ChrisC
Well-known member
This was my third visit to Valdez in mid-April and the best yet with snow and conditions. Previously, I skied Valdez:
A brief summary of Alaska Heli Operations in Girdwood/Valdez:
As stated, we had incredible luck with weather and snow conditions in Valdez - 100% fly week is almost unheard of in the Chugach. However, April is an optimal time to visit since your daylight hours are off the chart. It's easy to start at 2/3 pm and almost get a full day of heli-skiing. For example, daylight hours in Valdez in mid-April are 6:30 am to 9 pm. Also, the terrain is unlimited! One day, we were almost 50 miles deep into the Chugach - unreal! Stability improved over the week so that we could tackle steeper lines and bigger mountains. Also, the guide starts to have confidence in your abilities and feels comfortable taking you on the steeper stuff.
Valdez Terrain
A set of mountains in the Chugach rise above the others, and they are known as the Big Five:
Article describing each (pictures lost): FreeSkier Article HERE
Valdez Mountain Guides Heli Map. Over the years, we have skied most of the sectors/mountains in the middle and right side.
I will post some photos punctuated by ski or travel days. I asked our guide the names of runs and mountains that we skied and texted them to myself, but I accidentally deleted them. I still have SkiTracks recordings of where we skied.
Travel to Valdez, AK: Sunday, April 13, 2024.
Travel to Valdez is relatively straightforward from the West Coast. Direct flights from San Francisco (me) and Denver (my brother and friend Josh) on United and Alaska arrive around noon in Anchorage. Generally winter flights to Anchorage are pretty reasonable $ price or FF miles - not much more than SLC or Denver and less than more remote Rockies destinations.
In the first year, 2015, we did Ravn Air flights from Anchorage to Valdez - great views of the Chugach! However, these flights are unreliable, and we needed a car to commute from Valdez Town to Thompson Pass/Tsaina Lodge every day, so we made the epic road trip from Anchorage to Valdez. It's a beautiful drive, seeing Denali National Park in the distance, the backside of the Chugach, St. Elias National Park, and the Copper River (home to the best Salmon in North America!) Lots of wildlife visible - moose and black bears. We previously rented a car in 2016 to get around Anchorage-Girdwood-Valdez, and it worked well. It's a relatively easy lowland 5-hour drive.
Josh and I are on the Chugach Backside/Northside, near Majestic HeliSki. The weekend storm had broken apart here. Majestic has a much lower percentage of no-fly days than coastal heli operators.
We finally made it to Valdez! Love the town, its harbor and the low tree line.
The Wheelhouse Bar and Restaurant
- 2015: Valdez - H20 Guides (skied 1 out of 2 days - 50% , Black Ops Heli (2.25 out of 4 - 55%+). There was about 50" of snow during the period. Received about a 50% refund via required insurance.
- 2016: Girdwood - Alyeska (1 day), Chugach Powder Guides (1 day), Valdez - Black Ops Heli (skied 4 out of 5 days - 80%). About 10" of snow during the period. We went slightly over Heli Hours due to great weather, but they comped us due to lodging arrangements. 80% ski days is way above average!
A brief summary of Alaska Heli Operations in Girdwood/Valdez:
- Chugach Powder Guides - OK for one day. They take all the multi-day heli groups out before you, sometimes snowier or better weather destinations. Days skiers go out last to more local terrain.
- H2O Guides - Closed. You can read about the legendary Valdez pioneer HERE
- Black Ops Valdez - Excellent. They bought a heli guide operation and constructed a lodge just outside Valdez. Their guides are original Valdez pioneers and have skied many first descents - superb! The ratio was 3 skiers to 2 Guides (Lead and Tail Trainee). Their helipad is only 10 minutes up the road, so it is easy to take advantage of a sun break. The operation used to be cheaper, but they are now trying to only accept full weeks. Review HERE
- Valdez Heli Guides. Directly on Thompson Pass based at the historic restored TsainaLodge. The lodge is excellent but small and incredibly expensive during heli season. Most skiers will stay down in Valdez and commute up everyday 30-40 minutes. However, this provides access to the backside of Chugach, which can remain sunny.
As stated, we had incredible luck with weather and snow conditions in Valdez - 100% fly week is almost unheard of in the Chugach. However, April is an optimal time to visit since your daylight hours are off the chart. It's easy to start at 2/3 pm and almost get a full day of heli-skiing. For example, daylight hours in Valdez in mid-April are 6:30 am to 9 pm. Also, the terrain is unlimited! One day, we were almost 50 miles deep into the Chugach - unreal! Stability improved over the week so that we could tackle steeper lines and bigger mountains. Also, the guide starts to have confidence in your abilities and feels comfortable taking you on the steeper stuff.
Valdez Terrain
A set of mountains in the Chugach rise above the others, and they are known as the Big Five:
Article describing each (pictures lost): FreeSkier Article HERE
- SPHINX
- PONTOON
- METEORITE
- DIMOND
- TUSK
- Dimond - This year, 2024, with Valdez Heli Guides. It's a 6000 vertical mountain in the backyard of the Tsaina Lodge on Thompson Pass
- Meteorite - Skied in 2016 with Black Ops. It's less steep than these photos. HERE
- Tusk - Skied in 2015 with H2O Guides - specifically some shoulders of the massif (not the summit) while doing runs in The Valley of The Tusk.
Valdez Mountain Guides Heli Map. Over the years, we have skied most of the sectors/mountains in the middle and right side.
I will post some photos punctuated by ski or travel days. I asked our guide the names of runs and mountains that we skied and texted them to myself, but I accidentally deleted them. I still have SkiTracks recordings of where we skied.
Travel to Valdez, AK: Sunday, April 13, 2024.
Travel to Valdez is relatively straightforward from the West Coast. Direct flights from San Francisco (me) and Denver (my brother and friend Josh) on United and Alaska arrive around noon in Anchorage. Generally winter flights to Anchorage are pretty reasonable $ price or FF miles - not much more than SLC or Denver and less than more remote Rockies destinations.
In the first year, 2015, we did Ravn Air flights from Anchorage to Valdez - great views of the Chugach! However, these flights are unreliable, and we needed a car to commute from Valdez Town to Thompson Pass/Tsaina Lodge every day, so we made the epic road trip from Anchorage to Valdez. It's a beautiful drive, seeing Denali National Park in the distance, the backside of the Chugach, St. Elias National Park, and the Copper River (home to the best Salmon in North America!) Lots of wildlife visible - moose and black bears. We previously rented a car in 2016 to get around Anchorage-Girdwood-Valdez, and it worked well. It's a relatively easy lowland 5-hour drive.
Josh and I are on the Chugach Backside/Northside, near Majestic HeliSki. The weekend storm had broken apart here. Majestic has a much lower percentage of no-fly days than coastal heli operators.
We finally made it to Valdez! Love the town, its harbor and the low tree line.
The Wheelhouse Bar and Restaurant
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