Fjällräven Abisko Trail T-Shirt
Purchased September 2017, reviewed August 2018 The Abisko Trail T-Shirt is a “lightweight trekking” lyocell-blend base layer from Swedish company Fjällräven. At $60 retail this is about as expensive as a short-sleeved base layer top gets, but last year I … Read More
Blackbird Traverse
In early August I found myself at the Snowbird Glacier Hut, poring over the Bomber Traverse Map with three Canadian women who had just made it to the hut in the middle of a storm. Wind shook the hut and … Read More
The Bad Kash Traverse
Some trip reports are inspiring. Some are informative. Others are warnings. On the last day of June, 2018, Brett Woelber, Dre Benitez and I set out to float the Kashwitna River via the MCA’s Holden Hut site in the Talkeetna … Read More
Cumulus Mountain
Cumulus Mountain (5,815 ft.) Ram Glacier Route: 5.9 miles each way, 4,500 ft. elevation gain. Difficulty: Class 2+. My time: 6 hours round trip ▼KMZ Dragon Tail Ridge Route: 5.2 miles each way, 4,800 ft. elevation gain. Difficulty: Class 3-. … Read More
McHugh Peak
McHugh Peak (4,311 ft.) Bear Valley route (North Ridge): 5.4 miles round trip, 2,300 ft. elevation gain. Difficulty: Class 2s4. My time: 2.5 hours Rabbit Creek routes (East Ridge): ~10 miles round trip, ~2,900 ft. elevation gain. Difficulty: Class 2+s4. … Read More
Gold Cord Lake Trail
Gold Cord Lake Trail Less than 1 mile each way, ~600 ft. elevation gain. Difficulty: Class 1. My time: 1 hour round trip The Talkeetna Mountains of Alaska are a maze of lush alpine valleys, old mining roads, and black-stained … Read More
Fjällräven Greenland No. 1 Special Edition
Purchased February 2018, reviewed August 2018, updated December 2018 According to Fjällräven, the original Greenland jacket was introduced by Åke Nordin in 1968. Fjällräven (pronounced “fee-ahl-rah-ven”) has produced various versions of their “most classic” climbing jacket ever since, in a … Read More
Arctic to Indian
For some, skiing the Arctic to Indian traverse through western Chugach State Park is a bucket-list accomplishment. For others, it’s an annual tradition. Either way this 21-mile tour across ice bridges, through serene cottonwood groves, up tundra valleys between shining snow-laced peaks, and down a hair-raising luge to Turnagain Arm is bound to be an adventure.… Read More
Tents in Valhalla: Bikepacking Knik Glacier
In March 2017, the stars and snows aligned to create a legendary day of Alaska fattire biking. Word had gotten out that you could ride from Hunter Creek across the Knik River to Knik Glacier, and when we arrived there … Read More