Last updated: February 9, 2021
Itinerary
What follows is a general flow of events. Expect the unexpected and prepare to be flexible.
July 22
Meet your guide for a pre-trip meeting in Fairbanks at 4pm at Arctic Wild headquarters.
July 23
It’s a long day. We fly north from Fairbanks over the Yukon River and Arctic Circle to the arctic village of Bettles. From Bettles we charter a plane into the Gates of the Arctic National Park. We’ll land near the river with mountains all around. If the mood strikes us, we will assemble the canoes and paddle around the lake for a bit to brush on on paddle strokes. Or we might elect to explore our surroundings on foot and save the boating for the next day.
July 24 - 28
We’ll canoe our way down the Noatak. On days when we travel, we will spend about five hours on the river paddling about 15 miles each day. Alternating days will be layover days when we will explore on foot from camp. We can climb peaks from every camp, but there is also lots of good walking along the river, or up pretty tundra creeks. There will be free time each and every day after camp is pitched.
July 29
Clean up and pack our gear. Weather permitting, we will meet a pilot from Kotzebue who will fly us the length of the Noatak all the way to the Arctic coast and the Inupiat community of Kotzebue where the trip concludes. Remove rubber boots!
