Outdoor Explorer

KSKA: Thursday, October 19, at 2:00 p.m. The old, increasingly inaccurate maps Alaskans have used for decades will soon be gone, as our state is being completely remapped. On this next Outdoor Explorer, we’ll learn how the changing climate has made the maps we all use outdated and even unsafe, and the huge effort to fix that. We're talking maps with the people who use them, make them and study them. LISTEN HERE

For outdoor families, it can be tough when children leave elementary school and suddenly don’t want to go outside anymore. There are plenty of exceptions, but middle school coaches and parents of tweens know that this is a critical age to keep young people going outside and active. We’ll be talking with parents and educators about how the outdoors can compete with the screen or the couch in the lives of tweens as we struggle to help them build independent lives that are healthy and active. KSKA: Thursday 10/17 at 2:00 pm and 9:00 pm Listen Now

"Leave only footprints" -- it's an ambitious philosophy. Most of us who recreate outdoors like to think we do a good job of this. We pack out our trash. We travel across landscapes with a light footprint. But how good are we? We'll have some experts in studio to talk about what it really means to leave no trace -- from scattering your fire circles to packing out human waste. Minimizing your impact in the outdoors helps ensure others who travel after you get the same wilderness experience. KSKA: Thursday, July 10, at 2:00 and 9:00 p.m. Listen now:

Scientists in Alaska spend weeks at a time in remote locations gathering information to better inform us about the world we live in. On this week’s show we learn from two USGS scientists what it’s like to work in the field.

What is emotional intelligence how does it affect our outdoor activities? This week we'll discuss why it's important in contributing to enjoyable outdoor experiences.

During the 2012 Mount Marathon race, two runners were terribly injured and one disappeared, never to be found. Organizers hope this year’s race is safer, without losing its adventurous edge. On the next Outdoor Explorer, we’ll talk about the new rules, and about the joy of mountain running and competition with two of the best in Alaska, plus a race organizer. Also new for this week's show, host Charles Wohlforth is in Homer, at KBBI. KSKA: Thursday 6/27 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm Listen Now

A cabin off the grid is a private place in the wilderness where the noisy world is far away and the soul of Alaska close at hand. On the next Outdoor Explorer, our host comes to you from his own off-the-grid cabin on Kachemak Bay. Guest Donna Massay will join us from the Trapper Creek area. And we’ll learn about the power, water and communication technology that makes off the grid life easier to do these days. KSKA: Thursday 8/15, at 2:00 and 9:00 pm Listen Now

When Alaskans get lost or hurt in the high country, they rely on a team of volunteers and professionals who are tough enough to come get them in the worst conditions. This week on Outdoor Explorer we'll find how how they do their work and how we can help as outdoor users when we are lost. KSKA: Thursday, 2/13 at 2:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Listen Now

After a long winter, kayaks and canoes are finally appearing from beneath piles of snow, rivers are running and the ocean beckons.

Geocaching is sort of like outdoor treasure hunting, and it's getting really big in Anchorage. Host Charles Wohlforth recently gave it a try with his daughter. They had an iPhone app and a mission to look for hidden caches logged on a website powered by GPS equipment. The result? A fun, and somewhat addicting, new hobby. Join us on air to learn more about geocaching. KSKA: Thursday, Sept. 18, at 2:00 and 9:00 p.m. Listen now:

Outdoor Alaska is a place to learn -- learning skills like skiing or paddling; learning to hunt and survive; or learning about the environment for science. On this edition of Outdoor Explorer, we’ll talk to people who are sharing these kinds of knowledge in new ways -- scientists learning from from Alaska Natives, and elders eager to tell about radical changes they see in the environment where they live.' KSKA: Thursday, Oct. 22, at 2:00 p.m. and Oct. 29 at 8:00 p.m. Listen Now:

What happens when an 18-time Ironman athlete comes in second in her age group at the world championships and wakes up realizing she’s still the same person she was the day before?

In this era of unpredictable snow, the fat bike has quickly become a standard part of Alaska winter life. Biking on snowwas recorded as early as the Klondike Gold Rush but it is only in the last 30 years that bikes specifically made for thesnow have been developed.

For a week or two in mid-April, a remote mountainside in the Alaska Range becomes one of the biggest towns in Alaska. It’s Arctic Man, a kind of Burning Man for the snow machine set, with the craziest extreme skiing competition you’ve ever heard of. We’ll preview Arctic Man, the speed, the parties, the family fun, and the backcountry travel, with an organizer, a competitor, and a spectator. KSKA: Thursday 4/4 at 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm

KSKA: Thursday, September 21, at 2:00p.m. For the next Outdoor Explorer, Charles joined the beluga count, when more than 12-hundred people gathered at viewing sites around Cook Inlet and made 260 sightings of whales. Citizen scientists recorded the location of pods, their movements, and even the identity of individual whales. The main thing about the day was being outdoors in the sun with a lot of other people who love this place and were eager to learn more about these magnificent animals. LISTEN HERE

Teaching your kids to ski is as much a lesson for you as it is for them - a lesson in patience. Don’t give up yet. On the next Outdoor Explorer, we’ll share tips for helping your children become confident on skis and with other outdoor skills Alaskans need. We'll be joined by the experts, and by other parents listening and sharing their own stories and advice. KSKA: Thursday 3/21 at 2:00 pm and 7:00 pm

With our long days and easy accessibility to the mountains, many residents of southcentral Alaska look forward to hiking as a main summer activity. Whether you want some great views, you are training for Mount Marathon, you are looking for a place to take visiting friends or you just want some solitude, there are guidebooks to help plan your hikes. In the first segment of our next show, we’ll be talking with Lisa Maloney, who has authored the most recent guidebook, “Day Hiking in Southcentral Alaska.” In the second segment we’ll hear from Corrie Smith and Greg Martin, a couple who decided on the challenge of completing all the hikes in one book, “50 Hikes in Alaska’s Chugach State Park.” Thanks for listening!

On this Outdoor Explorer, our guest is two-time Olympian and Licensed Professional Counselor, Holly Brooks. She recently released a documentary called “Winning at All Costs: Breaking the Silence on Athletes and Eating Disorders.” Her message to athletes of all ages and abilities is “You are more than your results, performance reviews and appearance.”

The Cohen Clinic offers programs that address the wholistic needs of veterans, using the outdoors to heal from trauma.

Taking kids on an outdoor vacation can be the most rewarding and memorable time of your life. And the most stressful. Ever been without a campsite with hungry, tired kids when its getting past bedtime? Now THAT’S an extreme sport. On the next Outdoor Explorer, we’re talking about family trips. Host Charles Wohlforth wrote a book on the subject and he is joined by two other authors of advice on family travel in Alaska and taking kids outdoors. KSKA: Thursday, April 24, at 2:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. Listen now: