THE JOURNEY: ALASKA
Marty Raney grew up off-grid in North Bend, Washington. It seems he was put to work on the day he was born. There are not a lot of childhood memories that do not revolve around the unending duties of homesteading: clearing land, chopping wood, and feeding animals. At age 16, he quit school, left home, and ventured to Alaska.
SOUTHEAST ALASKA: The Off-Grid Alaskan Adventure Begins
Marty married Mollee Roestel and their adventures began in 1974 in the logging camps of Southeast Alaska. Their first home in Alaska was not only off-grid, it was off land: a floating logging camp off of Prince of Wales Island. His family often lived without power, water, plumbing, or heat. One year later, they found themselves on a 160-acre homestead in Haines, Alaska. Their homestead was off- grid, 100 miles from town. A few years later, they moved to yet another off-grid floating logging camp, 100 air miles from the small, coastal fishing town of Sitka, Alaska. Some would call this “roughing it,” but make no mistake about it, it builds character. Living without modern conveniences inspires creativity, ingenuity, resourcefulness, and an innate appreciation for all things simple. It bonds families. Subsisting off the land is an integral part of the Raney lifestyle. Dip netting salmon, and annual moose, caribou, and sheep hunts, are done as a family.
ADVENTURE: THE RANEY WAY
The mid-1980s found the Raneys 800 miles farther north in Alaska. Now with four children in tow (two boys and two girls), the Raneys began hiking, skiing, subsistence hunting and fishing, and adventuring the wilds of Alaska as a family. Mountains have always played a significant role in Marty’s Alaskan life: subsistence hunting and fishing, climbing, and exploring. In 1986, he began guiding 21-day climbing expeditions up North America’s highest peak, Denali (elev. 20,320 feet). To date, the Raneys are the only family of six (husband, wife, and four children) who have all climbed Denali multiple times. Marty reflects on his well-lived life in Alaska: “Some people have an adventure of a lifetime; in Alaska, I’ve had a lifetime of adventure.”
A NEW VENTURE: The World of Television as a Survival Expert
National Geographic Channel came to Alaska scouting survivalists for their new show, Ultimate Survival Alaska. Marty filmed 36 episodes, spanning the course of three years. Prior to this show, Marty was known in Alaska as an "all around survival guy," as one news article summated. But television launched him into another realm of notoriety as an off-grid expert.
OFF-GRID TELEVISION HOST: Homestead Rescue | Discovery Channel
As logging was a seasonal occupation, Marty worked construction during the winter months, doing everything. With that varied skill set, he started his own construction company in 1982 and has been self-employed ever since. It is this diversity of construction experience and survival knowledge that has led to being chosen as the host of Discovery Channel’s Homestead Rescue. The show focuses on real people, with real needs, who really do live off-grid. When the Raneys arrive, the homesteaders give them their backstory and tell them their needs. The goal is to leave them better off than they found them. In a short span of time, peoples’ lives are being changed. From drilling water wells, to installing solar, wind, and hydro energy. The transformation of their homestead reboots the homesteaders' dreams and inspires them to start anew. Homestead Rescue has become a nationwide and global success, with Discovery Channel reaching over 2.2 billion subscribers worldwide.
ALASKA, FULL CIRCLE: Raney Ranch | Discovery Channel and Returning to Off-Grid Living in Alaska’s Wilderness
After 47 years in Alaska, Marty’s beginnings have come full circle: the Raneys once again live off-grid with no road access. Marty and Mollee have carved out a piece of the Alaskan wilderness, living on a 40-acre homestead in Alaska, on property only accessible by crossing a raging, Class IV river. Marty’s family has launched a new series on Discovery Channel, Raney Ranch, which follows the family’s off-grid adventures on their Alaskan homestead. This is a new chapter in the Raney family legacy: an off-grid homestead authentically built by hand. Their self-sustaining life in one of the harshest climates adheres to Marty’s motto: “Alaska is better than fiction.”