Alyeska Resort is an amazing place to have as our backyard ski hill. On this edition of Outdoor Explorer, we’re talking about how it got that way. Recording in Girdwood, we have Chris Von Imhof, the father of Alyeska, at the Roundhouse museum up on the mountain, with many good stories. And we’ll have Rosey Fletcher, who became an Olympian on the runs that Von Imhof built. KSKA: Thursday, March 24, at 2pm and Thursday, March 31 at 8pm DOWNLOAD AUDIO

It’s been a bad year for avalanches in south central Alaska, with several deaths occurring in the mountains. Still, we have more information to avoid avalanches than ever before. On the next Outdoor Explorer we'll visit with the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Information Center to learn how the staff there studies the snow and predicts whether or not backcountry activities will be safe, and what you need to know for your own adventures. KSKA: Thursday, March 17, at 2:00 and Thursday, March 24, at 8:00 p.m. DOWNLOAD AUDIO

Moose are part of life in Alaska in so many ways, as dinner, as a road hazard, and as an exciting visitor in your back yard. They're really amazing animals that deserve our respect. On the next Outdoor Explorer, we’ll hear from a moose biologist who followed the animals in Denali for more than 35 years, and one who wrangled them in middle of the city, with Christmas lights on their antlers. KSKA: Thursday, March 10, at 2:00 and Thursday, March 17, at 8:00 p.m. DOWNLOAD AUDIO

The annual statewide competitions are coming up soon, as well as the international Arctic Winter Games in Fairbanks. These games are spectacular, like the high kick, and sometimes require toughness and courage. Their cultural roots are for preparing for outdoor survival and hunting success. We’ll have athletes and cultural experts in the studio. KSKA: Thursday, March 3, at 2:00 and Thursday, March 10, at 8:00 p.m. DOWNLOAD AUDIO

On the next Outdoor Explorer, our topic is writing about Alaska’s outdoors. Our state presents some unique challenges to a writer, and in fact books about Alaska can be overwhelmed by Alaska. The authors joining me on our next show found their way around that. We’ll be talking about Iditarod, history, adventures, and how Alaska changed our guests, and how they helped change the state. KSKA: Thursday, Feb. 25 @ 2:00 pm. Download Audio

Chugach National Forest, and especially Prince William Sound, takes in some of the most extraordinary scenery and protected wilderness in Alaska. Charles Wohlforth shares what he learned when he attended a public meeting on changing management of the Sound, and you'll hear from people who think that’s both a good and a bad idea. LISTEN NOW

Alaskan’s like to do crazy things, and few are as crazy as the ultra-marathon races across the wilderness by bike, ski or foot that are happening over the next few weeks. We’ll be talking to organizers of the 1000-mile Iditarod Trail Invitational and the 100-mile Susitna 100, to races that pioneered this kind of adventure, and inspired the new technology of fat bikes. Join us for the next Outdoor Explorer and get inspired! KSKA: Thursday, Feb 11, at 2:00 and Thursday, Feb 18, at 8:00 p.m. LISTEN NOW!

In rural Alaska, you don’t usually see a lot of skiers, but that doesn’t really make sense, because snow is something the Arctic has plenty of. On the next Outdoor explorer, we’ll be talking to Lars Flora, a former olympian who has dedicated himself to spreading skiing across Alaska like a Nordic Johnny Appleseed, Elizabeth Rexford, who is one of his volunteers, and Jim Vordestrasse, who started skiing in Barrow in 1973. KSKA: Thursday, Feb 4, at 2:00 and Thursday, Feb 11, at 8:00 p.m. LISTEN NOW

The nightmare of anyone leading a backcountry trip is that someone becomes seriously hurt, falls in the water, or gets too cold. You can’t get the person to a doctor for many hours or even days. You don’t know what to do. On the next Outdoor Explore, we’re going to talk about that terrifying situation and how to solve it. We’re talking about wilderness medicine. KSKA: Thursday, Jan 28, at 2:00 and Thursday, Feb 4, at 8:00 p.m. LISTEN NOW

Chuck Sassara first arrived in Alaska in a VW bus in 1955 with his wife Ann. They built a life that encompassed aviation, government and business and witnessed the beginnings of statehood and the growth of the Alaskan community. We'll talk with him about some of his adventures and about his book, “Chuck Sassara’s Alaska – Propellers, Politics and People,” on this weeks' next Outdoor Explorer. KSKA: Thurs., Jan. 21, at 2:00 p.m. and Thurs., Jan. 28, at 8:00 p.m. LISTEN HERE