Advisors
In preparing for this expedition I consulted numerous individuals who knew things that I didn’t. I had a brain trust that any wilderness adventurer would be delighted to have. With the help of these individuals I was better able to develop the route, plan the schedule, make gear decisions, and figure out the logistics. I would like to thank and highlight some of these individuals, including.
Roman Dial, a Professor of Biology and Mathematics at Alaska Pacific University and an expedition adventurer who has trekked, skied, biked, and paddled some of the longest wilderness routes ever attempted in Alaska;
Karsten Heuer, who with wife Leanne has undertaken treks to understand critical landscapes from the perspective of endangered wildlife, including a trip from Yellowstone National Park to Canada’s Yukon (Y2Y) and another in which they “migrated” with the Porcupine Caribou Herd (Being Caribou);
Ryan Jordan, the publisher of Backpacking Light Magazine, a pioneer of some of the longest unsupported long distance routes in the Northern Rockies and Yellowstone Ecosystems, and a leading practitioner and educator about ultralight trekking style and technique;
Erin McKittrick and Bretwood Higman (Hig), two veteran Alaskan adventurers most well known for their 4,000-mile trekking, packrafting, and skiing expedition along the Pacific Coast from Seattle to the Bering Sea;
Bill and Kathi Merchant, professional Alaskan guides and race directors for the Iditarod Trail Invitational;
Ed Plumb, a Fairbanks-based adventurer who travels year-round throughout the state, mostly in the Alaska and Brooks Ranges and usually by foot (or ski) and packraft;
Chris Townsend, the author of sixteen books and the longstanding Equipment Editor of TGO magazine (UK), who in 1990 walked north through the Yukon from Skagway to the Arctic Circle; and,
Peter Vacco, the only person to hike North America’s entire Continental Divide, from Mexico to the Bering Sea, and one of the most humble adventurers out there.
I would also like to thank:
- Dave Cramer of Mentasta
- Alex Friedman
- Les Hartley of Alsek Air Service
- Seth Katner
- Gerald Klamer
- Jon Nierenberg of EarthSong Lodge
- Joseph Reeves
- Kirk Sweetsir of Yukon Air Service