retired. Lives in rural Oregon. Patriarch of the Doran family. Took up gold prospecting upon his retirement. A general outdoorsy kind of guy who likes to hunt and fish. Used to be a warehouseman and was a 911 dispatcher before that. Used to do wilderness search and rescue too. Has 5 kids and 3 grandkids. Except for 4 years in the Army and 6 months in Seattle, has lived within 12 miles of his birthplace his whole life. Has never left the country.
• Patte: 55 years old. Nutritionist. Hardy Montanan. Kid sister of Ken. Has always wanted to go to Alaska. Enjoys hiking and the outdoors. Has a daughter in college. 
• Jeff: 43 years old. Mechanic and truck driver. Lives in Eastern Washington. Husband of Ken's second daughter, Karen. Father of Matthew, Collin, and Kelly. Likes hunting, fishing, and gold prospecting. 
• Sarah: 36 years old. Emergency Manager. Eldest daughter of Ken. Loves Alaska. Doesn't hunt, fish, or gold prospect, but has driven from Seward, Alaska to Seattle, with her husband Jon. Used to do a lot of hiking and was in search and rescue, prior to becoming a desk jockey.

Supporting cast members:

• Margaret: long suffering wife of Ken. They've been married almost 42 years. Is an accountant for a very large farm. 
• Sierra: Daughter of Patte. Living and working in Washington for the summer, but headed back to her senior year of college in Oregon very soon. 
• Karen: Wife of Jeff, second daughter of Ken. Is a tankerman for a barge company. Will be staying home with the kids and working while Jeff is in Alaska. 
• Matthew, Collin, and Kelly: Children of Jeff and Karen, grandchildren of Ken and Margaret. 12, 9, and 6 respectively, though Collin will turn 10 while Jeff's in Alaska.
• Jon: Husband of Sarah. A computer hardware and software geek. Is greatful to not be going to Alaska again. 
• Elizabeth and JB: Elizabeth is Ken's third daughter and lives in Oregon with her husband Jon, who is called JB because there was a preexisting Jon in the family when he joined. 
• Brian and Bridget: Brian is Ken's eldest son and Bridget is Brian's fiance. They live with Sarah and Jon currently while hunting for jobs and going to college.
• Garrett and Nikelly: Garrett is Ken's youngest child and is 18 years younger than Sarah. Nikelly is his girlfriend. Both still live with their respective parents in Oregon. 
• Cliff: Ken's buddy who lives in Alaska. Cliff has a house and a truck there and is conveniently out of state. 
• Jana: Patte's friend's cousin, who lives in Anchorage.