Getting stoked and heli skiing in Alaska with Jed Workman

My guest today is Jed Workman — heli ski guide in Valdez, Alaska. But that’s just the headline.Jed didn’t follow the traditional script. He chose Alaska, or maybe it called to him. He chose an unconventional path. He built a life around mountains, art, risk, beauty, and shared passions.He’s lived off-grid. Farmed and hunted for his own food. Studied fine art — and then found those same lines and compositions etched into snow-covered spines. He learned to fly, taking a literal leap into the air — and a deeper leap of faith into a life built on instinct and intention.The mountains aren’t just where he works. They’re his canvas. His classroom. His proving ground. They are his subjects captured through the lens of his camera.When we spoke the night before the interview, I could hear him smiling over the phone. That kind of stoke doesn’t come from a job title. It comes from living aligned — art, photography, climbing, flying — and sharing it all with his partner Leighan. It’s an ode to love, to the mountains, and to building something meaningful together.In many ways, this is Jed’s quintessence of life — stripping it back to what matters most: beauty, risk, creation, connection.This conversation is about choosing your own line. About believing a different life is possible. About what happens when you stop following the map — and start drawing your own.This is Jed Workman. OR as I now see him Jed WILDMAN.