Madhu Chikkaraju
Find your next adventure in the rugged terrain of southcentral Alaska, nicknamed the “mountain kingdom of North America.” Build your mountaineering skills while exploring the coastal Chugach Range, interior Alaska Range, or vast Wrangell-St. Elias Range. Enjoy nearly 24 hours of daylight as you travel across sweeping expanses of tundra, massive glaciers, and towering peaks.
Starting with the basics, like snow camping and cooking on a camp stove, you’ll learn how to live comfortably in an alpine environment. Develop the skills you need to travel on snow and ice on foot, crampon, ski, or snowshoe. Dive into our time-tested climbing curriculum, beginning with knot-tying and rope handling, and working your way up to rope team travel, self-arrest, and belaying. As the course and your skills progress, move on to more advanced topics, like avalanche hazard assessment, route finding on glaciers, and crevasse rescue.
At the same time, expand your leadership skills. Practice effective communication and risk management while leading a rope team. Build your problem-solving and decision-making skills while route finding on a glacier. Learn conflict resolution strategies and how to support a team in different roles. Return with the experience and confidence to lead in the mountains and beyond.
“Once we got camp set up and I had finally warmed up enough to cook for my teammates, I opened the vestibule and saw the sunrise across the mountains at 4am. I saw the route we traveled. I saw the ice fall. I saw the entire day in that sunrise: the laughs, the smiles and jokes, she snowballs and shouts of encouragement and never any complaints. I saw my tent mates finally getting warm and nodding off.”