Wrangell Mountain Exploration

Part of being prepared for the backcountry is knowing what’s out there. So one of my goals is to fly and experience as much of my territory as possible. For the most incredible locations, I am particularly interested in finding landing spots that can be used in the future.

Today, I got the honor of visiting a strip up high on Mt. Drum, one south of Mt. Sanford, and another south of Mt. Wrangell. I call these strips, but they are not. A more appropriate description is that they are long enough, smooth enough, and have adequate room for maneuvering. This also is in the context of being within the pilot’s and aircraft’s capabilities and with acceptable safety margins.

I had already come across the Mt. Drum strip a month ago, and today I just wanted to visit my “old friend" (this unique area). From this spot, you can see a large ice field descend from the 12,000’ elevation above, narrow into a single glacier and wrap around a bench where the strip is located (at 5,700’), and keep on going downhill for another 1,000’ in elevation below. You can hear the ice field above cracking and banging as parts shift and calve near you. There’s no vegetation of any kind except for a hint of moss, and you feel as if you are on the moon with rocks of all sizes laying around half-hazard. Yet, if you wanted to climb this beautiful peak, this would be a great place to start.

Strip at Mt. Drum

The one near Mt. Sanford is a new find and is at the 4,000’ level. It’s a classic sheep hunting strip, which consists of a high flat area that a small creek empties onto before falling again through a little gorge to the south. This type of situation (that causes such a feature to occur in nature) is the result of a major glacier blocking a smaller side drainage, causing water to impound and drop its sediment. After landing, I found some old metal pots and other scraps left by man many decades ago. They must have had a much more difficult time getting there than me, and I wondered for what they sought. There were sheep in the area, including a couple way out on the glacial moraine (an oddity). Over it all was the 16,000', red-stained, mineral-rich face of Mt. Sanford, cloaked in a heavy coat of hanging glaciers. Outstanding!

Strip at Mt. Sanford

The most difficult of the three strips was the one south of 14,000' Mt. Wrangell, also new to me before today. This is a incredibly beautiful, heavily glaciated, multi-colored (from rich mineral stains), and rugged area. I have known about a few strips nearby for some time now, but they all are eroded or overgrown or simply not in desirable locations. I wanted one close in to Mt. Wrangell. I found something suitable - a set of little gravel bars where a small river flows out of one of the major glaciers. It’s not a lot to work with, but it's enough for a Super Cub and an experienced/proficient Super Cub pilot.

Strip at Mt. Wrangell

I marked my finds in my trusty GPS, took lots of photos, and flew off into the sunset. It’s not every day you get an opportunity to do this kind of scouting in the Wrangell-St. Elias. These mountains are so big that, like the Denali complex, they create and hold their own weather. It was warm, fairly calm, and sunny. It was a good day. I look forward to visiting the area again, and perhaps next time I’ll get to share the experience.

Alaska

Wrangell Mountain Exploration

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