For the 4th of July we packed up the kids, rafts and dogs and headed north to Talkeetna to float the Susitna River from Gold Creek to Talkeetna. This stretch of river is 40 miles of mellow class I with nice gravel bars and islands for camping and an easy take out that's within 1 mile of where you leave your vehicle. The best part? You approach by train. And not just any train - but the last true flag-stop train in America.    ( Read more... )

Photos from a week of climbing in the North Cascades with ascent of the Sulphide Glacier on Mt. Shuksan and the North Ridge of Mt. Baker.   ( Read more... )

Photos and notes from a 5 day kid float down Meander Canyon - the mellow 51 mile stretch of the Colorado River from Potash to Spanish Bottom.   ( Read more... )

Jake on the SW Face of Triplemint.

Jake on the SE Face of Montana.

Photos for an August ascent of Triplemint Peak in the Talkeetna Mountains. Also some some photos and notes from Montana Peak.   ( Read more... )

Eric high on the SW ridge of Mount Soggy.

Photos from ascents of Vertigo Peak and Mount Soggy.   ( Read more... )

Photos from a Memorial Day weekend float on the Upper Nenana River from mile 17 of the Denali Park road to the Parks Highway (20 river miles). This is a totally mellow Class I float that, in my opinion, is perhaps the best kid's river in Southcentral AK.   ( Read more... )

Looking towards Crow Pass from Paradise Peak on a beautiful September Day. The mountain center left is the West face of Rook Mountain.

Notes and photos from 3 early fall days of scrambling around the peaks west of Crow Pass.    ( Read more... )

Icicle Peak route profiles and pictures.   ( Read more... )

...Anywhere else in Chugach State Park, Baneful Peak at 5,495', would be a worthy objective - but when dwarfed by 6,000', 7,000' and 8,000' peaks like Bashful, Baleful and The Mitre, it seems trivial and hardly worth the effort. And so we halfheartedly started our scramble up the grassy tundra slopes just above treeline. However - within a couple hundred feet the ridge quickly transformed from a tundra stroll to an exposed 3rd class scramble as we gained elevation. The north side of the ridge was a 1500' cliff to our left - and the south side of the ridge was a 4000' steep slope on our right. We scrambled on - every step of the way becoming a little more intricate and interesting.    ( Read more... )

... Our route first climbed to Albino Lake where we set up our tents near the lakeshore. West of camp was an easy route up the south ridge of Lonesome Mountain (11,399') and we spent a layover day taking turns hiking up the south ridge for a great view of the high lakes region. We followed this up with a short move over a pass to Jasper Lake where we camped in-between Jasper and Golden lakes and scrambled up the south ridge of Spirit Mountain (12,283'). This in turn was followed by a long day across the high lakes plateau to a buggy camp at Renee Lake followed by a casual walk out a nice trail. The hiking was quite pleasant and the fishing was excellent...    ( Read more... )