Alsek River – BOOTS on the TRAIL

Rafting the Tatshenshini and Alsek Rivers (End) 13/25-Aug-2018

2018-08-282019-04-08Posted in Alaska, Canada, Rafting, U.S. National Parks & MonumentsTagged Alaska, Alsek River, Canada, Glacier Bay National Park, Hiking, Kluane National Park, Rafting, Tatshenshini River, Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park, Whitehorse Yukon Territory5 Comments

Tatshenshini River Alsek River Yukon Territory Canada Glacier Bay National Park Alaska

DAY 9: Walker Glacier to Gateway Knob

Rain dogged us as we ate breakfast, broke camp, loaded the rafts, and started off toward Alsek Lake. And then the wind picked-up. I have to say that sitting on a cold raft in damp clothes while being flayed by the wind and rain is not my happy place but it did produce a sincere promise to upgrade my rain gear (sorry, but GoreTex just doesn’t cut it under these conditions). We floated down the Alsek, while cold water found its way into places on my body that I’d rather it didn’t, to a lunch stop just short of Alsek Lake. Here the Alsek and Grand Plateau Glaciers flow into the lake, calving off massive chunks of ice and creating a wonderland of icebergs. After lunch, we walked across the peninsula to see the icebergs in the lake. Seeing the bergs was a major hoped for part of this trip and, although the weather wasn’t cooperating, what we could see of them was pretty special. Unfortunately, the weather kept us from seeing Mount Fairweather (4,671 m / 15, 325 ft), which rises above the landscape to the southeast. In the desert, The LovedOne has a penchant for finding rattlesnakes. Here, in The North, she found quicksand – fortunately Jock was able to haul her to safety in time – and without loss of her boots! Cleaned-up and back in the rafts, we worked our way through the icebergs along the west side of Alsek Lake to a campsite at the southern end of Gateway Knob. Icebergs create unique hazards as they can flip or crack in half causing huge waves and rough water (which a huge one did later directly across from our campsite). It was still raining on and off, so we set-up camp (including the campfire) under tarps and settled-in for drinks and dinner.

Tatshenshini River Alsek River Yukon Territory Canada Glacier Bay National Park Alaska — Packing-up at Walker Glacier

DAY 10: Gateway Knob

The rain came and went all day so we were pretty much confined to the tarps, with the occasional foray out to see the sights (overcast and fog permitting). Some of the crew took advantage of a break in the drizzle to be rowed around some of the larger icebergs near camp but the highlight of the day was Kimberly’s polar plunge into Alsek Lake. She had decided that’s what she wanted to do and, with appropriate safety measures, that’s exactly what she did. We all had to put on an extra warm layer just to watch. After that, it was more tarp time and the trip’s final dinner – Greek-style lamb with salad and sides, plus, of course, dessert.

DAY 11: Dry Bay & Return to Whitehorse

We left Gateway Knob earlier than usual because the pilots weren’t sure the weather was going to be good enough later for a landing at the gravel air strip at Dry Bay. One part of the “adventure” aspect of this trip was in not knowing whether things would go exactly as planned. Poor weather conditions on the coast could have meant that we wouldn’t be able to get a flight out the day we reached the take-out; we might have had to wait through cold and wet conditions for suitable flying weather. Oh, goody. So there was some tension in the air as we floated the last bit of the Alsek to our take-out. Back in the day, rafts could float a channel almost to the air strip but that channel is now filled-in, so a local guy (Pat) trailered all our gear (it took several trips) the 2 km or so from the beach to the air strip. There we waited for a couple of hours for the welcome sound of the planes (one for us, another for the gear). After some passes between the low ceiling and the trees (VFR – really?), they zoomed in and landed. Canadian pilots rock! YEAH! Then it was load ’em up and back to Whitehorse for hot showers and a group dinner at the Coast High Country Inn. All in all, a truly amazing trip, weather and all!

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Rafting the Tatshenshini and Alsek Rivers (Days 7-8) 13/25-Aug-2018

2018-08-282018-08-28Posted in Alaska, Canada, Rafting, U.S. National Parks & MonumentsTagged Alaska, Alsek River, Canada, Hiking, Kluane National Park, Rafting, Tatshenshini River, Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park, Whitehorse Yukon Territory

Tatshenshini River Alsek River Yukon Territory Canada Glacier Bay National Park Alaska

DAY 7: Melt Creek to Walker Glacier

During the night, the weather Morlocks moved some levers and spun some valves and we awoke to cold, leaden skies – ones eager to give us a wetting. Who’s wearing shorts now little Eloi? Eh? Packing-up and eating breakfast got us warm and, shortly after leaving Melt Creek, we entered the Alsek River, for a dramatic jump in river size and power – the Alsek is over a kilometer wide at the confluence. It’s one of a small number of river systems which breach the coast range and, in 2016, when it captured the flow of the Slims River after the retreat of Kaskawulsh Glacier, became the first (but probably not the last) river to be re-organized by human-caused climate change. For all of its volume and width, the Alsek is heavily braided and surprisingly shallow in many places – it took all of our guide’s considerable skill to keep us afloat and moving (most of the time). As we floated along, the Fairweather Range was on our left and the mountainous glacier country of the Icefield Range was to our right. Below the confluence, and before we rounded The Nose (and crossed back into Alaska and entered Glacier Bay National Park), the Netland Glacier was visible on river left. The rain had the courtesy to hold off until we’d reached camp at Walker Glacier and had gotten our tarps and tents set-up. Then it started-up in earnest and kept on like that on and off all night. Sigh…

DAY 8: Walker Glacier

The idea of a lay-over day here was to give us a chance to explore the Walker Glacier. As recently as 20 years ago, camping here would have allowed us easy access to the glacier. Not anymore. Since then things have warmed a bit (Are you seeing a theme here?), causing the glacier to retreat some 2.4 km (1.5 mi) so that it is no longer reachable without considerable effort. After spits of rain all night, we awoke to what looked like might be clearing weather (or just a sucker hole). This delusion of clearing lured us out of our tents for a hike to see if we could reach the glacier. What followed was a pilgrimage through sole-sucking mud to a lake formed by the glacier’s liquid and solid remnants. Although not a picturesque glacier, these remnants proved to be aesthetically pleasing in their own way. Pluckier members of the crew tried to work their way around the lake in hopes of reaching the glacier itself, but were turned back by inhospitable terrain. Then it started to rain – we had been in a sucker hole! So back through the glop to our tarps and tents, taking with us an appreciation for what temperate rainforest really means.

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Rafting the Tatshenshini and Alsek Rivers (Day 3) 13/25-Aug-2018

2018-08-272018-08-28Posted in Alaska, Canada, Hiking, RaftingTagged Alaska, Alsek River, Canada, Glacier Bay National Park, Hiking, Kluane National Park, Rafting, Sediments Creek British Columbia, Tatshenshini River, Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park, Whitehorse Yukon Territory

Tatshenshini River Alsek River Yukon Territory Canada Glacier Bay National Park Alaska

On Day 3, we laid-over at Sediments Creek to provide a long dayhike to those interested in doing such a thing; but lounging around camp was also a popular option. The hike (also called the Sobeck Hike after the rafting company that pioneered it) climbs 950 m (3,100 ft) in 5.4 km (3.4 mi) to alpine habitat on Goat Ridge west of the Tatshenshini. It started with a stroll up the creek cobble and then along a good use trail through a bit of forest, followed by a stiff climb to the “short hike destination” about 200 m above the river. From there, it was more forest along a ridge, then up a slope covered in short (but bear-hiding) vegetation to an open, rocky area. After a break there, we traversed an open screen slope, then finished with a steep climb (and a tiny bit of scrambling) up to Goat Ridge. Once up, we wandered across the short alpine vegetation to an overlook of Sediments Creek where it was hoped we’d see mountain goats (this being Goat Ridge and all). Claims that white dots moving on a far distant ridge were, in fact, mountain goats, were viewed with just a little skepticism. It took some mental gymnastics to come to grips with that fact that we were the only people for as far as the eye could see in any direction from the ridge – millions of hectares of raw wilderness. A little overawed, we headed back. Back in camp, we welcomed drinks, dinner, and talk, followed (soon) by sleep in our fluffy, comfortable sleeping bags (Bags of Decadence).

The weather fully cooperated (it wouldn’t always be so obliging) to make this challenging hike one of the absolute highlights of the whole trip! It gave us a good work-out (no float & bloat here) along with amazing views north and south along the Tatshenshini River Valley, across to Carmine Mountain, and down into the upper Sediments Creek drainage. We saw one black bear for sure and, if dots are goats, then mountain goats too.

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Rafting the Tatshenshini and Alsek Rivers (Days 1-2) 13/25-Aug-2018

2018-08-272019-06-03Posted in Alaska, Canada, Rafting, U.S. National Parks & MonumentsTagged Alaska, Alsek River, Canada, Glacier Bay National Park, Hiking, Rafting, Tatshenshini River, Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park, Whitehorse Yukon Territory2 Comments

Tatshenshini River Alsek River Yukon Territory Canada Glacier Bay National Park Alaska

DAY 1: Dalton Post to Silver Creek

After gathering in Whitehorse, we drove to Haines Junction to caffeinate and carbo-load at the Village Bakery. From there it was an out-and-back drive to the U.S. border to have our passports checked. You used to be able to phone this in but now its an extra 150 km (90 mile) of driving to appear in-person, for no discernible reason (ah, but then security has its own logic). From the border, we doubled back to the put-in at Dalton Post (Shawashee), a historic trading post (although old Dalton may have been more of a bandit than a trader) now on lands legally owned by the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations. From here it would be 246 river km (150 river miles) to the take-out at Dry Bay, Alaska. There was the usual scramble as both new and experienced rafters figured out how to get their stuff (including extra clothing necessitated by the weather) into one big yellow dry bag. The issuance of tall rubber boots and extra fluffy sleeping bags were sure signs that this was not going to be a “desert” river trip.

All of the significant whitewater on this trip is concentrated in a six-mile long canyon just below Shawashee (Dalton Post), so we got most of our rapid experience on the first day. This section offers continuous Class III whitewater, with Class IV at high water (International Scale, Class I-VI). Below Silver Creek, the river is typically Class II with large eddies and folds at normal volumes. There are a few rapids but generally the river features strong currents and eddy lines as it grows to an impressive size. We sat in the back of the raft today because it’s easier to take photos from there and being drenched with melted glacier water wasn’t immediately appealing.

After these moist moments, the Tatshenshini settled down and we proceeded with a leisurely float to our first camp at Silver Creek. The guide’s skill here is not only in negotiating rapids but also in reading a river with numerous braided channels and gravel bars and other obstructions that are constantly changing. The highlight of the day was a grizzly bear that swam across the river just after we passed her standing on the bank.

It had been a pleasantly cool day on the water and, while clouds had come and gone, the only wetness had come from the rapids. Even the biting flying insects cooperated by only being annoying rather than overwhelming. After libations, an excellent dinner (one of many), and some congenial conversation, we called it a day.

DAY 2: Silver Creek to Sediments Creek

It had rained a bit overnight but we awoke to overcast, but otherwise dry, skies. After breakfast (and a moment of panic when it looked like we’d forgotten the bacon – we hadn’t), it was back in the rafts for an easy float to our first layover camp at Sediments Creek. Not long after leaving Silver Creek, we passed the Bridge River and crossed from the Yukon Territory into British Columbia. Because of the ever changing nature of the river, we had to line-in the rafts to make a landing a Sediments Creek – one of several firsts for us on this trip.

The day had started out overcast but, by the time we made camp, clouds had yielded to clear skies and it looked like the morrow would be clear and sunny. This was a good thing since we were laying-over here to do our big hike of the trip – a visit to the alpine zone above the river with (maybe) some sightings of mountain goats. So, drinks, dinner, conversation, and sleep, with dreams of sunshine…

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Rafting the Tatshenshini and Alsek Rivers (Overview) 13/25-Aug-2018

2018-08-262018-12-17Posted in Alaska, Canada, Rafting, U.S. National Parks & MonumentsTagged Alaska, Alsek River, Canada, Glacier Bay National Park, Hiking, Kluane National Park, Rafting, Tatshenshini River, Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park, Whitehorse Yukon Territory2 Comments

Tatshenshini River Alsek River Yukon Territory Canada Glacier Bay National Park Alaska

In the last 20 years or so, we’ve had the opportunity to float (raft/canoe/kayak) some of the great rivers in the U.S. – the Colorado River from Lees Ferry through the Grand Canyon to Diamond Creek, Southern Oregon’s Rogue River, the lower Green River in Utah, the Middle Fork and Main Stem of the Salmon River in Idaho, and the upper Yampa River in Colorado. The one thing all these have in common is that they are in the drier regions of the western U.S. – some might call them warm “desert” rivers. Our search for a rafting trip in a different location and climate took us to an 11-day adventure on the Tatshenshini and Alsek Rivers, which are large volume, swift glacial rivers in Canada and Alaska.

They flow through Kluane National Park (Yukon Territory), Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park (British Columbia), and Glacier Bay National Park (Alaska). To ensure the preservation of the entire ecosystem, both rivers are completely protected from headwater to source, creating the only large river drainage in North America that is completely safeguarded. Many consider this one of the finest wilderness river runs in North America. Our journey down these truly wild rivers presented us with uncommon environmental diversity, massively impressive scenery, and an outstanding wilderness experience. We had been told to be prepared for a wide range of weather conditions and the trip offered up sunshine, heat, fog, glacial chill, rain, and icebergs – these are definitely not “desert” or “warm” rivers!

We booked this trip through OARS (who we’ve gone on several trips with previously) but it was run by ROAM, a Canadian adventure travel company based in Nelson, British Columbia. The depth of experience, positive attitude, and professionalism of our ROAM guides (Brian, Jock, and Andrew) was impressive.

And that, along with a very congenial group of fellow rafters, made this a wonderful and unforgettable experience.

For easier access to the details of this excellent adventure, we spaced this trip out from put-in to take-out over five posts keyed to our campsites along the rivers:

DAYS 1-2: Dalton Post to Silver Creek to Sediments Creek
DAY 3: Sediments Creek Hike
DAYS 4-6: Sediments Creek to Alkie Creek to Melt Creek
DAYS 7-8: Melt Creek to Walker Glacier
DAYS 9-11: Walker Glacier to Gateway Knob to Dry Bay

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