Helicopter skiing in Valdez, Alaska

You've dreamt about back country snowboarding and skiing in helicopter-only accessed terrain. You've seen pictures of wide-open, untracked mountains. You've wanted to experience a big mountain adventure. You are ready! Now is the time to pick a date for your outdoor adventure and start packing for your dream vacation in the Chugach Range of Valdez, Alaska!

At a glance:

5 days skiing/ 7 nights lodging

Double: $6,500 Single: $6,750

First day itinerary:

6:00pm

Upon your arrival, we will greet you at the Valdez airport, assisting with baggage as we load into vans. It’s a 5 minute drive from the airport to our hotel, where guides will have the opportunity to point out nearby mountain names and places to eat, as you soak in the charm of the city of Valdez. At the hotel, guides will assist with your luggage while you check into your rooms and catch a quick bite to eat from the snack bar.

7:00pm - 9:00pm

Everyone meets in the conference room at the hotel. Guides and staff are introduced, while necessary paperwork is handed out and filled in. Our director of operation discusses the daily schedule and answers any logistical questions about day to day activities. Once the paperwork is out of the way, a lead guide begins to discuss our Mountain Safety Briefing, where we teach you how to use the equipment required to access remote glaciated terrain. This includes:

• Introduction to Mountain Terms
• H2O Backcountry Travel Protocols
• Beacon Rescue Orientation
• Hands-on Beacon Search (Outdoors)
• Once you find the hidden beacon and all questions are answered, it’s time to hit the sack and get plenty of rest for the following days activities.

Helicopter Briefing

One other step before we can fly is to make sure everyone gets a helicopter briefing. This covers how to get in and out of the helicopter, which red buttons not to push, and what to do in case of an emergency. This is either done on the night of arrival after your pick up at the airport, or the next morning before we fly.

Package includes:

• Six-runs a day, an average of 20,000 vertical feet, on over
• 1,000,000 (one million) acres of exclusive terrain
• A personal greeting at the Valdez Airport by our friendly staff
• Ground transportation in Valdez, AK
• The best big mountain equipment available: HEAD Skis, poles, Black Diamond harness, Ortovox D3 digital transceiver and Ortovox probes, shovels, and heli day packs.
• Our shared knowledge of the latest advancements in backcountry techniques and etiquette
• Lodging at the Mountain Sky Hotel located in the heart of Valdez.

• Breakfast and lunch

Our family-owned company is the longest running heli ski business under one owner in Alaska and the only company based in Valdez full time. We work all year refining our operations, expanding our scope, and staying on the cutting edge of mountain, glacier, aircraft, and snow safety. Offering the highest quality heli-skiing experience in Alaska, we are the best operator out there.

With us, you have access to all the terrain that Valdez and the surrounding mountains have to offer. No other operator can say this. H2O’s permits through the BLM and the US Forest Service provide you with a gateway to over 1.6 million acres, more than any other operator in the world. With nine unique staging locations we access good snow when other operators cannot.

Dean Cummings played a critical role pioneering helicopter skiing in Alaska and has been guiding in the Chugach Range since 1990. With ski mountaineering experience on all seven continents and in every major mountain range on the planet, our guides bring diverse backgrounds and talents to the H2O team. Fully certified professionals in the field, everyone at H2O is committed to providing a safe, fun, and educational experience.

We have the best safety record in the industry hands down. We maintain this high level of safety with recurrent guide training and strict adherence to our operating protocols. Our policies allow us to be conservative with weather, and our snow safety program is cutting edge with full time avalanche forecasters on staff.

Flying only four groups per helicopter, we have streamlined our logistics to get you to the goods with less waiting and more shredding. Our small groups allow your personal guides to emphasize team building and increase your understanding of the mountains.

H2O is committed to protecting our natural resources and keeping Alaska clean and wild. We use all biodegradable flagging tape for our heli landing zones, we do wildlife surveys for the BLM and US Forest Service, we use highly regulated fueling procedures, minimize the packaging in our client’s lunches, and use Leave No Trace practices in the field. Our policy is leave only tracks so this incredible land will always be as wild as we found it.

Testimonials:

"It was like nothing I have ever experienced before. From the first helicoptor ride out, to the last one in. It was the most surreal experience I have ever had!"

Matt Wentlers

"Greatest skiing of my life. Great backcountry experience. Thanks to H2O we skied terrain that most skiers dream about."

Vadin Chapko - Brooklyn, New York