Heli Bumps in Haines, Alaska

Alaska, Haines, Takhinsha Mountains, skiing

Unknown skier skis a spine in Haines, Alaska.

Alaska, Haines, helicopter, Takhinsha Mountains

Alaska, Haines, Takhinsha Mountains, skiing

Bernie from Austria skies a spine on ‘Hangover’.

Alaska, Haines, Takhinsha Mountains, snowboarding

Snowboarder: Bert Shultes.

Alaska, Haines, Takhinsha Mountains, snowboarding

Snowboarder: Bert Shultes.

The glaciated and snow smothered Takhinsha Mountains near Haines, Alaska are amongst the most impressive mountains on Earth in the eyes of a skiier or snowboarder. In March 2016 I joined three friends for a week-long trip to Haines to go heli snowboarding in this legendary big mountain riding mecca. With perfect powder and stable avalanche conditions, we scored 4 days of good weather and a total of 18 lines — each line between about 3,000 to 4,500 vertical feet. The trip was a lifelong dream for me, and a pinnacle in my 20+ years of snowboarding!

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5 thoughts on “Heli Bumps in Haines, Alaska

  1. Great photos Jack, what are the elevations of those mountains? What camera gear did you use for these photos?? I was wondering where you were as you had no new blogs for quite some time! Was the snow as good as the san juan powder??

    1. Thanks Kiim! Most of these peaks are around 5-6,000 feet; the taller ones are about 7,000 feet or so. But, that’s rising from just above sea level. Most of these photos are with a Panasonic GF7 + 14-140mm lens (28-280 equivalent). That camera setup is just small enough to fit into a Lowepro shoulder strap pouch, which I can snowboard with.

      As for the snow, it was great… a bit firmer than the Colorado champagne pow, but you wouldn’t want that anyways on these kind of mountains! And, really stable avy conditions, which you’d never (or very very rarely) see in Colorado.

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