Photographer and adventurer Luc Mehl set out recently on another epic journey through Alaska: this time it was 150 miles of skating, skiing and hiking from Bethel to Goodnews Bay. Mehl and friend Sarah Histand originally intended to take a ski tour, but the unusually warm winter made for excellent ice skating, so they changed plans accordingly.
Starting off in Bethel, the duo passed through the villages of Eek and Quinhagak on the way to Goodnews Bay, with warm welcomes everywhere they went. Mehl says on his blog that the trail from Quinhagak to Goodnews Bay dates back to the early 1900s, but doesn't get much traffic.
"We found very few hints of the trail, so we used satellite imagery to navigate to the largest lakes and ponds," he wrote. "For sections without many lakes, we walked the beach. The beaches were dry and pretty clean, very nice travel."
The two ran heard about the region's unseasonable winter along the way.
"In each village we were told how warm the winters have been, how the winter trails aren't necessarily options anymore, and that hunting and fishing has changed to accommodate the new weather."
They also ran into evidence of the warm winter conditions, and had to cross several open leads, and even got stuck at one point in a muddy river bank.
"We put our skis on to cross the mud; it might not have been crossable without the skis to distribute our weight. We moved inland hoping to avoid the open water, but found thin ice. After another warm night, we decided to change course, heading into the mountains in hopes of finding snow and frozen ground," said Mehl.
As they made their way through the mountains, Mehl and Histand found firm frozen ground and observed herds of caribou along the way. Eventually they descended back down to the tundra and made their way on old mining trails, ultimately camping on Mumtrak Hill with a stunning view of Goodnews Bay.