Along the Canning River, with the Brooks Range in the background. Courtesy/Mountaineers
By WILLIAM PRIEDHORSKY
Los Alamos Mountaineers
The Jan. 27 meeting of the Los Alamos Mountaineers will feature a talk by Jonathon Creel and Nell Larson on packrafting in far northern Alaska, and how they learned to stop worrying and love the aufeis.
One of the most remote and least-disturbed wilderness areas in North America, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a wild place unlike any other in the U.S. The Canning River runs from the Brooks Range through the wetlands and hummocks of the coastal plain to the Arctic Ocean.
After their plans for a different trip were scrambled during the COVID-19 pandemic, Creel and Larson found themselves on a bush plane destined for a remote landing strip in the Alaska wilderness. This was the start of a 15-day packrafting trip down the Canning River that was filled with hiking, wildlife viewing, birding, mosquito-swatting … and endless aufeis – a sheet-like mass of layered ice that forms from successive flows of ground or river water.
Packrafting uses ultralight watercraft that can be carried on one’s back when needed. Creel and Larson will share some stories from their adventure, along with the nuts and bolts of logistics and trip planning for such a remote location.
Creel is a bird nerd who loves spending his free time hiking and exploring new places. No stranger to this venue, he previously worked at PEEC and helped create the partnership with the L.A. Mountaineers that led to monthly programs at the nature center. He now leads the Manhattan Project National Historical Park at LANL.
Larson grew up in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York, where she developed her love of cold winters, abundant snow, and Nordic skiing. After earning her master’s in ecology and environmental management, she moved west to Park City, Utah, “for one summer” and stayed for many years until moving to Los Alamos in 2023. Larson loves almost any outdoor activity that involves snow or water, so naturally she wound up in New Mexico.
We welcome all to this Mountaineers’ meeting on the regular fourth Thursday of the month. The social hour, with cookies, begins at 6:45 p.m., followed at 7 p.m. with the program.
The presentation will be in-person at Los Alamos Nature Center; the slides will be live-streamed on Zoom. Registration is required to Zoom and recommended for in-person – we would love to see your smiling face.
Registration details: https://peecla.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/peecla/event.jsp?event=64470&.