by Jenny Chissus
Skiing photos by Kenai Heli Ski, Local Seldovia photos by Jenny Chissus
I had the great opportunity to visit with Njord and Chad on one of their trips to Seldovia this past winter. They were here to meet with the community and were checking out the slopes for this upcoming winter 2013 Heli ski season in the mountains surrounding our beautiful waterfront community of Seldovia!
Now, as the first snow has already fallen (Yes, in September!) we are looking ahead to an upcoming season of Heli Skiing in the Seldovia mountains! Winter is on the way, and this is a great opportunity to introduce you to a new business coming to Seldovia this winter and Njord Rota, co-owner of Kenai Heli Ski!
First, a little info: Kenai Heli Ski has 4 helicopters and one Snowcat available for inclement weather (when the ceiling is too low, or the weather too bad for helicopters) in order to promise their skiers over 100,000 vertical feet of skiing during a 6 “ski days” trip!
Their weeklong packages will include transportation from Anchorage to Seldovia, lodging, meals, guides and equipment. They will provide skis (bring your own snowboard if that is your equipment of preference) and most importantly avalanche airbags for each skier. 
They are the only company providing this very important safety equipment (through their partner Backcountry Access) to clients at no extra cost. Check out all the important safety measures they are committed to, from equipment to experienced and trained guides who have medical training and mountain guide certifications as well as advanced avalanche training. First priority is always safety – and the second is FUN!
This Heli ski operation is going to be an exciting aspect to the winter months in our quiet community off the road system. I live here year round, and come September, it is just us “locals” who spend the entire winter in Seldovia.
I had the opportunity to talk with Njord on the phone the other day about the upcoming winter – and pick his brain a bit about the hopes and dreams for his first season in Seldovia.
Njord, where are you from and what is your experience with Heli-ski? Currently I’m living in Glenwood Spring Colorado, but originally I’m from Kansas. My father was a career military officer, so I’ve lived just about everywhere. I’ve personnaly transitioned from being a guide in my youth to a career as a military officer and helicopter pilot to coming back to my roots as a guide.
With a new venture in Alaska, are you working with heli ski this winter in Colorado? There is going to be very little happening this year for us in Aspen. Chad and I are going to teach a couple of avalanche classes, but otherwise the focus is going to be on getting things ready for heli skiing in Alaska.
There are so many beautiful places to ski, why did you choose Seldovia? How did you discover Seldovia? I discovered Seldovia through Ted Stallings, with Aero Tech Inc., whom I’ve worked with as an aircraft provider for some of the defense work that I do.
What is special or unique about this ski package in Seldovia for your clients? It’s special in that is mostly “undiscovered” for the helicopter skiing Continue reading →
Seldovia Gazette 