Denali

On the next Outdoor Explorer, we will be exploring Alaska’s most iconic park, Denali National Park and Preserve. Sharon Stiteler, the park’s Public Affairs Officer, and Tucker Chenowith, the park’s South District Ranger, will cover ground from the first successful summit of Denali to the impact of the Pretty Rocks landslide on travel in the park.

Dave Johnston has had many firsts: the first winter ascents of Denali and Mount Foraker, and the first Denali State Park Ranger being just a few. He also has climbed the 50 highest peaks in the U.S. with his family. Join your host Paul Twardock with Dave, his wife Cari and son Galen for the next Outdoor Explorer.

Sepp Weber has climbed, skied and kayaked for 80 years, mostly in Alaska. Join him and your host Paul Twardock as Sepp shares his stories on Outdoor Explorer.

Officials at Denali National Park and Preserve are studying whether the existing path of the park’s 92-mile road can be spared from a creeping landslide, in what scientists say could be a preview of Denali’s future as its permafrost thaws.

While most of us are storing our skis for the summer, the Denali climbing season is just beginning. Climbing rangers are putting in Kahiltna Base Camp and the first climbers are on the mountain soon to be followed by 1000s of others. Join us for the next Outdoor Explorer as we talk with two veterans of Denali, climber Colby Coombs and Denali Ranger Melis Coady.Thanks for listening!

The outdoors can teach us many lessons, from skills like pitching a tent and cooking a hot meal to life lessons such as communication and decision making. Alaska is full of women and men of all stripes that have lived full lives in the outdoors. Join your host, Paul Twardock, on the next Outdoor Explorer as he speaks with Alaska ski pioneer Jim Mahaffey and retired Denali Mountaineering Ranger Daryl Miller.Thanks for listening!

Dunleavy is proposing to increase spending on a handful of projects and programs. They represent some of the governor's core priorities, like public safety and criminal justice, along with non-negotiable obligations, like the system that pays pensions to retired teachers and other public employees.

Whereas having somebody else along is often safer and more fun, solo trips into the wilderness can sometimes be the most memorable. Whether by choice or necessity, these experiences offer a chance to get to know oneself better. In this episode we'll talk about what it’s like being truly alone in the great outdoors. This episode first aired in January of 2015.Thanks for listening!

KSKA: Thursday, October 12, at 2:00 p.m. Vern Tejas joins us on this Outdoor Explorer to talk about his extraordinary climbing career. Vern was the first to climb Denali solo in the winter, a story in which this public radio station played a unique role, and he has climbed the highest mountain on each of the seven continents at least 10 times, and has done them faster than anyone else. But what impressed us even more about Vern was his warmth and his healthy philosophy about climbing, safety and people.LISTEN HERE

KSKA: Thursday, April 04, at 2:00. Denali National Park is turning 100 years old. We’ll learn how the park came into being a century ago, when development of Alaska had hardly begun. We’ll also look at the park today and opportunities to experience it as Alaskans. It is one of our biggest tourist attractions, but it is also a great place to visit with your family, especially with the activities starting this month for the centennial year.LISTEN NOW