Blue Ice Aviation

Exposing Real Alaska

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Photos of the Day — Glacier Excursion and a Weenie Roast

We flew out and hiked around on the glacier today. It took a couple of Cub loads to get us all out to the ice, but it was well worth it. If you have never stood on the edge of a crevasse and thrown a rock down into the abyss then you need to put it on your bucket list. People always think that it’s super dangerous to walk on glaciers. Truth is, it’s only dangerous if the ice is covered with snow and therefor possibly hiding crevasses. When we go out hiking on the glaciers we stay on the ice so that the crevasses are obvious holes that need to be avoided. We carried my 2 month old daughter all over the glacier today and we took no risks. It was a great walk but the hot dogs at the end were my favorite part. Then we cooked some of those HUGE marshmallows and made S’mores…. it was a good day.  For More info go here.

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Photo of the Day — Marshmallo Mountain

I love the snow covered peaks in the Chugach Mountain Range.  This is one of hundreds of no-name ridges in the heart of the Chugach.  I took this picture yesterday on the 6th of June and as you can see it is far from summer.  My elevation here is only 7000′ but the snow and ice cling to the rock as if it were winter.  This ridge is on the North side of the range so it is influenced more by the interior weather patterns than the costal moisture.   On the South side of the range, facing Prince William Sound, there are similar ridges that show absolutely no rock as the snow and ice have completely blanketed the area 12 months out of the year.  God created something unfathomable when he carved this out, and it’s no wonder we never get tired of looking at it.

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Photo of the Day — Reflections Aloft

This picture is 2 hours old. I took it while en-route to check a landing site tonight. The turquoise water struck my eye as I was flying by, and the dense cloud cover seemed to enhance the colors. I love the reflection of the blue water in the window. I think this picture makes me happy, thanks for looking at it.

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Photo of the Day — 2000 Flushes … Only Better

This time of year the water held on the surface of the glaciers is the most brilliant. It is stunning to see because the colors are so perfect. I took this on a short 30 minute sightseeing trip on Sunday. I had a young man on board who was celebrating his 11th birthday by going on an airplane ride. I thought it was a pretty awesome gift given by his Dad, and the day was utterly perfect.

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Photo of the Day — An Early Pick-Up

I went in to pick up some guys off the glacier this afternoon. They called me on the sat-phone this morning and wanted to be picked up early because of a harrowing experience they had yesterday on the side of Marcus Baker. I asked them to write the story down and send some pictures so I could post them here on the blog. They agreed to share the experience and I am eagerly awaiting the report of their events.

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Photo of the Day — 9500′ And Climbing

I took this picture of Mike a few hours ago and this weather was not as nice as it looks. The wind was cranking and those clouds were just pouring over from Prince William Sound. I was at 9500′ when I took this picture, and the performance of a fully loaded Super Cub at these altitudes is often less than desirable when dealing with powerful downdrafts. We were hauling in a couple of mountaineers who are going to attempt Marcus Baker.

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Photo of the Day — Looking Down

Sometimes the view looking straight down is the best. These are my Fluidyne 2200 wheel skis. I have a hydraulic hand pump near my right leg that allows me to move the skis up or down depending on the desired application. They are worth about $10,000 and while the versatility is great they are heavy. I much prefer my Landis 3000’s for the ski work but they just don’t hold up on the asphalt :o) I run wheel skis on and off through July, they are a must-have for this line of work.

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Photo of the Day — I Wish I Could Stick It In My Pocket

This is an amazing landscape when viewed from your tiny little computer screen. Imagine how much more impressive it is in real life. At times it is overwhelming, I wish I could take it with me in my pocket so I could show all my friends. All I can do is digitally capture it onto an electronic chip and then, minimize it, compress it, label it, and upload it. Something is lost in the process, but I hope it gives you a taste of the vastness of this unfathomable creation.

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Photo of the Day — I Heart the Chugach Mountains

I took this yesterday as I was crossing the Chugach Range at 9700′. I mentioned yesterday that the wind was blowing about 25 knots and you can see the snow kicking up off the ice in the picture above. This is the South Western Flank of Mt. Marcus Baker which is loaded with snow ice and horrible weather 12 months out of the year. Days like this are few and far between for this region. Every time I fly by I am impressed by it’s shear size and nastiness. This is a mere glimpse of the thousands of square miles of rock and ice found in the Chugach Range. I heart the Chugach.

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Photo of the Day — Looking for a New Strip

I have a rule. I don’t land in a brand-new spot when loaded, until I have been there empty. I am more inclined to break this rule if I am hauling freight. But, when a passenger is on board, and the baggage compartment is loaded it’s hardly the time to go pioneering new spots. With a passenger and, 85 pounds of luggage it is not uncommon to run out of forward trim.

On this particular evening I was scoping this spot out for a new strip. We had been looking for a land-able portion here for several years and the ice conditions finally cooperated.

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Photo of the Day — Who Wants to Sleep on a Glacier? No Really it Will Be Fun!!

This was taken at about 6500′ during the month of May in the Chugach Mountains.  I was on a mission to drop off supplies and pick somebody up.  These high glacier views are by far the most surreal thing I have ever seen.  The ice clings to the rocks so precariously that it’s scary to look at, as if the added pressure of your gazing eyeballs might accidentally knock something off the mountain.  It’s terrifying but I love it.

Does anybody want to experience this? I can put you in here with an experienced guide during the warm(er) summer months and it’s AWESOME!   I’m talking about you city folk who like adventure.  If anybody would like to spend a couple of days amid breathtaking glacial landscapes on the high glacier you should give me a call.  We have guides who would love to spend a few days showing you around this area.  You could do some unique stuff like digging a huge snow cave, practicing crevasse rescue, or climbing one of the numerous surrounding peaks.  This can all be done safely in an area that is totally remote and away from other people and human impact.    This could be an awesome opportunity to do something totally unique and adventurous.  If you are interested you can contact me here.  Let me know how long you want to stay, we will provide everything except personal clothing.

FYI — When I say, “dig a snow cave” I’m not talking about those pansy little things you used to dig as a kid in the drive way.  I’m talking about something that would make your Momma proud.  Something the whole gang can hang out in and play cards and cook meals.  You can make a snow cave comfortable when there is 12-20 feet of compacted snow beneath your feet.

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Photo of the Day — Turning to Land … I Love the Mountains

This is a recent image, and I think it is one of my new favorites. I was turning to land above the blue ice chunks on a relatively smooth portion of glacier. I was out scoping the area for new ski terrain, and I think I found a couple of runs, I’m pretty excited.

Yesterday I flew over the Chugach Mts from the Knik to the Matanuska, and today I flew over the Talkeetnas from Willow to Eureka. These regions have slim pickins on powder stashes right now because of a thin snow-pack and a raging wind. The ridges are wiped clean of snow, but there are many North facing chutes that look like they could be a lot of fun. It will be great to see how the month of March plays into the overall snow-pack. A really good Spring ski season is still totally feasible, and it would not be the first February warm spell that made all the backcountry skiers sweat. Lets hope for snow over the next several weeks because we’ve got some terrain to cover.

Also, if there are any ice-climbers reading this, it looked like Caribou Creek would be fun right now, I took one picture of it if you’re interested email me at Matt@BlueIceAviation.com.

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Video and Photo of the Day — Blue Ice Today

For the last two weeks I have been working on my Super Cub. I did the annual inspection, and welded in a third seat conversion, which was no small job. I replaced all the plexiglass, added a map pocket, replaced all my skat tubing under the dash, and several other minor modifications. So this morning I took a little RTS (return to service) flight and decided to land by this glacier in order to shoot an intro video for my new website (coming very soon). I thought the “Blue Ice” was appropriate for a backdrop. While I was on the ground I could hear the glacier creeping forward. A continuous series of snaps, crackles and pops, encouraging my not to get too close. A beautiful spot, and I thoroughly enjoyed spending a few minutes enjoying another piece of God’s creation.

Short video clip of landing in the gorge.

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Photo of the Day — Cruising through the Chugach Mts.

Cruising through the Chugach Mts. I took this image of Mike with a no-name hanging glacier in the backdrop. We had just dropped some skiers off on Eagle Glacier and they were going to ski back out to the road system. If you are looking for a great ski trip this spring give me a call. I can fly clients into places where you can get some turns in and then ski back out to the road system. This only costs a couple of hundred bucks. If you fly in with a really nice camp and then cache the gear on the glacier I can pick it up later. If you are itching to get out into the backcountry make sure you give me a call, we can plan a great trip, and you won’t be disappointed.

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Photos and Video of the Day — An Australian Goes Glacial

When we took off out of Palmer this morning it was 10 degrees. Fortunately Todd was prepared for this because when he left Australia a few weeks ago they were in the middle of a cold snap … it was only 90. January is not the optimal time for a glacial tour, but if you don’t mind bundling up it’s well worth it.

Todd and I went on a little flight from Palmer out into the Chugach Mts. and landed at 7000′ on a small glacier. The wind was blowing hard up at elevation, but the area I chose was protected by the surrounding mountains. You can see in the video that the light was pretty flat, but there was just enough of it to find the ground. Sometimes the lighting changes depending on the given angle you are looking at the snow, so it is important to evaluate the ground closely to determine which angle the lighting is the best. After stomping around on the glacier for a few minutes we flew over to the Knik Glacier and took some pictures of the ice. The blues in the glacier were absolutely brilliant today. We tried to land down in the gorge, but I didn’t trust the thickness of the ice on the lake. It was a good flight this morning, but from the looks of those clouds and the feel of the afternoon winds … something nasty is out there.

This is the video from today’s flight into the Chugach.

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Photo of the Day — God’s Perfect Black Lines

Remember a couple of days ago on January 8th I mentioned that glaciers have an incredible way of displaying time.  Look at that perfect black line drawn down the center of this Glacier and know that it is being formed inch by inch.  A line of rock and debris scattered down the center of a glacier is called a the medial moraine.  Follow that black line until it bumps into the vertical face of rock and you will see where all that debris came from, it just rolls down the hill and onto the ice over time.  The Glacier forks where the black line disappears.  I am awestruck every-time I dwell on the thought that all that ice is creeping down hill all the time, carrying millions of tons of debris with it.  The lateral moraine is found on the sides of the glacier where the mountain meets the ice while the terminal moraine is found at the foot of the glacier where it is pushing rock ahead of itself.

This photo was taken less than 10 minutes from my house.  It is fair to say that we live in the most beautiful place I have ever seen.  I love it, and I want to show it to you, so get up here to Alaska so we can go on a flight  :o)

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Photo of the Day — The Meaning Behind “Blue Ice Aviation”

This photo is used in my 2010 Blue Ice Aviation calendar for the month of May.  I took this picture in the bush pilot playground of the Knik Drainage just 50 miles Northeast of Anchorage.  A friend and I were out driving around with the cubs one evening, and we landed here mostly to take this picture so … it is sort of posed.  I don’t have many poser pics, but I thought this one was special because of the “Blue Ice” behind my bird.  I should take this opportunity to mention that I took a real risk in naming my Air Taxi “Blue Ice Aviation”.  You will notice that if you Google “Blue Ice Aviation” there is another context in which this phrase is used.  I now quote from Wikipedia:

“Blue ice in the context of aviation is the frozen material formed by leaks in commercial aircraft lavatory waste tanks, a mixture of human waste and liquid disinfectant that freezes at high altitude. The name comes from the blue color of the disinfectant…..”

WOW ! … unfortunate huh ?  The FAA guy who was helping with my 135 certification process showed real concern for the name and thought I should change it.  Nobody cares that a little blue ice forms on airliners until it reaches a sizable chunk and becomes a frozen blue meteorite and does damage like in Chino California in 2006.  I hope this does not change your opinion of Blue Ice Aviation and my goal is to dominate the first 10 pages of the google search so nobody will ever know.  Until then, you can call me “Lavatory Leak Aviation”.

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Photo of the Day — Big Crevasses

I took this photo of Mike shortly after he departed one of our ice strips. The transition from smooth to upheaved ice is often over a very short distance. These crevasses will never be filled with snow because they are too big of holes at too low of an elevation. In the winter the 6+ feet of snow that will fall in this area will cover the smaller cracks but leave the others exposed. Snowmachiners love to use the glaciers as a sort of highway and it is amazing to see what they have driven over the following spring as snow bridges collapse. I have seen some terrifying tracks across some awfully large gaps. I have never had a problem with snow covered crevasses and neither has Mike in his thousands upon thousands of snowy glacier landings. As I have mentioned in other posts we are usually only landing on the glaciers if the lighting is good, and part of our reasoning for that is so we can see the sags that are created as snow bridges begin to droop. If I see a dip in the Glacier you better believe I am not going to land on it.

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