Alaska Geographic Explained

I mentioned in my currently posts that I took a last-minute “support staff” role at Alaska Geographic for the summer. It turned out to be the job I didn’t even know I needed and wanted!! I freaking loved it. And I thought it deserved a dedicated post because there were so many blog-worthy things about the role related to it this summer. Alaska Geographic is the nonprofit partner of Alaska’s 8 national parks. What does that mean?

Currently: June (late!)

Currently worried about: As many of you might have already heard, a fire broke out near the entrance of Denali National Park on 6/30. Fortunately, crews are working hard to contain it (25% contained so far) and it hasn’t spread very far (388 acres so far). However, it certainly disrupted some tourist activities (closed the park, halted the train, etc), wiped out power in the canyon business district of the park, which displaced workers from their seasonal housing and put jobs on hold. This is heartbreaking for our area where businesses depend entirely on tourism squeezed into 4 short months.

I am grateful at this point because our wood-sided homes surrounded by an enormous forest of natural fuel are not yet affected. It’s easy to downplay volatile weather and our crumbling Earth when viewed in isolated snapshots of events on the news. But when it’s unfolding before your eyes … that’s an entirely different perspective. In general, I’ve always told people it’s not a question of IF there will be a wildfire in our area, but WHEN. This summer has been unbelievably hot and dry thus far after a very low snow winter (as evidenced when our seasonal pond dried up by June 10 versus July 10). So we wait and see and hope for the best and roll with the adaptations in tourist operations.

Currently: July

Currently living/working: We are in the trenches of a very typical Alaskan life: juggling multiple jobs in the long twilight days of latitude 64. Justin guided 16 trips this month! All while squeezing in a press trip and a smattering of cleanings when he could. Meanwhile I guided 14 trips!! And I took on the…

Arctic Adventures: Volume 19—Denali

I believe most people think we have a view of Denali from our cabin.  Sadly, no. We have a view of beautiful mountains that are part of the Alaska Range, but not “The Great One” or “The High One” (the Athabascan translations of Denali) As a comparison, our surrounding mountains in Healy reach between 4,000-6,000…

Denali Training

It’s hard to believe this, but Justin’s Denali Climb (Take 2) is less than 2 months away!! The team is arriving in Anchorage May 10, then hoping to fly onto the mountain May 13 (obviously weather-dependent). I’ve always joked Justin’s training regimen for anything is less than stellar (he trained for a triathlon in 2010…

Denali Gear Check: SPOT X

In case you missed it, Justin mentioned in his last post that he is planning to climb Denali (again) in May 2019!!!! Inevitably, there will be lots of details regarding that prep—especially gear—over the next several months. This past weekend, in fact, he spent time out in Rocky Mountain National Park clearing the cobwebs by…

Denali Top Ten List

Another guest post from Justin (edited by Patrice of course)! My previous mountaineering experiences helped me predict what to expect on Denali, but as with anything, you really don’t know how it’s really going to be until you are wearing the boots yourself. And since I received lots of questions about life on the mountain,…

Justin’s Reflection on Denali

This is a guest post written by Justin (okay, it was edited by Patrice)! It’s been about two weeks since my 23-day adventure on North America’s highest peak concluded. I think Patrice did a wonderful job piecing together bits of information to keep you all informed on my team’s progress on the mountain, but I…

Denali Update: Days 10-18

Justin and his RMI team have been facing some not-so-ideal weather up on Denali (65 MPH winds, -35 degree temps). So they are on day ELEVEN being stuck (but safe) at Camp 3 (14,200 feet). I know those conditions sound extremely harsh, but I did get to speak to Justin and he is in great…

Denali Update: Days 3-9

I’m happy to report that Justin and his RMI team are plugging along up the mountain!! Weather has been really decent (in Denali terms) and they have made it up to Camp 3 (14,000 feet).  Read below to get a sense of the hard, back-breaking work they endure day after day on the mountain. I’m tired…

Denali Update: Days 1 and 2

After going through gear and National Park Service protocols, Justin, Bobby and his team flew from Talkeetna to Kahiltna Glacier with K2 Aviation on Thursday, May 12. It was a beautiful day for flying! J is the 3rd from the left and Bobby is the 5th from the right. (Don’t worry, they didn’t try to…

Denali Gear List

Fellow gear junkies, get excited. This post is all about gear!!! But first, a few other details.  Justin and Bobby (Bolt) flew to Alaska today for the long-awaited attempt to climb Denali.  The boys are climbing with RMI Expeditions. This is the same guiding service we used to climb Rainier and that Justin used to climb Shuksan. There are…

Training For Denali

Here’s a blast from the past from J’s first visit to Alaska in 2003.  Many people have asked how J’s training for Denali is going. And now that he is leaving tomorrow, I am finally ready to answer. (I was really waiting to see the training start … JK). I must preface by saying J…

Denali Bid 2016

You might have heard the big news. President Obama changed the name of North America’s highest peak from “Mount McKinley” back to “Denali.” You also might have heard that Denali shrunk from 20,320 feet to 20,310 feet.  Denali sure is making the news a lot lately, huh? We are going to add to it.  J…