At the beginning of September, we had the privilege of hosting our long-time family friends, the Lemans, in McCarthy. We enjoyed four days of beautiful fall weather and explored the area on foot,… Continue reading
If you’ve been following a bit you’ve probably noticed that what started as a blog has transitioned to featuring more videos recently. Woodsen and I were talking about this transition the other day,… Continue reading
When our friends visited us in McCarthy, we made it a priority to take a day trip to the coast. From McCarthy, it’s a quick, one-hour scenic flight to Cordova and probably one… Continue reading
In early July, we had the pleasure of hosting our friends, the Johnsons, in McCarthy. We were on day four of nine days together, and had already celebrated the 4th of July in… Continue reading
After spending a memorable day on Wolverine with friends, we loaded up in our Cessna 185, and our friends loaded up in their experimental four-place Super Cub to head to Nazina Lake. Unlike… Continue reading
This summer we had the pleasure of hosting our friends, the Johnsons, in McCarthy, Alaska. We were excited to bring them to a few of our favorite spots nearby, including a landing strip… Continue reading
Our friends, the Johnsons, arrived in McCarthy, Alaska on July 3rd, and we spent the 4th of July together in town enjoying all the daytime festivities McCarthy has to offer (read about our… Continue reading
We love sharing our flying adventures with friends and family, but its not that often where schedules and weather line up to make it happen. When my cousin Matthew and his family came… Continue reading
During a visit to McCarthy in late June, we took advantage of a nice weather window on the coast between Cordova and Yakutat, and headed that direction in our plane. We stopped at… Continue reading
Enjoy a journey down memory lane as we reflect on what an amazing Papa Woodsen has been, and continues to be, to Atlee, Melozi, Yukla, and Eska. We are grateful for you Woodsen!
In early June, our family set out to see how far we could make it down the Aleutian chain, a trip Woodsen and I had been dreaming of for the last ten years.… Continue reading
We arrived in Sand Point on June 4th, the second day of a long-anticipated trip exploring the Alaska Peninsula. In the half day we had in Sand Point, we spent time with our… Continue reading
When we start planning an adventure, one of the first things we do is reach out to friends familiar with the area or who currently live there. Early on, Woodsen had reached out… Continue reading
For a long time, Woodsen and I have dreamed of exploring the Aleutians in our own plane. I’d say the idea first blossomed while Woodsen was working for Lifemed in Dutch Harbor in… Continue reading
Last summer, when I finished making a video of our trip to Seldovia, I couldn’t help but notice that while it captured that trip, it failed to capture all the experiences and memories… Continue reading
We returned to Port Alsworth for our annual trip over Memorial Day weekend to take part in the Sourdough Fly-in and spend time with friends. Here’s a recap of our weekend.
On May 8th, we flew to Valdez to enjoy a weekend camping under the wing and taking in all that the Valdez Fly-in has to offer. Here’s a recap of our weekend. Read… Continue reading
A short video capturing the highlights from our 10-day trip over spring break to McCarthy and Valdez.
For the last decade, our typical spring break tradition has been heading out on the Iditarod trail to follow the race by plane. This year, we decided to switch it up and head… Continue reading
It’s mid-December, and although there’s no snow on the ground and much more wind than I prefer, my spot by the fire is cozy, and I’ve been enjoying working on my yearly photo-related… Continue reading
Over the years, we’ve enjoyed many trips to McCarthy; in fact, Woodsen and I’s first trip together in the Super Cub was to the McCarthy area. From what I can recall, our past… Continue reading
As I went back through our 2025 adventures and slowly made movies for our family to enjoy, I kept skipping over a couple of places, one of which was Ninilchik. Making a video… Continue reading
Another year and another trip to Seldovia where we enjoyed a beautiful view from our camp at the runway, visiting friends, and time at the beach. Read more about our time in Seldovia… Continue reading
Shortly after our trip to Council, the kids came down with hand-foot-and-mouth disease so we spent a week or two at home. It felt like it took forever, but eventually their blisters faded… Continue reading
After spending five days in Council, we packed up, headed to the airport, and said goodbye to our friends the Stangs. Eska fell asleep immediately after takeoff for what we hoped would be… Continue reading
After a few days in Delta Junction, we continued North to Fairbanks, then on to Council, near Nome, Alaska. Enjoy a recap video with a few highlights from our trip.
We started the day in Delta Junction visiting friends, and by late morning, we had packed up, said our goodbyes, and headed to the airport. We planned on a short one-hour flight to… Continue reading
At the end of June, Woodsen had a chunk of time off, so we made a last-minute decision to head North. The first stop on our trip was Delta Junction, where we visited… Continue reading
Some trips come together seamlessly, others feel like they are on the brink of falling apart at any moment. Weather shifts, things come up, plans keep changing, and kids get sick. Plenty of… Continue reading
We had enjoyed a magical 24 hours on the McArthur River, but with the weather turning, we decided to pack up and head home. While packing up, Woodsen remembered he had been in… Continue reading
A video recap of our dreamy overnight trip to the McArthur River.
Summer in Alaska is short, and we feel the pressure to enjoy the warmth and daylight all summer, but there are a few days that we are especially intentional about being outside. One… Continue reading
After two days camping and exploring Hinchinbrook and Kayak Island, we headed to McCarthy to spend time making the rounds visiting friends. Our friends let us stay in a small cabin on their… Continue reading
Follow along as we head out for an Alaskan beach adventure exploring Hook Point, Kayak Island, and ending in Cordova, AK.
Our airplane adventure had started the day before and brought us to Hook Point on Hinchinbrook Island. You can read more about that amazing day here. Clouds rolled in midday, so after debating… Continue reading
Since Woodsen and I’s first anniversary, we’ve made it a tradition to set out on an adventure around our anniversary, June 10th. This year, Woodsen again got time off work, but on June… Continue reading
Join us as we head out to Lake George with my Sister and her family for a windy day, enjoying and exploring the glacier-filled lake.
June 8th 2025 We love sharing airplane adventures with friends and it’s extra special when schedules, logistics and weather work out to fly our extended family out to share the experience with them.… Continue reading
For Memorial Day weekend, we made our annual pilgrimage to Port Allsworth to see friends and enjoy the Sourdough fly-in. On the way home, we had a mid-flight meltdown and decided to land… Continue reading
Over the years we’ve flown through Lake Clark Pass many times in all sorts of weather. At the top of the pass theres a small strip surrounded by two glaciers, a river, and… Continue reading
After a fun Friday in Port Alsworth (you can read about it here) we settled in and camped by the plane. Saturday morning greeted us with sun, which made Eska’s 6:30 am wake… Continue reading
For the last six or seven years it’s been our tradition to head to Port Allsworth for the Sourdough Fly-in over Memorial Day weekend. We first made our way out to Port Allsworth… Continue reading
Every year, our first trip of the summer is flying to Valdez, Alaska, for their well-known fly-in and STOL competition. This year, we headed to Valdez a day early, and my friend Kate… Continue reading
In August 2024, we flew to Valdez for the day and enjoyed exploring the bay with our friends, the Fosters. Here’s a video recap of our unforgettable Alaskan adventure. Find the full blog… Continue reading
Our annual pilgrimage to Valdez usually occurs in May when we enjoy the festivities and friends hosted by the Valdez Fly-in. In 2024, we skipped the Valdez fly-in and opted to spend time… Continue reading
In the summer of 2024 we set out as a family on our biggest adventure yet. We left Wasilla, AK and flew to Oshkosh, Wi and back. It was a month long adventure… Continue reading
At the beginning of the trip we found a song that everyone liked and the kids wanted to listen to over and over. It became a bit of a theme song to our… Continue reading
We took off Petersburg with not a cloud in the sky and made our way towards Juneau. The scenery was beautiful and only got better the further we went. At this point I… Continue reading
From Smiley Creek we headed back to familiar territory. We had camped in Orcas Island on our way down, and for the first time it was nice to know what to expect when… Continue reading
We departed Johnson Creek as a flight of two and stayed close to our friend Matt as we slowly climbed up. The smoke from local fires was thick, but we still enjoyed views… Continue reading
Woodsen, who is part of the Alaskan chapter of the 180/185 club, had been receiving emails about a fly-in at Johnson Creek Idaho, but since our plans were all very flexible we weren’t… Continue reading
Early in the morning Jack stopped by our camp and picked up Woodsen to go on a flight see and check out a couple grass strips in the area. The kids and I… Continue reading
They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so here’s a picture that shows not only the chaos of our airplane, but how we felt after the flight from South Dakota to… Continue reading
After a jam packed day enjoying The Days of 1910 celebration, we decided to stay a third night in South Dakota to rest before pushing on to Montana. Christa has a habit of… Continue reading
Timber Lake is a small town in the heart of South Dakota farmland, so you might be curious how we ended up there. I could make this a short story, but since health… Continue reading
The biggest highlight or accomplishment from Oshkosh was really just getting there😊. 10 days, 20+ hours (still need to add that up) and thousands of miles, but we made it! I’m proud of… Continue reading
We said goodbye to the Dudgeon’s in Sioux Falls and loaded up the airplane for the flight to Oshkosh. The views from the plane were lush and green and the kids enjoyed spelling… Continue reading
We had one more stop before the final push to Oshkosh. South Dakota was a good midway point between Montana and Oshkosh, and Woodsen had been in touch with a couple in Sioux… Continue reading
When we were first thinking of flying to Wisconsin we knew Livingston, Montana would be a stop on our trip. Woodsen’s Aunt and cousin lived there and we had also recently sold our… Continue reading
The eight minute flight to Anacortes for fuel, and the seven minute flight to Bellingham was a breeze compared to the long flights we had up to this point. Our friends the Burns… Continue reading
One of the best things about airplane campgrounds is instant community with a common interest in aviation. It wasn’t long after landing that we started meeting other campers. First we met Tom &… Continue reading
When Woodsen began flight planning for our trip we knew that the flight between Southeast Alaska and the lower 48 would be our longest flight. My passport had lapsed, and the kids didn’t… Continue reading
Day three of our trip was overcast and rainy. After breakfast and coffee we dropped woodsen off at the plane to refuel and look at the door handle that broke the day before.… Continue reading
July 11th and day 2 of our big adventure. We woke to typical coastal weather (rain), ate breakfast, then since we didn’t want to repack the cake in the airplane we had cake… Continue reading
Well, our family’s grown a tad since I’ve written a post 😄. Now theres six of us! Atlee (8), Melozi (6), Yukla (3), and Eska (5mo). It makes me teary eyed thinking about… Continue reading
This spring brought a big change for us. Shortly after flying the Iditarod, we found out that Woodsen’s dad had decided to sell the Super Cub. Honestly, I was crushed. It made total… Continue reading
Oh, the Iditarod! That last great race evokes so many different emotions. There is so much to love about following the last great race, yet there’s also enough logistical challenges and inconveniences that it makes me cringe… Continue reading
Two years ago we met Lyle on the Iditarod trail. Channel 11 News had chartered his caravan for the journey and he was their personal pilot. Since then we’ve run into him many… Continue reading
