May 2009

Water temperatures are finally warming up and the kiteboarding communtiy is showing up on Turnagain Arm. Nik(pictured), Jeff and I had a nice session on Turnagain Arm on Sunday.

The weather and paragliding have been excellent in Alaska the past few weeks. Here's a sequesce of pictures my friend Kjell took and pieced together of me launching off Mt. Baldy in Eagle River. 

Although the image is blurry, it was taken by a friend of the first kiteboarding session in Alaska this spring. There was plenty of wind and it was somewhat chilly, but the kiting was quite amazing.  The really interesting part are all the ice slabs stacked up on shore.....it was even more interesting trying to avoid the ice chunks in the water.  That's just how kiting in Alaska in April tends to be.

April 2009

Springtime in Alaska is one of my favorite times of year.  It's getting warmer and the daylight hours are longer.  The Snowkiting and Paragliding have been spectacular this year.

Paragliding above the Chugach Range.

Snowkiting in front of Portage Glacier.

Paragliding high over Eagle River.

Iceland/March 2009:

Dixie and I spent 10 days in Isafjordur, Iceland guiding a group of Belgians who are ambitious about skiing to the North Pole in 2010.  We did a 50-60 mile traverse of the Drangajokull Icecap.  The weather proved to be challenging at times with high winds, blowing snow, and even driving rain.  Much of the trip was in whiteout conditions. The group proved to be impecable and all are looking forward to their quest to reach the North Pole in April of next year.

Iditarod 2009:

The first Saturday March is the start of the Last Great Race, Iditarod.  For the past 15 years I have helped my friend Jeff King at the start of the race and several years at the finish in Nome.   This year was no different.  Under beautiful skies, Jeff, pictured here left Anchorage at the Ceremonial start on his way to Nome.

March 2009:

Alaska in March is fabulous.  The daylight hours are longer and temperatures warmer.We started the month with fresh snow and some interesting and intense kiting conditions in the Portage Valley area.  Kiting in front of Portage Glacier proper was unbelievable.  The next day with favorable winds, we were able to climb off of the Lake and into the mountains to some amazing terrain lined by snow capped peaks and blue skies.  It really doesn't get any better than this during springtime in Alaska.

February 2009:

It is not to many times in the middle of winter, in Alaska that the lakes are good for ice skating.  Typically there is to much snow.  This winter presented some very warm temperatures and the opportunity for some Kiteskating on Eklutna Lake.  Imagine a large kite pulling you around a large lake at high speed.  Great fun and it does have the tendancy to be somewhat precarious.  After a great session with the kite, a friend and I skated the length of the lake and back...about a 15 mile round trip.  It was a good day out!!

January 2009:

The past week in Alaska found temperatures in the 40s and even 50s. With the snow melting and city streets flooding, some friends noticed that Eagle River was flowing strong with minimal ice jamming.  January in Alaska, can there be a better time for running rivers??  With temperatures above 30F and partly sunny skies, I grabbed my packraft and myself and two friends paddled for three hours down the main section of Eagle River.  Spectacular trip and mostly done on TOP of the ice that is still lining the river bottom. 

December 2008:

With the wind howling in Palmer and Wasilla a few friends and I decided to see how it would be for snowkiting.  It's one of the few times I've been out that my smallest Kite was too big!  The wind was gusting in excess of 40mph and it was 5 degrees F, WITHOUT the windchill. When big gusts came, we'd be kiting in whitout conditions.  It was pretty wild and very fun. My friend Dave described it as ballistic! Oddly enough, we were right out in front of Sarah Palin's house.....she did not come out and join us.

November 2008:

Prepartions are coming together for the upcoming guiding expedition to Isafjodur, Iceland in March with Dixie.  We will not only be training a determined group of guys that we'll take to the North Pole next year but also testing gear for an upcoming Antarctic expedition.

October 2008:

I was finally able to kite the epic Bore tide/wave on Alaska's notorious Turnagain Arm.  See the 'In Action' gallery for images and the news section for the latest articles in Kiteboarding magazine.

Photo courtesy of Ron Niebrugge/www.wildnatureimages.com