Our tent made it through a good week and a half of 40+ mph winds with the help of a tarp secured with Indian grommets. Chad taught us how to use available materials to make stakes, lashes, and grommets that were Much less likely to rip out in the wind than the metal grommets most tarps are born with.
Materials:
-Straight, live branches, trimmed down
-Small stones
-Twine
-Hand axe
-Tarp
-Hammer
Process:
Branches are hacked to a rough point on one end with an axe.
Twine is cut into wingspan-length pieces, and a loop is tied into one end of each length.
A stone is placed underneath the tarp where you want to secure it. The tarp is then wrapped tightly around the stone, and the loop side of a lash is used to secure the stone-in-tarp.
The lash is then pulled to where you want your tarp to meet the ground. A stake should then be placed at a wide angle to the orientation of the lash. Hammer the stake into the ground.
Wrap the loose end of the lash, starting as Close to the ground as possible, around the stake. Make a loop knot (like the first part of tying your shoes, but one side is pulled through to make a loop so it can be undone easily later) to secure, stand back, and admire your work.
Materials:
-Straight, live branches, trimmed down
-Small stones
-Twine
-Hand axe
-Tarp
-Hammer
Process:
Branches are hacked to a rough point on one end with an axe. 
Twine is cut into wingspan-length pieces, and a loop is tied into one end of each length.
A stone is placed underneath the tarp where you want to secure it. The tarp is then wrapped tightly around the stone, and the loop side of a lash is used to secure the stone-in-tarp.
The lash is then pulled to where you want your tarp to meet the ground. A stake should then be placed at a wide angle to the orientation of the lash. Hammer the stake into the ground. 
Wrap the loose end of the lash, starting as Close to the ground as possible, around the stake. Make a loop knot (like the first part of tying your shoes, but one side is pulled through to make a loop so it can be undone easily later) to secure, stand back, and admire your work.
Comments
We used these in alaska when we couldn't drive stakes in due to rocky terrain, permafrost etc. We would dig our camp out of the snow a bit, then we'd tie the other end of the line that would normally be staked to a largish or flat rock, a long stick/scrap driftwood, etc, and basically 'bury' it in the snow or under a bunch of smaller rocks.
Snow | Tent
|
X-----/\
| ~~~~
Just another random note :D
What were you doing in Alaska? How long were you there, and did you camp the whole time? Sounds like good stories are hidden in there.