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Grand Alaska Adventure
offered by supplier M06982 (view this supplier profile)
Key Information:
Tour Duration: 5
day(s)
Group Size: 1
- 15
people
Destination(s):
Alaska
Specialty Categories:
Wildlife Viewing
Season: June - August
Airfare Included: No
Tour Customizable: Yes
Minimum Per Person Price: 2600 US Dollar (USD)
Maximum Per Person Price: 2600 US Dollar (USD)
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The largest protected wilderness areas in the world await! Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, America's largest national park, and Canada's Kluane National Park together form the most expansive backcountry area on earth and are designated to remain forever preserved. In fact, Wrangell-St. Elias is over six times as large as Yellowstone National Park and hosts six of North America's ten highest peaks!
The company offers several unparalleled opportunities to explore the heart of the great Wrangell-St. Elias. Our multi-day Grand Alaska Adventure features flight-seeing, glaciering, and rafting. This journey ventures deep into the park and provides an awesome array of scenery and adventure. This trip can be combined with our Copper River Expedition for an unforgettable eleven-day Alaska wilderness journey.
This five-day adventure will appeal to anyone seeking a variety of activities in the Alaskan backcountry. Exploring historic mining villages, hiking around glaciers, and floating through the immense Wrangell-St. Elias wilderness are all included.
After a rendezvous in Valdez we go by van up the scenic Richardson Highway to the little town of Chitina. Here, we hop aboard a bush plane for an sightseeing flight to the quaint Alaskan town of McCarthy. This scenic and breathtaking air excursion allows us to witness the power and grace of the glaciers and rivers and soar around the high mountains of remote Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. After the flight, we spend the next day and a half in the McCarthy area, hiking up to and around Root Glacier and the historic Kennicott Mine. Built in 1911 near the base of two glaciers, this copper mine served up over 400 tons of ore and minerals a day before closing in 1938, after producing more than one billion pounds of copper. We spend the night in rustic and friendly McCarthy.
In the afternoon of day two, we board the rafts and float the Kennicott river, the first of three Class II-III rivers we will travel on this trip. Soon, we join the Nizina, a glacial river with three times the volume of the Kennicott. A highlight of this stretch is Nizina Canyon, a high-walled slot with fun and exciting current. We camp in Nizina Canyon, at or above the confluence of the Nizina and Chitina rivers. On the third day of our adventure in the Wrangell-St. Elias we join and float the Chitina River. Here, as perhaps above, we might see some of the abundant wildlife of this region, including brown bear, Dall sheep, and moose, as they roam the shores and side creeks. Our views are filled with the immensity and grandeur of this wild place, and can include jagged, snow-capped mountains reaching over 16,000 feet. We also pass the remnants of an incredible avalanche that nearly choked the Chitina in 1994. The last nights' camps are along the Chitina, in the absolute quiet of this premier wilderness area. We take out near the town of Chitina.
Your Itinerary
Day 1: After meeting your pilot and flightseeing guide in Valdez or Chitina, you will be flown over and around the mountains and glaciers of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Upon landing in McCarthy, your guide will meet you and take you and your gear to the lodge where you will spend the first night. After getting settled in we will set off for a variety of activities. The activities of the first day and-a-half in and around McCarthy include a hiking tour on Root Glacier, visiting historic Kennecott Mine, and exploring the quiet and charming town of McCarthy. Included: (B), (L), (D).
Day 2: Depending on the weather of day one, this morning we will hike on the glacier, visit Kennecott Mine, and/or explore McCarthy. In the afternoon we pack the waterproof 'dry' bags and rig the rafts. We carry all of the camp gear with us on the rafts, including lots of great food! After a thorough instructional and safety presentation we head down the Kennicott River, a fast and bouncy class III glacial river. As evening approaches we set up camp along the Kennicott or Nizina river on a river side beach or meadow land. Dinner, prepared with classic Alaska flair, will be prepared by the guides under the extended evening of a twenty-hour Alaska summer day. Included: (B), (L), (D).
Day 3, Day 4: Both of these days follow similar routines but provide different experiences. As each day unfolds we eat a filling and tasty breakfast, served with the requisite cowboy coffee. After breaking camp and rigging the rafts we float down the Nizina and then Chitina rivers, as they wander towards the sea. The whitewater of these days is relatively mild. The grandeur and feeling of being in the middle of nowhere is unsurpassed. We stop for lunch mid-day, and lay out the expansive deli-style meal on the banks of the river. We may also take time during the day to hike some of the dramatic canyon lands along the river. In the late afternoon we pull ashore and set up camp. Depending on the time of year and conditions in the sky it may be possible to see northern lights during each night's few hours of darkness. Included: (B), (L), (D).
Day 5: After breakfast and breaking camp we float the last few miles of the Chitina river as it heads to its confluence with the Copper river. In the early afternoon we reach the confluence and town of Chitina, where the river trip ends. At that point you will transfer your personal gear out of the dry bags and into your personal duffel bag or backpack that we have taken with us down the river. After a post-trip toast and salute to Wrangell-St. Elias National Park you will be driven back to Valdez. Commercial flights to Anchorage are available this evening or you have the option of taking the ferry across Prince William Sound the following morning. Those continuing downriver as part of the Copper River Expedition will spend the night at a cabin near Chitina.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Youth is under 16; the minimum age is eight. 5-Day Trip (Price based on five or fewer total participants); Adult: $2600; Youth: $2400; 5-Day Trip (Price based on six or more total participants); Adult: $2350; Youth: $2200.
Also see tour packages in:
USA
Alaska
Wildlife Viewing
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