Last updated: March 4, 2025
Itinerary
What follows is a general flow of events. Expect the unexpected and prepare to be flexible.
August 8
Meet your guide in Fairbanks for a pre-trip meeting at 8 am. Once everyone is prepared for the trip we load the vehicle and begin the long drive north. The Dalton Highway is slow and largely unpaved with some heavy truck traffic, but it is too beautiful to rush through anyway so we take our time.
We can stop at the Yukon River and at Finger Mountain, and anywhere we see ripe blueberries. It is an 8 hour drive at a leisurely pace and we have all day.
Once we arrive in Wiseman our hosts show us to private cabins and we settle in for a few days.
August 9 - 11
Three full days to explore around Wiseman and Coldfoot. There are mountains to climb, relics to find and beautiful mountains all around.
We take breakfast with our hosts and cook dinner on our own, or we can go to the truck stop in Coldfoot if we want to experience the “real” Alaska.
With just one guide and one vehicle, and two people with divergent interests we will have to plan our days carefully.
August 12
After another great breakfast with our hosts we hear an airplane landing by the river and after loading backpacks we fly into Gates of the Arctic National Park! (while Dar drives back to Fairbanks at his own pace)
We land as close to the “Gates” as possible, but seeing as gravel bars change from year to year we don’t know exactly where the plane can safely land.
Once the plane leaves, we shoulder packs and begin the backpacking portion of the trip.
We will cover just a couple miles this first day and will make camp along the North Fork of the Koyukuk with stunning views (weather permitting) of Boreal and Frigid Crags.
August 13
You’ll backpack a total of 5 to 7 brushy, wet, trail-less miles from the landing area to the mouth of Ernie Creek over the course of a couple of days.
Once at Ernie Creek we can drop packs and pitch a cozy camp at the edge of the trees with a commanding view of the river. Your home in the wilderness for a few days. Rest your feet. Build a fire. Enjoy the silence.
August 14- 16
Travel becomes easier without 40 pounds on your shoulders. We have 3 full days to explore in Bob’s footsteps and nothing but daylight.
Where we choose to hike each day is up to you, and the weather. We will make the most of your time in Gates of the Arctic.
August 17
Break camp. Load packs. Descend the Koyukuk retracing the route you took several days earlier. Packs are lighter and the tundra more familiar so you can expect to make it back to the airstrip in a single go.
August 18
Mid-morning we hear the airplane and eagerly await the arrival of Dar, a second guide, and the canoes.
Once we have resupplied and reunited we don river gear, ready the boats, and let the current take us down river. The banks fly-by in comparison to hiking!
August 19 - 22
Canoe the Koyukuk. Each day brings its own surprises, challenges, and delights. 6 or 7 hours of canoeing will cover about 20 miles each day and leaves time for leisurely mornings and some time in the evening for explore the area around each camp.
If the weather is fair, the miles fly by. If it is windy and wet you will earn them.
August 23
Log cabins on the south bank of the Koyukuk betray the location of Bettles and welcome you back into the modern world.
After unloading the canoes and hitching a ride to the airstrip we meet the afternoon flight to Fairbanks arriving in time for a well deserved shower and a late dinner.
What a trip! Bob would be proud.
