Recent posts

20Mar 202324 Mar 2023

Trusting Tustumena

Tustumena is the largest lake in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge (and one of the ten largest in Alaska), three…

1Mar 202322 Mar 2023

A battle between great tapes … who will be the last one standing?

A battle of epic proportions! During my first long cross-country ski of the winter, I ended up using both of…

13Feb 202321 Feb 2023

Remote Weather History via visualcrossing.com

My preparation for outings benefits from knowing the recent weather history of remote locations. Remote forecasts are easy, but what…

2022 Alaska Mountain Wilderness Classic Report and Results

21 Jul 202224 Jul 2022

This report from the 2022 course is provided by Matt Kupilik. For information regarding the Alaska Mountain Wilderness Classic, email Matt at akwildernessclassic@gmail.com. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzPUd_o0TwE Video by Nick Treinen The 41st…

River Rescue Knives

5 Jul 20226 Jul 2022

One thing I appreciate as a swiftwater safety instructor is that I get to witness patterns with equipment successes and failures. River knives are a popular topic for discussion! Do…

ski…

Koyuk to Kotzebue: Arctic Contrasts

20 Apr 202220 Apr 2022

Arctic Contrasts While skiing from Koyuk to Kotzebue, northwest Alaska, I was struck by a number of arctic contrasts. Caribou antlers and office chairs 170 miles, six days Green grass…

ski…

McGrath to Nulato

18 Apr 202218 Apr 2022

https://vimeo.com/700133701 I didn't expect it, but the highlights of this solo ski trip were all social. I only met a handful of folks during my nine days on the Iditarod…

ski…

Koyuk to Unalakleet

30 Mar 202231 Mar 2022

https://vimeo.com/694236685 Back at the house in Unalakleet, Laureli Ivanoff said, "Timm. You know I'm not a worrier, right? Well, right after you left, I heard that my cousin in Shaktoolik…

blog

Self-publishing an Instructional Book: Part II (marketing and sales until the handoff to Mountaineers Books)

Disclaimer: I expect that this will only be of interest to folks that are self-publishing a book. If this is you, be sure to start with Part I, about the…

South Fork Matanuska Loop

24 Sep 20219 Feb 2022

This has got to be a candidate for the best true packraft loop around, especially during the autumn. The loop is best done in two nights: 18 mile hike, 16…

The American Whitewater Accident Database

24 Sep 202124 Sep 2021

In September of 2021, American Whitewater (AW) updated their accident database to include "packraft" as an available boat type. Why is this exciting? This update allows us an unprecedented tool…

blog

If my book was a playlist…

16 Sep 202116 Sep 2021

I have a very early memory (as a 6-year-old? 8?) of my mom using lyrics from a Beatles song to teach me not to trust strangers. I was about to…