Asks borough to request flight path data The Upper Lynn Canal Fish and Game Advisory Committee (ULCFGAC) Monday voted 6-2 to ask state and federal land managers to restrict heliskiing in the Takhinsha Mountains and Kicking Horse region in an effort reduce mountain goat population decline. According to protocols outlined in the Bureau of Land Management’s land […]
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Assembly ends heliski map committee work
The assembly voted down the heliski map committee’s request to continue work for another year. At a meeting earlier this month, the map committee voted 3-2 to ask for an extension through Sept. 30, 2021 to give members time to come up with map recommendations that balanced heliski industry needs with environmentalists’ concerns about dwindling mountain goat populations. The […]
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Heliski map committee asks for another year to address concerns
Another contentious meeting of the heliski map committee ended with a recommendation to the borough manager that members be allowed to continue committee work until Sept. 30, 2021. This is not the first time the committee’s deadline has been extended. Under borough code, the committee meets on a three-year cycle to consider potential changes to the heliski map. For […]
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TAB approves changes to heliski tour GPS reporting requirements
The Haines Borough Tourism Advisory Board (TAB) approved staff-recommended changes to heliski code and administrative policy at an Oct. 8 meeting. Tourism director Steven Auch, the point person for the revisions, said the changes are largely minor tweaks to ensure code and borough administrative policy clearly articulate requirements for heliski operators. “The intent and point of all of this was not […]
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Heliski map committee to consider terrain closure recommendations
The borough’s heliski map committee is awaiting industry data before settling on a recommendation that could limit heliski activity in the Takhinsha mountain range after the Alaska Department of Fish and Game closed the region to mountain goat hunting due to conservation concerns. Committee members and the industry representative sparred over which data the industry would provide. Fish and […]
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SEABA investigated for heliskiing in Glacier Bay National Park
Heliski company Southeast Alaska Backcountry Adventures (SEABA) had “significant activity” on Glacier Bay National Park land on March 17, according to the Haines Borough’s 2020 heliski season-end report. “If it occurred, it wouldn’t be a gray area for us. There’s multiple violations of law,” Glacier Bay National Park superintendent Philip Hooge said, adding that the park is […]
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Heliski companies shut down despite banner snow season
Heliskiing operators are suspending their seasons during one of the better snow years in a decade to help slow the spread of coronavirus in Haines. “It’s the heliski operator’s dream forecast,” Alaska Heliskiing owner Sean Brownell said last week of recent conditions and forecasts of sunny days intermixed with snow. “To wrap things up when it’s so […]
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Heliski company offers terrain near Petersburg
Beginning in January, adrenaline junkies heading to Alaska for heliskiing can now launch off a boat moored at the foot of untouched mountains in Petersburg. After three consecutive bad winters, Southeast Alaska Backcountry Adventures (SEABA) has secured a two-year permit with the U.S. Forest Service to operate in Petersburg and partnered with a boat to […]
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Low snow causes worst heliski season on record
Haines heliski companies had one of the worst seasons ever this year as bad weather and snow conditions limited time in the mountains. Southeast Alaska Backcountry Adventures (SEABA) owner Scott Sundberg said persistent cold, dry and windy weather didn’t allow the buildup of a stable snowpack. SEABA, Alaska Heliskiing and Alaska Mountain Guides used an average of […]
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Assembly cuts heliski terrain map
After adding two heli-ski map terrain locations last month, the Haines Borough Assembly reversed part of that decision Tuesday and removed one of the areas. Assembly member Stephanie Scott moved to reconsider a vote made last month that added an area north of Rainbow Glacier and another near Flower Mountain. Every three years the assembly considers changes to heli-ski […]