Tag Archives: trip-reports

Moose Rack, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska

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A hiker, Natalie, sits with a moose rack and skull, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

I ran across what is easily the biggest moose rack I’ve ever come across in the woods a few days ago. I was on the last leg of a hike in Alaska’s gorgeous Wrangell Mountains in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, from the Sanford River drainage over the Sanford Plateau, and down to the Dadina River.

Natalie (pictured) and I were sauntering through the forest, along the Dadina River when I spotted this rack, not far from the game trail we were walking along. This was one BIG bull moose – I don’t know what happened to the grand old fella, but he’s bones now. He must’ve been a pretty awesome creature back in the day. There are a number of wolves in the area, and grizzly bears as well, and I’m sure he fed them well, along with the myriad other carnivores in the region – wolverine, fox, marten, gulls, ravens, eagles, etc.

What a treat it must’ve been for them when he passed, and what a treat it would’ve been to see him walking through the forest beforehand. RIP, great bull.

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Cold Feet

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Hiker, barefoot, in winter, frozen lake, Mt. Sanford, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Life has a way, all too often, of providing us with little (or large) lessons on what we need to work on. Communication is something that all of us frequently do poorly, and here’s a good example of that, and how it can mess up your day. I’m usually pretty good about seeking advice from those who know better than me (my father will disagree, I’m sure). So when I first came to AK, I asked my good and trusted friend Ron Niebrugge for some advice.

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Winter in McCarthy

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2 Winters in McCarthy from an Aussie Photographer

Spending winter in McCarthy is a study in both extreme beauty and quiet endurance. Life in Wrangell St. Elias National Park during the coldest months revolves around the simple mechanics of survival, like hauling wood for the shack or coaxing a frozen snowmachine to life.

While most people only see this landscape in the green of summer, the true character of the backcountry emerges when the crowds vanish and the mercury drops toward minus fifty. The mountains seem to pull closer in the crisp air, and the vast silence is only broken by the occasional crunch of skis on fresh powder.

The following collection of images and stories comes from my time poking around the frozen Kennecott River and the Lakina drainage.

Whether it is chasing the magenta alpenglow on Mt. Porphyry or hunting for abstract patterns in the snow covered glacial moraines, winter photography here is a constant battle against the elements. Everything from sticking tripod legs to fogged viewfinders makes each frame a hard earned reward. It is a slow, cold way of living, but catching that soft noon light on an unnamed peak makes every subzero mile worth the effort.

Livin in the a Little Shack Down by the River

A cabin in the woods in winter, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

My humble abode. This is after I shovelled all the snow off the roof. There’s about another 6-9 inches of snow on the roof already!

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Backpacking Tebay lakes, Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Alaska

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Backpacking near tebay lakes, Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

hey Folks,

Here’s what happens when the guide lets someone else lead. Sergei, aka, Borat, was confident of his ability to lead us to our next campsite. he’d been in this area with me last year, and figured he knew the way. So I said ‘sure, you go on ahead’, we’ll follow you. We were aiming to stay on the southern side of this ridge, staying well below the crest, traversing around to our campsite. Sergei pushed higher and higher t every opportunity, and before ya know it, we came over the top, looking toward Tebay Lakes to the north of us. Jodee’s standing here, looking around asking herself “What The Heck?” and the rest of the group had collapsed on the ground.

🙂

Well, that’s not QUITE the truth, but Sergei did lead us up this ridge – and it was a pretty sweet spot to hang out for a while.

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Hiking Harry’s Gulch, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

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Sveta hiking Harry’s Gulch, on the Bremner - Tebay Lakes backpacking trip, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Here’s another image from the Harry’s Gulch section of the Bremner Mines to Tebay Lakes trip we did in August. This is Svetlana, or Sveta, as she hiked past me on the ridgeline. We decided a little further on that we were a tad high, and the sidehilling was a little slow, so we descended to easier walking down along the valley floor. A good decision, but I’m sure glad we spent time up high too – great views back east through the Chugach Mountains.

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Waterfall, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska

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Waterfall on the East Fork Tributary of the Little Bremner River, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Here’s an image from the recent Bremner Mines to Tebay Lakes trip we did. This one is of a small waterfall we passed by as we paralleled the East Fork of the Little Bremner River, heading west down out of the pass at Harry’s Gulch. This was definitely one of the coolest sections of the hike.

The night before we camped on a grassy bench just below the pass, had a visit at dinner time from a grizzly bear, and then enjoyed a really delightful walk down the valley. The stream grew larger and larger as other tributaries ran into it – up at the head of the pass it was a fraction of the size it was here.

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Fall colors, Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Alaska

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Fall colors in Monahan Creek, Chugach Mountains, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

hey Folks,

Here’s one of the few images I took on this recent trip – the weather wasn’t too great for photography, much as it hasn’t been all summer long. We started our hike with drizzly, cloudy socked in skies and and cold damp air. The weather improved a little over the 8 days, but never for long. The rain and cold threatened pretty much constantly. This particular morning the skies were partially clear, but by lunch time the clouds ad rolled in and the blue skies gone. I was hoping to get at least something from this area, because it’s such a great scene. The broad alpine valleys really appeal to me, the expansive Alaskan landscape feels so welcoming to walk through. This was taken right from our little kitchen area, and the fall colors were great. The evening before was dreary, though the damp air really made the colors pop a little more.

This was taken just east of Bremner Mines, in the Monahan Creek drainage, on our trek from Iceberg Lake to Bremner Mines.

Cheers

Carl

Hiking in snow

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Hiking in snow in Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Here’s Sergei, also known as ‘Borat’. We ascended this pass on day 2 of our trip, in good weather, fortunately, and I scarpered ahead of some members of the group to grab a few photos. One of the few times I was close to the front of the group – it was a great group of hikers. Sergei acquired 2 nicknames this year – ‘Borat’, initially, because his Russian accent is almost a perfect rendition of the film character – his second nickname came a little later in the trip – Day 3, I believe. We’ll talk about that one on another post.

We had some great weather on this particular day, it cleared up nicely, and the hiking was superb – not too hot, but not raining. On this hike we went through 4 high alpine mountain passes, each of which was quite a slog. The first 2 were snow-covered, but the last 2 were snow free. This one had a nice glacier on both sides of the pass, which made good walking. The terminal moraine at the end of each glacier was a little more treacherous.

Cheers

Carl

Backpacking in the snow

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Backpackers stop in a snowy pass, near Bremner Mines, Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Just back in from a GREAT hike – Bremner Mines, in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, to Tebay Lakes. We had an amazing time, and loved nearly every second of the trip. We started a little hesitantly – our flight in to the backcountry was a day late, due to inclement weather, and when we arrived, things hadn’t seemed to be on the improve.

We hit a good hail storm within 10 minutes of landing and heading off – so rather than ‘tent it’, we stayed the first night in a little bunkhouse cabin near the old mines, currently occupied by the Park Service archaeologist, Barbara, a delightful and knowledgeable lady who made our night a treat. The next morning the weather was marginally better, and by the time we hit the first pass, close to lunch, we’d already hiked through a small snow storm.

Here’s the view of the group at the pass, Jodee, Geoff, Svetlana, Mike and Sergei, from left to right. I think they’re wondering ‘what the hell are we doing up here’, before we set off down the steep snowy slope – an adventure, for sure.

All up, the trip was fantastic, the scenery incredible, the hiking a good challenge, and the group wonderful – everyone really chipped in and made this a memorable hike.

I’ll post some more over the next week or so.

Cheers

Carl

Camping by Mt Sanford, Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Alaska

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Camped in front of Mt Sanford, Wrangell St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

So I got back right on time – the last glows of the evening were just dwindling down, and I arrived back at the ‘house’ and grabbed my camera, and set up this shot. 10 minutes earlier and the color in the sky was gorgeous. 25 minutes earlier and the mountain was on fire. Zanetti and Wrangell, further south, were even more spectacular. As per usual, my impeccable timing got me a drab sky and no great light.

Cheers

Carl