Robert Carlin Donahue Jr. (August 16, 1951 – October 14, 2019), better known as "Buckwheat" Donahue, was an American folklorist, storyteller, entertainer, historian, adventurer, and four-time gold-panning champion,[1] best known for his involvement in many different aspects of life in Alaska's Inside Passage. Although known for his time in and work with Alaska, he was born and died in Oklahoma.[2]
As someone who took pleasure in the outdoors, Donahue started the Buckwheat Ski Classic in 1987 and co-founded the Dyea to Dawson Centennial Race to the Klondike, which later became known as the Yukon River Quest.[3][4][2] Beginning on October 1, 2005, he walked 5,300 miles from Miami, Florida to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada, paddled a canoe on the Yukon River 2,200 miles to Kotlik, Alaska, then walked the remaining distance to Nome, Alaska as a fundraiser for The Heartbeat Trail, an effort to provide necessary equipment for the Dahl Memorial Clinic, the only hospital within 110 miles of his home base Skagway.[5] The adventure took 327 days.
Donahue was the executive director of the Skagway Convention and Visitors Bureau. A captivating storyteller, he often entertained crowds of Skagway's many tourists with his tales of the Klondike Gold Rush of 1898. "He is a teller of tales that keep the spirit of Alaska alive," wrote Floridian Larry Ferguson in 2004. "He is a devotee of Robert Service whose poems paint the picture of Alaska during the Gold Rush. And he is, when you see him, the very visage of an Alaskan Sourdough."
References
- ^ Ogintz, Eileen. "Gold Panning in Skagway". Family Travel Network. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
- ^ a b "Longtime community volunteer Buckwheat Donahue dies at age 68". Skagway News. 25 October 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
- ^ "Ski classic founder 'Buckwheat' Donahue dies". CBC News. 15 October 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
- ^ "Community organizations currently fiscally sponsored by SDC-CDS". Skagway Development Corporation.
- ^ Schnuer, Jenna (5 January 2006). "In for the Long Haul". American Way. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
External links
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This page was last edited on 8 February 2024, at 19:39