akMountain

Yukon River - Carmacks to Dawson City

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 13:00:00 GMT

Photos and reflections from 260 miles down the Yukon River. 10 sunny days and 1 day of rain. Temps reached into the 80s, forest fires built on the horizon and an orange haze filled the river valley and on our only rainy day the rainwater tasted like smoke. Our camps ranged from classic Yukon river wooded camps where travelers have beat down dirt platforms near old log cabins, to large open islands with cobblestone beaches and back channels of stagnant warm water and mud that invited children to shed clothes and bathe.

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Kenai River - Kenai Lake to Skilak Lake

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Thu, 15 Jun 2017 13:00:00 GMT

Photos from a mid June float from Kenai Lake to Skilak Lake.

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Boston Basin - Forbidden (West Ridge), Sahale (Quien Sabe Glacier) and Torment (South Ridge)

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 13:00:00 GMT

Photos from a visit to Boston Basin in North Cascades National Park with ascents of Forbidden, Sahale and an attempt of Torment.

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Organ Mountain (South Face) and Synthesizer Peak (North Ridge)

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Sat, 15 Jul 2017 13:00:00 GMT

These photos are from two trips a year apart, however given the proximity of the peaks I feel it makes sense to present both peaks together. Yvonne and I climbed Organ in July 2016 (on our 10th wedding anniversary!) and I climbed Synthesizer with Todd Kelsey in July 2017.

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The Watchman - North Ridge

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Sun, 18 Jun 2017 13:00:00 GMT

The Watchman is one of those peaks that hides in plain sight. Even though the peak is 6410', its proximity of other large peaks causes it to be easily overlooked. From afar it looks like little more than a sub-peak of Benign, even through technically it's a peak (as in there is 500' of prominence separating the summit from the actual summit of Benign), and lies over a mile from the true summit of Benign. That said, with neighbors like Benign, Bellicose, Bashful and the Mitre it's easy to understand why it's often overlooked.

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Finch / Eagle Glacier Tour

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Mon, 17 Apr 2017 13:00:00 GMT

These photos are from a 5-day ski mountaineering trip with Eric Parsons on the Finch and Eagle glaciers in the Western Chugach / Chugach State Park. We climbed 5 peaks and had perfect weather, shin deep powder, bomb stability and excellent climbing conditions. A wonderful trip!

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Rook Mountain - South Couloir

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Thu, 23 Mar 2017 13:00:00 GMT

A spectacular peak from all directions, Rook Mountain lies North and 2000' above Raven Glacier. There is no easy route to the summit which makes it a worthy objective that you must plan for in terms of weather, conditions and route. It's a mountain I've been staring at for 10+ years waiting for the right combination of good snow conditions and solid partners and I've spent many a day walking or skiing past, looking up and waiting.

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South Fork to Glen Alps x2

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Sat, 18 Feb 2017 13:00:00 GMT

I've been here over 20 years but I had never taken the time to walk from the South Fork Eagle River to Glen Alps. This September I packed an overnight bag and trekked to Glen Alps via a route past Concerto / Tailfeater / The Sail / Ship Pass. Six months later I skied from South Fork to Hilltop via Hunter Pass / Williwaw-Koktoya Col / Middle Fork. Two great trips.

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Green River - Desolation and Gray Canyons

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Sun, 09 Oct 2016 13:00:00 GMT

This is a photo dump from a recent trip down Desolation and Gray Canyons on the Green River. 10 of us flew down from Anchorage and spent a week on the river. We had 6 adults and 4 kids ages 3-6. We crowded into 2 16' rafts and brought a packraft as an extra boat. We had perfect weather (7 days of 70 degree sun) and low flows (3000cfs) which meant the majority of the rapids were mere ripples (but also meant that travel was slow). It was the perfect October escape from Anchorage which can be dreary before the snow arrives.

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Susitna River - Gold Creek > Talkeetna

wfinley@akmountain.com (William Finley) — Sat, 02 Jul 2016 13:00:00 GMT

For the 4th of July we packed up the kids, rafts and dogs and headed north to Talkeetna to float the Susitna River from Gold Creek to Talkeetna. This stretch of river is 40 miles of mellow class I with nice gravel bars and islands for camping and an easy take out that's within 1 mile of where you leave your vehicle. The best part? You approach by train. And not just any train - but the last true flag-stop train in America.

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