Friday night after work found me at the end of the Usibeli Coal Mine Road and making way for Dora Peak. The bugs were ferocious down below and so I hardly took a break until I came to the summit of my first peak; Peak 4100. What laid ahead I didn’t have much an idea of. But I had two days and two legs and with them I would ride the ridge as far back as I could while still leaving enough time to get back by Sunday nightfall. At the end, I’d learn a good deal about these free-roaming hills beyond Dora Peak.
Author Archives: sdohms
Brooks Range Express 2.0
3 Peaks, one Memorial day weekend. In similar fashion to the maiden voyage, Myself, Sophia Tidler, Gerrit Verbeek, Chelsea Grimstad, and her two dogs, Kiva and Bean, hopped aboard the Brooks Range Express (my truck) on a non-refundable ticket to the North North.
Upper Grapefruit Rock
I feel caught in a perpetual whirlwind of life’s demands. If its not this demand, then its that demand. Time at work, time in the mountains, time with God, and time for doing the everyday laundry list of things. My schedule revolves around work. Mountains require consecutive days so there goes the weekend. And it feels as though my time spent with God is relegated a few time slots in between work and the bed, which, even more blandly, is sandwiched in between yet more time slots divvied up for the laundry list. And then I feel squeezed pretty dry at the end of all this.
Peak 7150
9 miles total, 5300′ elevation gain. Peak 7150 was a straightforward dayhike I’d been carrying around in my back pocket for years. I’d actually solicited this trip idea many weekends over the years but they never gained traction and no attempts ever materialized. The weekend of May 15th displayed the right characteristics to deploy this trip. “Right characteristics” meaning a single day of decent weather bounded by undesirable weather on the days bookending it. Not much is required of this hike other than good physical fitness and a desire to do it. There are two west ridges to Peak 7150 with Onemile Creek sandwitched in between. I like how we went up the southern more interesting one and came down the northern mellowly sloped one.
8900′ Aydon Peak via Boonje Couloir
This route and peak are in my top 3 of all time. The other two are Icefall West Ridge and Baleful North Ridge. Having done a guestimated 300 peaks in my lifetime, that puts Aydon in the top 1%. A key difference between those other two bold undertakings and this one, however, is information. WithContinue reading “8900′ Aydon Peak via Boonje Couloir”
Mothers Day in The Park
I sidehilled on climbers left hand side and it indeed was better than postholing. 3 rams jived with this conclusion too. Happily resting right in my natural path. I figured they would spook like most sheep do when they see me, but these rams must’ve sized me up good and realized that they could pulverize me if I got too close. I was afraid they might just come over and do it for the hell of it too! They departed after I had already passed around them and was walking away, but I did manage some good pictures before they took off.
Peak 5350 (Talkeetna Mountains)
The ski down the west face was great and giddy. Spring skiing is vibe. At 3100′ we came to an island of tundra and made it our home for the night. We walked barefoot on the tundra, its feel and smell issuing a nostalgia for the soon-to-be season; summer.
Old Snowy and the 8750’s
The weather forecast was spelling out a bunch of bluebird days in the deltas. As Fairbanks mountaineers know all too well, this basically never happens. So Zack Seimsen and I took a Monday and Friday off work to capitalize on it. Strangely enough, the weather forecast didn’t deteriorate and we were even blessed with aContinue reading “Old Snowy and the 8750’s”
Stiles Creek XC Ski Loop
When it comes to simple wooded hills, Interior Alaska has a lot to love. Sure, the hillsides of the Chena Rec Area may not be dramatic and exciting like trips into Fairbanks’ more distant mountainous landscapes. But they are pleasant, and enjoyable. And sometimes that’s just what your in the mood for.
Fairbanks Aurora Hunting
And so I find myself bouncing, literally, north on Sheep Creek Road. North! Away from the sun, away from the city. Here cometh darkness my old friend. I line myself up on a straight section of road then I quickly turn off my headlights to check on the aurora. Click! Instant darkness. It’s nothing fancy or fast, but there is a big, green swath. A half second later; click! I turn my lights back on and make sure I’m still in my lane. I am. There is this one turn on Sheep Creek that…
From Rocks To Rivers 