{"id":11746,"date":"2017-02-08T08:00:55","date_gmt":"2017-02-08T16:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/community.nrs.com\/?p=11746"},"modified":"2017-02-08T13:14:46","modified_gmt":"2017-02-08T21:14:46","slug":"a-local-hero","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.nrs.com\/duct-tape\/2017\/02\/08\/a-local-hero\/","title":{"rendered":"Jay Mahan: The Alaskan Bush Pilot"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jay Mahan is the kind of guy who dreams big. When I first met Jay at a reggae show along the Kenai River in Alaska we talked about a couple of his past whitewater kayaking adventures. I was immediately fascinated. He told stories of pushing the high water limits on classic Southeast runs like Linville Gorge and of exploring seldom-seen rivers in southern Ecuador. This dude was a go-getter and had quickly progressed as a whitewater paddler. But it wasn\u2019t until we talked about flying that Jay\u2019s true passion came to light. Now, hung up on the thought of Alaska\u2019s vast mountainous skies, a spark flickered in Jay\u2019s eyes.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Jay had moved from his home in North Carolina to Alaska for a seasonal guiding job a few years ago. In his first seasons Jay spent a lot of time accessing remote fishing destinations in de Havilland Beavers and Piper Super Cubs, two of Alaska\u2019s most classic bush planes. The fishing was world class, but the flying is what really hooked him. Soon he had earned his private pilot\u2019s license and purchased his own Taylor Craft, a small and affordable two-person taildragger. Amidst Alaska\u2019s snow-capped mountains, Jay had discovered his calling. He was becoming an Alaskan bush pilot. <\/span><\/p>\n

By the time I ran into Jay he had become one of the top guides at All Alaska Outdoors, a high-end fishing lodge in Soldotna, Alaska. He had also logged an impressive 800+ hours of challenging flight time in less than two years and was one certification away from becoming a commercial pilot. Jay\u2019s focus was clearly on flying, but he was still intrigued by whitewater kayaking. He knew that exploratory paddling was my passion, and that access to Alaska\u2019s remote rivers was the main barrier between numerous first descents and me. Jay wanted to help make these trips possible for my team and me, so he and I started scheming. After days of scout flights and some experimentation with strapping our kayaks to the floats of his plane, we had developed a plan to fly our team into three un-run rivers in the Lake Clark National Park.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Within a couple weeks we had flown into and successfully paddled two rivers on the Western slope of the Lake Clark National Park. These rivers, the Kontrashibuna and Tazimina, were wildly spectacular and full of great whitewater. From the flights in to access the rivers and the rapids we paddled, to the campsite views we enjoyed and the fresh fish we caught and ate each night, the trip couldn\u2019t have been any better. Best of all though, we had kept the Jay’s Fork of the Tuxedni River (the crown jewel of the area) as the grand finale.<\/span><\/p>\n