In the descriptively titled Mount Fairweather Traverse, Yakutat to Haines, Alaska, Luc Mehl, Danny Powers, and Graham Kraft take on a month of hiking, skiing, climbing, and rafting through the Alaskan wilderness. The adventure peaks at the summit of 4,663 Mount Fairweather on the Alaska-Canada border.
The party traveled several hundred kilometers through Alaska. Photo: Screenshot
The group starts off from the airport of the sparsely populated town of Yakutat. The first leg of their trip is a 160-kilometer hike down the coast, joined by Kraft’s girlfriend, Lindsay Johnson. Clear skies keep the week going smoothly, aside from unnerving run-ins with bears. Although brown bear attacks are rare, there are a few tense moments when the group has to wait for bears to clear out of the area.
An Alaskan brown bear. Photo: Shutterstock
At the end of the beach hike, Lindsay parts from the group while another friend, Marcus Waring, joins the party. He’s brought along their ski equipment, and they strap in for the next leg. Toting their unwieldy packs through the backcountry, they make their way to the snow-covered slopes of Mount Fairweather.
Summiting Mount Fairweather
Dodging crevasses, they climb (and trudge) all the way up to the 4,670m summit. They joyously ski all the way back down, except for Powers. His equipment broke, so he had to trudge down.
Skiing down from the summit of Mount Fairweather, which did an admirable job of living up to its name. Photo: Screenshot
Powers and Mehl aren’t done. Their route continues after the base of Mount Fairweather to the settlement of Haines, Alaska. After more skiing and trudging, they break out their inflatable packrafts and take to the Tsirku River. Finally, the pair hit soundings in Haines, completing their traverse.
The briskly paced video is a tight five minutes, a highlight reel of the ambitious adventure. Mehl hosts a longer write-up, with details of the route, equipment reviews, and practical recommendations, on his personal website.
