Karen Jettmar. The Alaska River Guide: Canoeing, Kayaking and Rafting in the Last Frontier. New revised edition now available. Retail price is $18.95CONTACT US for a copy, or order from Amazon.com using the link above. The most up-to-date, authoritative information for planning every kind of trip, from a mellow float on an urban river to a month-long expedition, or a multi-day whitewater trip. More than 100 trip possibilities let you plan according to your ability - beginner, family, or advanced whitewater boater. Great background reading for anyone on their way to an Alaskan river. Chosen as one of the top ten books on rafting by Writers to Believe In. "This book, by Karen Jettmar, will help to preserve Alaska's precious natural heritage." --- President Jimmy Carter

Karen Jettmar. Alaska's Glacier Bay: A Traveler's Guide. Alaska Northwest Books. $12.95. Available through Equinox Wilderness Expeditions for $8.00 postpaid. For visitors to Glacier Bay, Karen's book is a guide to understanding the area's geology, tidewater glaciers, natural history, and Tlingit heritage, with access information to glaciers, coves, and rivers. "How could such a small book at so reasonable a price contain so much valuable information along with eye-catching photographs worthy of a book of coffee-table size? It's a mother lode of information . . . Travel without it at the risk of missing 90 percent of what you see."--- Ann Saling

Your Gear

When packing for a wilderness trip in the North, weight, fabric content, and quality of clothing are all important. Summer temperatures in Alaska and Canada range from freezing to hot. While the weather for an entire trip may end up warm and sunny, you need to be prepared for cold, wet, windy conditions. In Southeast Alaska, rain is common. In the Arctic, it can snow, even in the summer. Bring layers of clothing that are synthetic fleece, polypropylene, Capilene, and wool (warm even when wet), sized so that you can add or subtract layers.

Ah, if only we could be like the woolly bear, an arctic caterpillar that lives 14 years before pupating into a moth. Its body contains ethylene glycol, the same chemical as car antifreeze. When the mercury drops below zero it remains unfrozen. How's that for adaptation to the North?

Your clothes, what you wear and what you pack, should add up to at least two full sets of clothes, so that you have a complete to change into if you get wet. Good, totally waterproof raingear is essential. REMEMBER, weather and the elements will put your gear to the ultimate test. This is no place for shoddy equipment. High quality gear, in good repair, is essential. Don't even think of bringing the K-Mart or WalMart variety of vinyl raingear. Columbia $30 rain pants will have a ripped crotch in no time. You don't necessarily need the most expensive breathable, water repellant jacket on the planet; there are low-cost options.

Here's an in-depth perspective from a participant on one of our river trips:

The suggested gear list proved to be exemplary. One learns quickly in this harsh environment the importance of really first rate gear. Rugged rubber boots are a must. Rain gear that is really rainproof is critical. Synthetic fabrics which permit quick drying are key. Clothing that allows one to put on and remov e layers as the weather changes provide a measure of comfort.

On a typical day I dressed as follows. Lower body: regular underwear, medium weight thermal underwear, nylon pants, waterproof rain pants. Upper body: turtleneck or tee shirt, medium weight thermal shirt, wool sweater, fleece vest, waterproof jacket with rainproof hood. Feet: liner socks (wool or synthetic), heavy wool socks, knee high rubber boots. Head: wool knit cap (I got this in Peru and it worked great), hood of rain jacket. Hands: liner gloves and tough outer gloves. We also had mosquito headnets, which are a must. When the weather was particularly cold I would add another pant layer and another fleece jacket. When hiking, the generation of body heat would force me to shed some of these layers. I had one cotton item. That was a turtleneck shirt. Although I like this kind of shirt a lot, the cotton proved quickly to be almost worthless. Once damp or wet it provides little thermal protection and it is very difficult to get dry.

I had pretty lightweight rain gear consisting of my Helly-Hansen waterproof golf pants and matching jacket to provide wind and water protection. These are both at the minimum end of the toughness scale required for the ruggedness of the trip. Nevertheless, both proved adequate until the very last day of the trip when the pants stitching broke at the seat. Luckily we were through paddling at this point so no harm was done. Else I could have been in trouble as one gets doused with a lot of water when rafting through rapids. The rubber boots that we had were simple, knee-high boots that we bought at Orchard Supply Hardware for about $15.00. These proved perfectly serviceable. One positive of the lightweight HH rain pants was that they clung rather tightly to the outside of the rubber boots. We were often wading in water that was nearly to (and in some cases above) the top of the boots. At one point we were slogging through knee-high water for nearly an hour and my feet remained dry.

All of our personal gear that we weren't wearing was packed in dry bags. In addition, individual articles of clothing were packed in Zip-Loc plastic bags. We had a daypack, which we lined with a large plastic garbage compactor bag. Although all of this is a little tedious, everything remained dry. I had a synthetic-fill sleeping bag rated to 15 degrees F. My wife's was rated to zero. We were both happy with our choice. In addition we each had a Therm-A-Rest self-inflating mattress. I will never again go camping without one of these. They not only provide cushioning from the hard, uneven ground, but also provide a barrier to water that finds its way into the tent. So the sleeping bag always stayed dry. Contributed and copyright by Robert F. Hartmann, California

Once y ou sign up for a trip, we'll provide you with detailed gear and equipment lists.