Alta Backcountry

Ski Traverse Greenland

  • Greenland Crossing Day 4 – Finding Snow

    August 18. The night was windy and restless, and by morning the ice felt unsettled. Not dangerous exactly, just busy. Crevasses right out of camp forced immediate decisions, and the surface was carved into shallow runnels that didn’t really go… Continue reading

    Greenland Crossing Day 4 – Finding Snow

  • Greenland Crossing Day 3 – The First Crevasse Day

    August 17. Rain had fallen during the night, and by morning the glacier was glazed in a thin, brittle shine that made every step feel tentative. We were moving across a surface of ripples and hollows, a landscape that looked… Continue reading

    Greenland Crossing Day 3 – The First Crevasse Day

  • Greenland Crossing Day 2 – Learning the Sled

    August 16. The day began on hard, bare ice. We were still far below the snowline, so the skis stayed strapped to sleds and everyone walked. The surface was a mix of frozen dimples and sun-hardened ripples that made travel… Continue reading

    Greenland Crossing Day 2 – Learning the Sled

  • Greenland Crossing Day 1 – Onto the Ice

    August 15. We left the Red House at 9 a.m. under clear skies and a light that felt almost too warm for East Greenland. The harbor was quiet except for the clatter of bags being handed from dock to boat.… Continue reading

    Greenland Crossing Day 1 – Onto the Ice

  • Greenland Crossing Preparation – Before the Ice Comes the Hostel

    August 14, 2022 — Tasillaq, East Greenland We came back to Greenland to try again. The first time, in 2018, the ice pushed us back with storms strong enough to tear a tent built for Antarctica. We were evacuated by… Continue reading

    Greenland Crossing Preparation – Before the Ice Comes the Hostel

  • “Long Way Radio” Greenland Podcast

    We arrived back in the United States from our 16-day adventure in Norway late last week. It’s good to be home in our cabin in the mountains again, where we can be creative, go for little recovery skis, live cheaply… Continue reading

  • Dealing with Disappointment

    They say you learn more from misadventures than from the ones that are smooth sailing the whole way. And you know, they’re probably right. But that doesn’t make it easy. Not by a long shot. It’s actually taken me until… Continue reading

  • Follow Our Ski Across Greenland

    Hey friends and family. If you’d like to follow our ski across Greenland, check out this link. We’ll try to update it each day with a brief description of happenings on the ice. And if you want to message us,… Continue reading

  • Greenland Ski Traverse Gear List

    Here’s a quick and dirty gear list of what all we’re taking to Greenland. This isn’t a nice write up like the one I did for the Continental Divide Trail, but it gets the point across. The format is also… Continue reading