Kobuk, Gates, Krusenstern, and Bering National Parks Trip

Kobuk, Gates, Krusenstern, and Bering National Parks Trip

DATES

Custom Dates Available for Your Group

REGION

Gates of the Arctic National Park

TRIP COST

$$

calendar

DATES

Custom Dates Available for Your Group
region

REGION

Gates of the Arctic National Park
price

TRIP COST

$$

Explore the beauty and wildness of America’s most northerly National Parks with Arctic Wild. We spend our first  days in the the Dunes of Kobuk Valley National Park, then move to the high country of Gates of the Arctic National Park. After hiking and birding on the tundra, we move to the Arctic Ocean at Cape Krusenstern National Monument before ending our trip among the rocky spires and hot-springs of Bering Land Bridge. The trip aims to balance the desire to see lots of country with the fun of truly exploring each of these remarkable parks.

TRIP DETAILS

Our aim is to show you the very best of America’s most remote and wild National Parks.

Our first park is just east of Kotzebue across “Kobuk Lake” and up the Kobuk River. Located entirely north of the Arctic Circle, Kobuk Valley National Park is the least visited National Park in the America. Though nearly totally unknown, the park is full of wildlife and scenic wonders. Kobuk Dunes is like the Sahara but with wolves, moose and cranes. Onion Portage is an archaeological district with evidence of human use for the past 12,000 years! The Kobuk River is a magnificent river rich with wildlife and broad vistas. We will spend our time in the sand dunes, wandering the flats and climbing mountains of sand, marveling at the geology and searching for wildlife.

After a couple of days our pilot returns for a flight into the Brooks Range. Gates of the Arctic National Park is 8.5 million acres of unspoiled and largely untraveled wilderness. The National Park Service is justly proud of its “crowning jewel”.  The park is beautiful and diverse. As one travels from south to north, boreal forest gives way to broad green tundra basins, vast glacial lakes and severe granite spires. Beyond the Continental Divide the sky opens and the seemingly endless tundra stretches beyond the horizon.

There is no end to the adventures we can have on the tundra and each night we return to our comfortable camp to enjoy the evening light and a hearty meal. Within a day’s walk of camp there are jagged peaks, long sinuous ridges, quiet canyons, vast grassy plains and with any luck, wildlife. Wildlife is unpredictable, but if you keep your eyes peeled and your binoculars handy there is always a bird or a mammal somewhere on the tundra making a living in this austere but seasonally rich landscape.

The trip would be a success if we ended here but we think a little time on the Arctic Coast makes it even better. Next stop, Cape Krusenstern National Monument. The park is known for it’s impressive archeological resources, but it has much to offer everyone. We regularly see muskox in the hills above the lagoon and the birding on the beach and in the wetlands is world-class. The contrast of coastal tundra and wildlife to the boreal forest along the Kobuk River and the alpine tundra in Gates of the Arctic make an interesting study. Whether we spend our time beach-combing, hiking the hills, or stalking muskoxen, our time at the Cape will be memorable.

With days of sand, mountains and beaches etched in our memories and a growing list of stories to tell, we head south into a dramatic volcanic landscape of Bering Land Bridge National Preserve. On a peninsula pointing towards Siberia in far western Alaska, Bering Land Bridge is rich in natural and human history.  We will base out of Serpentine Hot Springs so we can enjoy the bath-house and study the unique botanyof the springs. The hiking in the hills near the springs is even more wonderful than the geothermal bath, though after a day or climbing ridges and clambering through the granite tors a soak sure feels good. The birding in Bering is excellent with chances to see Bristle-thighed Curlews, Wagtails and Blue-throats.

Four unique parks and enough time to experience the beauty and magic of each one. This promises to be an interesting and fun trip in the western Arctic.

Last updated: December 22, 2020

Itinerary

What follows is a general flow of events. Expect the unexpected and prepare to be flexible.

Day 0

We’ll have a pre-trip meeting in Kotzebue the evening before our departure at 6:45 pm where we’ll check gear, and discuss the next day’s logistics.

Day 1

Meet back at the pilot’s hangar and then we are off. After an hour-long flight up the Kobuk we land in right in the sand and then set-up camp next to a nearby creek. Welcome to paradise.

Day 2

A full day to explore the dunes, search for wildlife, photograph the nearby surroundings, or day-dream with no one for miles around to disturb you.

Day 3

Weather permitting, we’ll say a final goodbye to the Kobuk Dunes and then fly north into the Brooks Range and eventually land on a gravel bar with tundra all around. Welcome to Gates of the Arctic National Park. Camp is quickly re-assembled leaving us with the afternoon to take the first of many hikes.

Day 4- 6

Three full days enjoy the mountains and creeks of Gates of the Arctic. We can gain the ridge behind camp and hike deep into the peaks, or take a more leisurely stroll by the river. No matter where our feet take us, we’ll keep our eyes and ears trained for birds and wildlife. The endless daylight and broad landscape is inspiring.

Day 7

The sound of the plane will break the silence of the mountains (weather permitting). Once we load our camp into the plane we fly west, across Noatak Preserve, stopping for lunch and a short walk if you want, and then we fly further west to the edge of the continent. We land on the beach in Cape Krusenstern between the lagoons and the Chukchi Sea with the pale limestone hills beckoning us inland.

Day 8

Between the waves of the ocean and the peaks of the Igichuk Hills, there are lots hikes, strolls and wanders we can try. The lagoons and wetlands offer exceptional birding and with luck we will see some muskoxen within hiking distance of camp. We often do. Between the beach-combing, birding, and hiking in the hills, it will be a busy and fun day in Krusenstern.

Day 9

Weather permitting, our pilot arrives mid-day for the flight south, past Kotzebue and down the Baldwin Peninsula, before heading west into Bering Land Bridge Preserve. After setting up camp a bath is in order! Then we can start exploring the tundra and mountains.

 

Day 10

A full day in Bering Land Bridge. We will visit the hot springs, hike the volcanic landscape, explore the rock formations that dot the tundra, and watch the variety of birds and wildlife. With constant daylight, energy and imagination are the only limits to what we can do.

Day 11

There is more to explore and enjoy but when we hear the sound of the propeller we know that this adventure is nearly done. If the weather cooperates we should be in Kotzebue by mid-afternoon. Time to change your socks and take a shower!

We wanted you to know what a wonderful trip we had with Cynthia. What a skilled guide and wonderful person she is. We can’t imagine having had a better guide. Besides taking such good care of all of the gear, shepherding us through wonderful hikes, and cooking fantastic meals, she shared our interest in nature of all kinds. We feel so fortunate to have had her as a guide and can’t speak highly enough of her. Thanks for giving her the assignment to be with us! The trip went flawlessly. Even with all of the different flights, we were able to stay on schedule. What an experience we had!

We also wanted to thank you for all of the care and thought Arctic Wild puts into the meals. We were so happy with the variety and quality of the foods available at all of the meals and the tremendous snack selection in between. We’ve never seen such a wide variety of energy bars to choose from! We were happily stoked, which you would know if you saw how little food came back to the office!

So, thanks again for all you did to organize a great itinerary for us. Each park was unique and we feel we tasted some of the best parts of each. We feel so grateful to have seen the vast beauty of northern Alaska.

- Margaret and Dave, Maryland, USA

DETAILS

WHAT'S INCLUDED

Transportation starting and ending in Kotzebue

Food while in the wilderness

Stoves, cooking & eating utensils

Safety, repair and camping gear

Professional guide service.

Select Rental gear is included in the price of the trip

WHAT'S NOT INCLUDED

Non-camp lodging

Non-camp meals

Personal clothing and gear per our Equipment List

Fishing gear, and fishing license

Gratuity for guides

WEATHER & BUGS

Temperatures vary dramatically in the Arctic. Temperatures range from the 20s to 80s, averaging in the 60’s. This is the “heat of summer” but it may not be particularly hot. Temperatures should be warmest on the Kobuk. Krusenstern likely the windiest and coldest. Mosquitoes could be an issue so travel with insect repellent (DEET) and a head-net.

RECOMMENDED READING

Nunamiut by Helge Ingstadt

Land of Extremes by Alex Huryn

Ordinary Wolves by Seth Kantner

Last Light Breaking by Nick Jans

People of the Noatak by Clair Fejes

More Alaska reading is available from our Bookstore

"The wilderness was spectacular, the leadership perfect."
"I am just finishing my tenth trip with you guys. As always, the trip was more than I expected and I had a great time. See you next year!"
"Of all outfitters with whom we have worked (and that is quite a number), you were by far the most organized and responsive."
"That feeling of wide open wonder, the possibilities for nearly limitless wandering, and the image of those proud caribou...that will stay with me a long time"
"Our guide was an encyclopedia on legs. He was always willing and ready to teach, to talk, to listen, to do another hike, or to lie low in camp if we were beat. He truly gave us the trip we wanted!"
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Eileen - Canning River