arctic valley

sup all.
from Alaska.

dont know what else really.


heres a little poem to get to know me...



Its a long five miles up the white knuckle mountain drive
Icy turns don’t forgive a bit a place ripe for some shit to die

Past various training ranges home of the Alaska Stryker brigade
Under a fierily magenta sky that gradually sets all day

Once above the tree line you begin to see things in black and white
Misty and cold far away peaks so faint jus a hint remain in site

Then it’s a mad dash to get packed once doors open and boots hit the ground
the loud crunching snow, zippers, shivers and a lot of ‘come on” sounds

the walk starts out not that bad the first part begins on packed path
lookin like i got little wings strapped to the body of the Michelin man

straight up the summit stopping jus enough to keep our hearts from exploding
though it looks like it will take forever I know its less than an hour without slowing

as we get nearer to the top empty army barracks start to come into view
old bob wire fence and attack dog pens covered in deep snow like a dune

soon were passing dilapidated shacks in the mists of a military ghost city
loose sheet metal clashing against deserted buildings while sub zero winds hit me

we adopted a building for our own its got a fire pit on the down low
jus a place too kick it long enough for our boogers to become unfroze

once its time to ride, its a ten minute glide thru virgin powder
carving that bitchs back up brutal as my board viciously rips down her




peace

Snowolf

Welcome. Where in Alaska? I used to be stationed at Eielson AFB just south of Fairbanks. This winter I went up there for 8 days of riding at Alyeska and it was an epic trip. I also drove up to Fairbanks for a weekend. I rode at Mt. Auroa Skiland out on the Steese Hwy at the Cleary Summit. It was awesome day of riding and I went out to Chena Hot Springs and soaked in the pool afterward. Good times!!! Alyeska kicks ass and I will be back this winter....

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arctic valley

cool,

yea ive never boarded up in fairbanks. i know someone that likes goin up there to cleary though. thats the abandoned one right. im from the anchorage area.

chena, that place is the most bizzar experiences. i remember the first time i went in the rock pond it reminded me of an ice age Gomora. lol
nothin X rated but thru the thick fog and darkness you could jus see faint outlines of couples and hear them laughing, whispering.
were you in fairbanks when they were doin the ice sculptures?
thats worth seeing.



alyeska should be even better next year. it just changed ownership so they shut down early to make upgrades. for me.
get much powder when you were there.
did you get a chance at christmas chute.


you should check out hatcher pass for next time. palmer/wassila
if you catch it with a fresh foot its as incredible as alyeska.
its an undeveloped catch a lift up in the bed of a truck kinda place.
untamed. no rules, no directions and if you level out and stop no help. lol
you really gota pick your run carefully or its a 5 feet a minute swim out.
but it keeps it exciting.

also alpenglow is aight if you want steep.
its jus outside anchorage.

thanks

Snowolf

Cool, we need to stay in touch for this winter when I come up. I did`nt know about Alpenglow. I knew there was Hilltop, but heard it was small and flat. I hear a guy talk about Hatcher, maybe if we can get together we can plan to do it if the snow is good. Its nice to have a local guide for that kind of thing...

Last year a buddy of mine on this forum (Ak-Man) began snowboarding and was getting lots of advice here on the foorum and we started talking. I am an instructor at Mt. Hood Meadows. He was going to come down here, but things changed and he paid for my travel up there to teach him and his kids to snowboard. What is cool is he had access to a condo untit literaly right across the parking lot from chair 4. We would sit and wathc the grooming cats on the hill from the condo! Every day we would ride and I would do some teaching then after lunch I would hit the entire mountain. Would spend all day up on Chair 6 until night then it was laping Cahair 1. My favorite run was the gnarly rocks/pillows down Gear Jammer. I would play around on picnic rock on the way down to the midway loading point of Chair 1 then down Gear Jammer I would go! Love that run.

I did a lot of High Traverse as well as the north face when it was open. Yes I dropped Christmas chute multiple times and I have a fun video of me dropping it after it got icy in the narrow section. Ski patroller Jeff took the vide; he had just opened it for the day and we were the first two to ride it. they later closed it due to that ice.

My friend and I are planning another meet this winter but will do it later this time in order to try to get a heli day out of Chgiatch Powder Guides. I was there over Christmas and no heli/cat boarding was up and going yet. I had some awesome powder. I flew in on Christams eve and as you know we got good snow that night. They had 26 inches of fresh at the top of the tram. Everyday it snowed a few inches so I had some very, very good pow days...it was the hardest thing to do to get on that plane and leave!

Ak-Man was generous enough to loan me his pickup to drive to Fairbanks so I had a very nice new 4X4 with studded tires to make the trip up. It was mild that week and I only saw -30 one day, the rest of the time it was around -15. Fairbanks had a sucky year for snow and Moose was not open. Mt Auroa was a real surprise to me at how good the terrain was. Had there been about another foot on the base it would have been epic riding. I loved the birch tree runs and really the whole place has a great fee to it. I wrote a report about it and posted here as well as on my blog. I highly recomend you give a try some time. Steve and Linda at the Fairbanks Creek Lodge (also own Mt. Auroa) are wonderfull people and the stay there was so much fun. They feed you a gigantic breakfast and have northern lights viewing at he lodge at night so you can sit by a warm fire and watch the northern lights through floor to ceiling north facing windows!

I loved Chena! that rock pool with all the rime ice formations and colored lights is awesome and I spent a couple of hours in the pool then had a Prime Rib dinner. Also, next time yo get to Fairbanks, you have to eat at the Chena Pump House Saloon. It is right off the Parks HWY as you get into town before the airport. off Chena Pump Road...one mile south on the left. Awesom food and the bar is awesome. After dinner I enjoyed a hot Brandy and a $20 cigar that was to die for!

Ah shit, I love the place so much I get carried away talking about it...Ill shut the hell up now...here is a link to the photos I took up there as well as the video of Christmas Chute and northern lights and the resort review for Fairbanks!

Christmas Chute

Northern Lights over Chena Hot Springs

Alyeska 12/25-12/28

Road Trip to Fairbanks

Alyeska 01/01-01/05

Mt. Aurora Skiland Fairbanks, Alaska Review

Mt. Aurora Fairbanks


Top of Chair 6 ready to drop Christmas Chute

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Simply^Ride

Welcome to the forum, hope you enjoy it here. Feel free to post anything that crosses your mind.

Later

arctic valley

thanks for the stories.
its nice to see alaska thru new eyes.
sounds like ak man is quite generous and trusting.
that pretty cool loaning you his truck and puttin you up like that.

did you see any caribou on your way to fairbanks.
Alpenglow is the first exit out of anchorage. (arctic valley)
jus take it all the way to the top.
its actually the same place the poem discribes.
only we ride the mountain across from it cus its free.
its on fort richarsons land.

yea, stay in touch.
thanks for sharing.

Snowolf

Oh gotcha. No caribou, but I saw plenty of Moose. So are they replacing Chair 1 this summer with a new quad?

Speaking of Moose, this guy was snacking on the trees by the bank on C street...






Turnagan Arm

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arctic valley

im not sure what number it is.
its the one that goes right up to the restaurant.
usually only open for night.
from what ive been told there not replacing it but i hear them talking about making the back more accessible so maybe they will do something with it up there.

cool pics, gota love the moose.
i live where they come right in my yard.
even bring there babies thru in spring.
sometimes on hot days i hose them.
softly at first, lol.
but once they feel the way the cool water feels they dig it big time.

Simply^Ride

are they dangerous?

arctic valley

they hurt more ppl than bears.
they def do their share of injuring ppl.
occasionally killing. but thats mostly cus they are oblivious to ppl 90% of the time. like in that pic you could get close enough to swat him in the butt. but in spring after they drop their little ones its quite different. of coarse you have heard not to get in between a mother and its young but its not always jus that easy.
once i came out my front door where moma and her two babies were together off in the woods about 40 yards. far enough to get in my truck which was about 10 feet.
when i got to my truck and opened the door i stopped to take in some of the antics. the babies were playin and jumpin doin little bronco kicks having a good time and then one comes running out of the woods... straight at me and then around behind me. so i look at mom, she looks at me and before i can simply turn and get into my truck shes barreling down on me. it was jus like a cartoon with my legs spining in the dirt. lol
other times of the year you can feed that same moose carrots by hand.