Getting the flow state. That’s the mantra being preached by NRS, which is halfway through the second season of its popular Flowstate video series, put together by hard charger Brendan Wells. In all, it will feature six episodes, all epic and big from Alaska, produced by Wells’ Mountain Mind Media.
“Flowstate, Season 2 is a culmination of a decade of research, scout missions and failed expeditions in America’s Last Frontier,” says NRS’s Ashely Peel. “With a rotating cast of Class V kayakers and skilled bush plane pilots, this time Brendan returns to Alaska for a season of first descents and second attempts with all the bushwhacking shenanigans and glacier margs we loved in season one.”
Episode 1: Devil’s Canyon of the Susitna
“We ended up running the sneak of the sneak line.”
A Class V classic and part of Alaska’s triple crown of expedition kayaking, Devil’s Canyon is a tight gorge on the Susitna River. Although the first descent occurred back in the 1970s and many paddlers have descended the gorge since, few have taken the time to capture as much footage as Wells and his crew did for this episode.
“So far it’s exceeding our expectations … and pucker factor.”
From an open-mic night in Talkeetna, the crew secures a bush pilot willing to fly them into the top of the canyon. From there, in true expedition-kayaking style, the paddlers navigate tundra, high flows, burly portages and burlier rapids.
“If it had a name, it’s big…”
Episode 2: Skolai Creek
On this one, Episode 2 of Season 2, Wells and company tackle Skolai Creek, a tributary to the Copper River, one of the most popular rafting runs in the Wrangells.
There’s a reason few paddlers challenge its glacial-fed whitewater, says Wells. With warm temps actively melting the glaciers feeding into this trib, high flows on day one force Wells and company to portage more than paddle. Over six days, the paddlers hopscotch between runnable rapids and massive, unrunnable waterfalls with hopes to paddle from the top of Skolai Creek, past the confluence of Frederika creek and into Nizina Lake.
Link to YouTube playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqAWcG4wIk6MH7WYlJJJEhuvxxlMKiqIF