Summer Solstice Hike

On June 21st we took the long, and slightly treacherous, drive out to Eagle Summit to witness the sun not setting on the Solstice. Despite clouds and rain that made the sky hard to see, the bright light from the sun was visible around the clouds the whole time to light our excursion.

Just as we were getting ready to leave, when the sun should be lowest in the sky the clouds parted just enough for us to be able to see the sun still above the horizon.

Even though it rained it was still great to have such an enthusiastic and happy group.

Lily Grbavach

P.S. Happy official start of SUMMER!!!!

Rock Climbing June 25, 2011

Rick and I headed North to Grapefruit Rocks on Saturday with a full car! We arrived at the trail-head at 10:30AM and headed up the short, steep hike to Twin Towers and Morning Wall. Rick set-up some anchors while I walked the group through ground school and basic safety precautions. By this time the bugs were out and the sun was blasting down on us. Students had a great time reaching new heights and working on their tans. Temps are rumored to have reached above 85 °F that day!

~Mark

Valdez Sea Kayaking June 8-14, 2011

Outdoor Adventures got out of the Interior and down to Prince William Sound for 6-days of sea kayaking! Rick and I lead 8 students all over the Valdez Arm. We started Thursday morning with a water taxi to Jack Bay. After some wet-exit and T-rescue practice we explored the Bay in search of water.

On Friday we headed to Rocky Point at the mouth of Galena Bay for lunch. A group of Sea Lions led the way for us! Saturday morning welcomed us with a bit of rain but it soon passed as we crossed the narrows at Potato Point with calm seas. That afternoon we explored Sawmill Bay and Rob and Rick got their first successful kayak rolls.

Sunday morning called for an early rise in order to paddle with the tide all the way into Shoup Bay. We made it in time to paddle easily into the Shoup Lagoon to check out the Kittiwakes. That evening we splurged on a cabin. Monday was spent casually exploring the Shoup Glacier. That afternoon we paddled out of the Bay and were greeted with choppy seas beyond Shoup Spit. The group enjoyed the rougher water and did a great job paddling through the conditions. Up until then, we had calm seas all along. Tuesday morning called for another early morning in order to get back to town at a decent hour. We left Valdez at Noon after 6 miles of paddling and returned Fairbanks.

This trip was remarkable because of the calm conditions, lack of rain and abundance of wildlife. In all my years of leading this trip, I have never seen so many sea lions and dall porpoise! We had a great trip and great group. I hope everyone is able to get out and paddle some more this summer!
 

~Mark

Upper Chena Inflatable Float 6.12.11

Greetings from OA!

On Sunday 6/12 Outdoor Adventures took a float trip on the upper Chena River, the same stretch of river that I was rescued from earlier this summer!

Guides Heidi and James went over safety and paddling techniques, describing some of the obstacles commonly seen in the river.

When the river eats away at the bank, trees will fall and hang over the water creating sweepers. Strainers are when these trees or other branches or objects fall into the water and create obstacles that can easily snag boats.

The rain was threatening and there was some thunder, but it held out until we were driving home.

We took 3 inflatable kayaks and 2 inflatable canoes, and everyone had a blast paddling around and trying to avoid all the sweepers and strainers, sometimes bouncing past things as the newer paddlers got the hang of navigating the river. Two hats were swept into the river, and both were amazingly recovered! There were some fun small rapids and some tight corners and close calls with the river bank, but everyone managed to stay in their boats. We saw tons of really neat waterfowl, including some fuzzy little ducklings swimming with their mother!

Overall it turned out to be an awesome day, full of sun, water and good laughs! We hope to see you on our next trip! For more photos from the day, click here for our Facebook album!

~Ethan the Adventure Duck

Denali Area Day Hike: A Day on Sugarloaf Mountain 6.11.11

Greetings from OA!

This past Saturday, 6/11, we had our first day hike of the summer! The weather was beautiful and the views were amazing as we hiked up the mountain and gained the ridge line just across the Parks Highway from Denali National Park!

It was a tough climb, but well-worth the sense of accomplishment we felt as we hiked along the windy ridge.

As we went farther along the ridge and gained a little more elevation, we were even rewarded with views of Denali peeking out of the clouds in the distance.

We were lucky to avoid any rain during the hike and on the drive home we got to see an amazing rainstorm and beautiful rainbow waiting for us over Fairbanks! We all had an excellent time, and we hope next time you'll join us! For more pictures from this trip, visit our Facebook Album.

~Ethan the Adventure Duck

Outdoor Adventures is Back to Blogging!

Good news! Outdoor Adventures staff has been gearing up and is ready for a great summer full of trips! Our blog is back up and running, and we will be updating it regularly with news from our latest trips. Keep an eye out for posts about each trip, including photos and stories of crazy shenanigans from both staff and participants. We've been warming up with some paddling, hiking, and a bit of rock climbing. Now the summer is really about to get under way! Our Sea Kayaking Course is leaving for Valdez this week, we have a day hike and a float trip coming up this weekend, and the 8-day Arctic Backpacking course starts next week! Stay tuned and stop by OA's office in the Wood Center if you're interested in joining us on any trips this summer!