Jim Welsh gives us the low down on his superb kite crossing in Alaska:
“The idea started with a drunken road trip to Atlin British Columbia 4 years ago. When we finished running away from the local women and the sun came up we could see a huge icefield to the west. The Llewellyn/ Taku ice field spans from the interior of British Columbia across the narrow section of Alaska to the ocean, 120 kilometers at the narrowest point. One look at the map(google earth) and anyone can see the enormous snowkite potential. At the time we had only recently been introduced to snow kiting but we knew the trip had to be done.
On the first of April this year me, Jim Welsh, Cath McCarthy, Billy Soderin, Craig Donovan and Seth Plunkett bordered a small plane in Juneau Alaska and got a short lift onto the ice cap. The area had perfect deep coastal snow, relatively stable avalanche conditions and large rolling treeless mountains. KITE SKI HEAVEN. The beauty of this area is the high coastal mountain ranges which back up against the cold arctic air of the Canadian north. The result is heavy snowfall and consistent wind generation as the warm coastal air is pushed up and over the mountains into the cold arctic air.
We packed for 14 days to allow for a little time to play. With the majority of our team packing 10m frenzy and 6m access kites we were in for a good time. The only problem was trying not to cover too much ground or smile ourselves to death while we cruised effortlessly with two weeks of supplies in our sleds. We also carefully pioneered some whiteout kiting via GPS. The huge slopes made for great uphill kiting and the bottomless snow pack make for perfect hucking conditions. Can`t wait to get back for another session, Any questions or info on this incredible snowkite paradisecontact kiteyukon@hotmail.com
Jim Welsh”
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