Even though they might only be little, grizzly bear cubs are pretty bold – bold enough to climb on a stick and poke their tongue out at my camera.
They know full well, of course, that their mother outweighs me by several hundred pounds, is a coupla yards quicker than my aged legs can carry me 😁, is quite a bit stronger, has bigger, pointier teeth, sharper, longer claws, and is a LOT more willing to get in a tussle than I am.
Coastal plain, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska (aerial photo).
Hey Folks,
(An older piece of writing I thought might be useful to re-promote nowadays).
One night I attended public comment hearing for the preliminary stages of a Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP) for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). In short, a comment period allows the public to offer information and thoughts on some of the issues they feel might need to be addressed, and oftentimes their thoughts as to how those issues should be addressed. The CCP is a document that “outlines and guides long-term management” of the Refuge.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) are the land management agency responsible for managing the Refuge. It’s worth browsing the FWS ANWR webpage for some useful ideas on how this works.
One of the critical topics up for discussion is the designation of “wilderness” in the Refuge. Currently, nearly half (41%) of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge 19.3 million acres is designated wilderness. The remaining 10 million acres are not currently designated “wilderness”. The FWS proposed to study these areas and determine whether or not they qualify as wilderness; the ‘Wilderness Review‘ section of the CCP. A recommendation would then be made to Congress to designate these areas wilderness. Such a designation would render the Refuge off-limits to oil and gas extraction.
Comparison of Bear claws – black bear claws (Ursus americanus), polar bear claw (Ursus maritimus), grizzly bear claw (Ursus arctos) and Kodiak bear claws. Please click on the image for a larger version of this photo.
I thought I’d post this old shot, as it might be of interest to some folks. A photo showing the different size and shapes of claws from various species of American bears. From left to right, the claws are: black bear, polar bear, grizzly bear, coastal brown bear or Kodiak bear. The polar bear is the only true carnivore out of those species, but it’s claws are but a fraction of the size of those belonging to the great grizzly, and in particular, the coastal brown bear.
Bear claws, and particularly the grizzly claws, were long revered as a symbol of power, both physical and spiritual, to many Native American Indian cultures; wearing the bear claw was often only an earned respect. Anyone’s who’s seen such fearsome weaponry up close can attest as to why.
The relationship of the polar bear and the grizzly bear is interesting. Polar bears are believed to have split off from the grizzly bear lineage approximately 150 000 years ago in a time of global climate cooling – arctic living skills became an advantage. So the polar bears stayed in the north, and the grizzlies enjoyed the warmer climes further south. Rarely did the 2 run into each other.
One of the most common questions we get, every trip, every year, every month, is “What to pack?”
We provide all guests with a ton of info on packing. People often look for a shortcut and then want to “hope for the best”. “Will I be OK with … “ is usually really a question of “I don’t want to bring xyzzy”.
And, of course, you MIGHT be ok without all that gear. You might just nail the weather and enjoy shorts and t-shirt weather the entire time.
Heart of the Park Backpacking trip, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.
It’s sad that opening up the book on the history of guiding opens up the book on the history of colonization. It definitely does.
That being said, there were early frontier guides that were closer to native life, and some that wanted to destroy it.
Kit Carson (1809-1868) was in the camp of the former.
In the frontier era, many guides roamed the wilderness, yet none garnered as much admiration as Kit Carson. He never made it to Alaska, but he made it everywhere else. Renowned for his pivotal role in the USA absorbing California and New Mexico, in his later career Carson led the defense against Confederate attempts to seize the nascent American West. To delve deeper into these captivating stories of how our country relied on this man to create a bi-coastal nation, I recommend losing yourself in Hampton Side’s Blood and Thunder. Carson forged close bonds with numerous tribes, fully immersing himself in their languages and lifestyles.
The Wrangell Ramble, out newest backpacking trip. Join us this summer.
Hey Folks,
As most of you folks know, we try to add something new to our little list of Alaska backpacking trips each year. This year, we have one we’re super stoked to announce.
Ten Years in the Making. This little jaunt combines a few trips we’ve run over the years (and still do) with an Exploratory backpacking trip we crushed in 2022, and did not crush in 2021.
The Wrangell Ramble traverses a short section of the northern and north eastern Wrangell Mountain Range. And it holds something for everyone.
Mountain Views? Maybe the best.
High alpine tundra walking? Higher ASL as any trip we run.
View of Denali, from a backpacking trip in Denali National Park and Preserve.
Hey Folks,
A few years ago I spent a glorious week in Denali National Park and Preserve, camped out in the backcountry at one of my favorite spots to hang – a high ridge to the north of Denali, or Mt. McKinley as it was once officially known (see this post for a discussion concerning the name of the mountain).
After too many years and way too many footsteps across the tundra, I finally happened to be in the right place at the right time. Previous trips had me wet, cold, hungry, and wondering where this infamous mountain actually was (hidden, veiled behind the infernal clouds).
Fun times making music in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska
Hey Folks
A quick little starter blog for 2024. Enjoy.
Must have gear
I can’t think of a single trip we run in Alaska that I wouldn’t pack a beanie for. Not one.
Favorite trip we do?
Whichever one is sunny.
My Least Favorite weather element?
Wind. And it’s not close.
I, mean, NOT EVEN CLOSE to close.
Most commonly overlooked piece of gear for a trip?
Lip balm.
What’s the appeal of Alaska?
For me, it’s the wildness. Theres simply no place quite like it N America when it comes to raw, untrammeled landscape. That has always felt like home to me.
We call this little ridge “The Mezzanine” .. Great hiking, great campsite, and just a fantastic place to wrap up the day. Rhane saw a wolverine wander through camp here this summer.
The Southern Traverse may just be my favorite hike in the world.
