The mountain experience
Our guides
The team that pioneered Alaska heli-skiing in 1993 - and has stayed at the top of the craft ever since.
Trained. Experienced. Passionate.
The original Alaska heli-ski operation
Valdez Heli-Ski Guides didn't join the Alaska heli-ski scene - we started it. When Doug Coombs founded VHSG in 1993, guided helicopter skiing in the Chugach was practically unheard of. Every other operator in this range came after us. More than three decades later, that head start has become the deepest well of local knowledge in the business.
Recognized as some of the best in the world, our guides are teamed with skiers and snowboarders at a ratio of 4:1 or 3:2. A few have been guiding the Chugach since heli-skiing first arrived here - and that tenure translates directly into your week: better snow, better lines, and decisions made with knowledge that simply cannot be shortcut.
Highest safety standards
Trained for the biggest mountains
Our guides work hard earning certifications as qualified ski guides, avalanche forecasters, and wilderness first responders. On their own time, they climb and ski the highest peaks in the Alaska Range, the Alps, and the Andes.
Over three decades of operating - longer than anyone in the Chugach - we've refined a safety program built to minimize risk: thorough mountain safety, avalanche forecasting, prevention and rescue, and helicopter safety for every guest, every day.
Stay safe. And have fun.
Legendary terrain, for real skiers
The amazing Chugach lines you see skied in movies are real, but the majority of our runs aren't nearly so death-defying. Our guides have hosted skiers and riders from all over the world, across every level of advanced mountain experience.
If you can hold a controlled run on the in-bounds steeps of a major resort, our guides can make sure you have the time of your life in Alaska. A thorough safety program, the most experienced guides in the range, excellent conditions, and a stable snowpack mean you'll ski the kind of terrain that makes Alaska heli-skiing legendary the world over.
- 1993
- The year we pioneered Alaska heli-skiing
- 30+
- Years guiding the Chugach
- 2:3
- Guides to skiers - or 1:4 by package
The team
Leadership & management
The people who run the operation, shape our safety culture, and make sure every detail of your week is handled.
The team
Our heli-ski guides
Some of the most experienced big-mountain guides in the world, with an intimate knowledge of the Chugach that simply cannot be shortcut.
Interested in working with VHSG?
We're always glad to hear from experienced guides who share our standards and our love of the Chugach.
Get in touchThe founders
The Coombs legacy
Doug Coombs was a two-time World Extreme Skiing Champion and one of the most influential big-mountain skiers who ever lived, with first descents on five continents. He and Emily Coombs founded VHSG in 1993 on Thompson Pass, turning the Chugach into the global capital of heli-skiing and setting the standard the entire industry has followed ever since.
That founding spirit - uncompromising skiing, deep respect for the mountains, and a tight-knit community of skiers - still defines every VHSG season today.
Ski with the best
Our guides will match the terrain to your ability and show you the run of your life.