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.
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 in North 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.
Mt. Sanford, Mt. Drum, the Copper River and the Night Sky. The moon rise to my left threw a nice soft light on the fog over the Copper River Basin. Click on the image above to view a larger version of this photo.
Hey Folks,
With a host of people heading north this winter/spring to photograph the aurora, I thought it might be of some interest to talk a little about the process of shooting photography at night. I know a lot of people have little experience with that, and it really can be a challenge at times. Particularly on a cold frozen night in Alaska when the northern lights start going crazy overhead. We run a couple of Photo Tours for the northern lights, you can check them out here.
So, the first thing I’d suggest, if you haven’t already, is read over my 3 part article on shooting the northern lights. There’s a downloadable PDF at the end of that article you can keep for future reference.
Why Test Shots Matter for Alaska Night Photography
It’s dark. You have a headlamp on, and that gives you a little bit of vision out to maybe 30-50 yards or so. After that, you can’t see too much at all.
The aurora starts to fire up, and you want to shoot it.
You can’t see your foreground and composition. It’s dark. You don’t even know if the foreground is worth shooting. It’s dark. You can’t walk around all over and use your headlamp to see, because (a) there isn’t time, (b) there are other people trying to shoot, (c) you don’t want to track up all the snow by stomping around in it.
So setup your test shots. This is probably the most important part of the process.
Backpacking the 7 Pass Route Wrangell-St. Elias National Park.
Hey Folks,
A favorite topic of mine.
The Impossible Question
Where Do I Want to Backpack Most?
It’s impossible to say. In some ways, I’d simply suggest (and often do) “wherever you happen to have good weather”.
And I’ve done more than a small share of backpacking in Alaska. I’ve backpacked in the arctic, walked the shores of the Arctic Ocean, and I’ve backpacked in temperate rain forests of SE Alaska. I’ve also traversed many, many points in between.
I enjoy them all. Really. I can’t think of any place I don’t enjoy backpacking the wilderness in Alaska. I’ve had some trips that were harder than others, I’ve had some trips with less than favorable weather, I’ve had some trips that I’d love to have another jaunt at and do a “take two”. But I’ve certainly found positive experiences on all of them.
Seriously, backpacking in Alaska is just a unique experience every time. I’ve backpacked the Goat Trail many times, and it’s different every time. The Southern Traverse is a gem, and our newer backpacking route, The Wrangell Ramble, is a really cool hike.
We all know this saying, but most of us rarely apply it.
When it comes to camera gear, most of us have WAY too much. I know I do. But I’m trying to shoot with less gear and more consideration to what I want the image to be.
Often I’ll bring one lens on an outing and shoot with that. Or not shoot and simply observe.
