COAST-X 2026

We had a wonderfully relaxing morning at Serpentine Hot Springs, complete with a well-deserved soak in the tub and spectacular views across the granite tor–studded valley. At 1 pm, we connected via Zoom with a group of about a dozen undergraduate students from the UAF GeoLC cohort. It was great to share what we’re up to. Later, we traveled over to the South Fork of the Serpentine with the Tundra Beaver crew, before heading towards the Stenek’s cabin. We’re looking forward to arriving in Shishmaref tomorrow afternoon and meeting with local high school students. There’s an incredible aurora forecast for tonight, though the skies aren’t cooperating at the moment.  Up and over a 1000 miles on the expedition!

Camp went up pretty quickly last night and came down just as fast this morning. We made it to Brevig Mission on time to talk with the 8–12 grade students. It was a blast. After the visit, we made good time heading toward Serpentine Hot Springs, deep in the Seward Peninsula mountains. It’s amazing to be back out here again. It’s 2am now and time to get some sleep. We’ll have a chill morning, then head toward Shishmaref and stay in a friend’s cabin for the night.

We’re back on the trail after a really nice couple of days in Nome with our families and the Tundra Beaver Boys. Before we left, Margaret Sutherland from KNOM Radio stopped by to interview us about the trip. After that, we finished tying down our sleds, fueled up at the gas station, and hit the trail out of town with some additional travel partners for the next few days. We traveled alongside the road toward Teller for most of the day, winding our way through low mountains. Absolutely spectacular terrain. We rolled into Brevig around 8 pm, set up our tents, and Tom made chili for dinner. We’re excited to visit the school here in the morning.

We started the day at Pingo Bakery, strong coffee, good breakfast, and an easy place to fall into conversation. We ended up talking with folks from Brevig Mission, where we’ll be heading Monday to spend time with the high school students. It was a nice reminder that the route ahead is about more than just miles. From there we linked up with the Tundra Beaver Boys, along with Tori from Alaska Gear Company and Philip’s wife, and headed out to a beaver complex on the Snake River. I ran a series of GPR lines across the valley and, at one point, punched through what looked like solid snow into flowing water below. Not ideal, but it turned into a solid team moment and we got everything sorted quickly. Back in town, we regrouped at Dredge 7 and spent the afternoon packing and getting everything ready to roll out tomorrow. The usual mix of organizing, checking, and rechecking. Meanwhile, Melissa lined up an interview with KNOM radio for the morning as we head out on the next leg. Full day, gre...

It rained and freezing rained in nome all day today which meant it was a good to assess the trail damage in our sleds and relax a bit with the tundra beaver boys, our families, and Tori from the Alaska Gear Company. We’ll head out tomorrow for a photo shoot at a local beaver pond. 

Super sweet to see our families here when we arrived. And a super long 190 miles of cruising today. Lots of ups and downs along the Iditarod Trail that required some sled fixing. We also had to gas up with the Nome city lights glaring at us. Looking forward to a few days here to regroup for the next run after these amazing first 715 miles!

It was a cold night last night, with temperatures likely dipping to around -40°F overnight. By morning, every liquid we had was frozen solid, and our propane and batteries struggled in the cold. Thankfully, the late March sun kicked in through, and within a few hours things began to warm slightly and come back to life. We said goodbye to Neal as he continued his flight tour across Alaska on his way to Naknek. From there, Phillip and I traveled over the sea ice to Unalakleet. We met with several folks in town. One of the first people we spoke with welcomed us to Iñupiaq country, which meant a lot and set the tone for the day and the next two weeks. We had some great conversations with elders and local tundra travelers, hearing stories and sharing a bit about our journey. After fueling up, we hit the Iditarod Trail and pushed on toward Little Mountain. Tonight, we are settling into the shelter cabin here, which will give us a good base to continue tomorrow. The goal is to reach Nome, whe...