Little Switzerland Ski Base Camp, Alaska Range

Talkeetna Air Taxi has Turbo Otters, Beavers and Cessnas.

Glacier Skiing in the Shadow of Denali

In the mountains below Denali, Little Switzerland is the Alaska Range playground for climbing and skiing. Set on the Pika Glacier (a tributary of the Kahiltna), Little Swiss is a small scale version of the nearby Ruth Gorge. This means we spend more time skiing and less time crossing flat glaciers. From our base-camp in Little Switzerland we'll have a full-range of options, from two-day loops, to long day tours, to lapping the slopes around camp.

See a post from our April 2010 Little Switzerland trip.

Return to Ski Base Camp Overview.

Cost 

  • 1:1-, 2:1-, 3:1-
  • 1 customer: $550 / day
  • 2 customers: $400 / day
  • 3+ customers: $300 / day (second guide added over four customers)
  • Notes: 
    • See Base Camp Overview for what this trip includes. 
    • In the backcountry there are no expenses. 

Cost Includes:

  • Guide services 
  • All meals while on the mountain
  • Tents
  • Stoves
  • Cook kits
  • Group climbing equipment (ropes, pickets) 

Cost Does Not include:

  • Airfare to Anchorage
  • Talkeetna to Pika Glacier (~$550 each) 
  • Ground transportation within Alaska (~$150)
  • Hotel accommodations
  • Restaurant meals
  • Gratuities for guides
  • All personal ski mountaineering gear

Dates

April 29-May 7. Seven ski days and two travel days in Alaska.

Itinerary

Day 1: Meet in Anchorage. We will meet in Anchorage at 2pm at the hotel for introductions and gear check. If you need to need to purchase additional items, REI and Alaska Mountaineering and Hiking are a 30-minute walk from downtown Anchorage. Alternatively, we can stop at REI and AMH before the welcome dinner at the Bear Tooth Grill—Anchorage’s favorite restaurant.

Day 2: Fly into Base Camp. After breakfast, we’ll meet at 7am and drive two hours to Talkeetna Air Tax in the small town of Talkeetna. There we’ll load our gear into a bush plane and make the half-hour flight into the Pika Glacier in Little Switzerland. Establishing base camp on the Pika Glacier will take several hours, then we’ll have time for a few laps on the surrounding slopes before an early dinner.

Day 3: Skills review day. Little Switzerland is heavily glaciated—all of our touring will be on glaciers. To prepare for the following five days of ski mountaineering, we need to review our glacier travel skills. We will cover harnesses, knots, biners, snow anchors, belaying, crevasse rescue, crevasse self rescue (prussiking) and moving roped-up.

Day 4-8: Touring. The options are endless for our five days of touring around Little Switzerland. We have the option of day-touring to passes around camp to make descents into the Pika Glacier or we can make day, or multi-day loops on the vast glacier systems around Little Switzerland. Of course the slopes surround our Pika Glacier base camp are perfect for laps and logging vertical at the end of the day.

Day 9: Fly out, return to Anchorage. By 9am we will be packed and ready to fly back to Talkeetna for a huge meal at the West Rib Grill. From Talkeetna you have the option of staying the night and enjoying this buzzing climbing town, or returning to Anchorage for your flight home. To allow for weather delays, please make your return flight reservations no earlier than the evening of Day 10.

Note on Itinerary

There is an extra day scheduled into this itinerary to allow for bad weather or other unforeseen problems. This gives us a little flexibility and a greater chance for excellent skiing. Although we do our very best to follow the schedule listed, the very nature of skiing in alpine environments requires flexibility. This itinerary is subject to change due to inclement weather, unsafe route conditions, and other reasons beyond our control.

Weather

Like all mountain ranges, the weather in the Alaska Range is unpredictable and can roll in at any time limiting the productivity of your trip. Obviously, Stock Alpine has no control over this weather and therefore last minute decisions are sometimes made to save the trip from being completely cancelled. However, sometimes waiting for the weather to pass is the best plan of action and it is not unusual to sit in the rain for a few days.

Paul Roderick, the Alaska Range pilot.

 

Simon St. Arnaud stoked about Paul Roderick's Turbo Otter skills.

 

Drop off in Little Swiss below the Throne (7,390'). Note the deep snow piled on the wheel-skis.

 

Skinning up for another powder run with L'Aventurier Alpin.

 

Yummmm!!!!

 

Camp at 5,500 feet on the Pika Glacier. 

 

Nearing Telephone Pass above the Pika Glacier and Royal Tower (8,130'). 

 

Simon shopping for an air taxi upgrade in Talkeetna.