Canoeing Alaska's Western Arctic | Utukok River | Caribou Migration with Equinox Wilderness Expeditions

Our paddling trip down the Utukok River takes us to a timeless land. The Northwestern Arctic is like the Great Plains of 250 years ago; the land is vast, with rolling hills, mesas, and plateaus, and caribou pour across the land like streams of water. National Geographic Magazine says, "Though National Petroleum Reserve sounds like a massive oil tank that the nation taps in times of need, in reality it contains the largest piece of unprotected wilderness in the nation.Ó

The Utukok River begins in the DeLong Mountains of the Western Brooks Range and flows north and east to Kasegaluk Lagoon on the Chukchi Sea. North of the DeLong Mountains, the Utukok Uplands provide integral calving grounds and early summer habitat for the Western Arctic caribou herd. The area also has the highest grizzly bear and wolverine densities in Alaska's Arctic. On past trips, we've encountered thousands of caribou, tiny calves clinging to their mother's sides.

We begin our trip in the Utukok uplands, where the river is braided, shallow and swift. The river slows, as it cuts through winding ridges and plateaus. Cliffs provide excellent habitat for a variety of raptors, including peregrine falcons, gyrfalcons, and rough-legged hawks. This is a truly wild and remote area, free of planes and other travelers. The Utukok is a gentle river, suitable for beginner paddlers, though the wind is a constant reminder that we are in the Arctic. We have a couple layover days for explorations further afield.

Unlike the Brooks Range, this land has been ice-free for millenia. Herds of woolly mammoth, saber-toothed tigers, and horses roamed the area when much of the rest of North America lay beneath glaciers. Today, we find evidence of their existence in eroding cutbanks, along with archeological evidence of hunters of the Arctic Small Tool tradition.

This is big country, part of the 35-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, set aside for future mineral needs. Get to know it now, and become a voice for its protection, for it is currently threatened, i.e. BLM (Bureau of Land Management) has plans to lease out the South National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska for coal mining or oil development. We want to keep it wild; you'll see why. Explore Arctic Alaska's Far West wilderness, in time to witness the post-calving migration of the 500,000-member Western Arctic Caribou herd, and before the mosquitoes arrive. This expedition is all about wide open space and wildlife. You won't be disappointed.

Itinerary
Day 0	Travel to Anchorage, Alaska on your own. Overnight in Anchorage, or arrive on a red-eye flight tomorrow, and be ready to hop the morning flight to Kotzebue. Those arriving today have pre-trip meeting with guide and your party.
Day 1	We meet at Anchorage airport, and fly to Kotzebue by jet. In Kotzebue, check in with our bush pilot. Our pilot will take us in groups of 3 to the river, over the lower Noatak River, and across Noatak National Preserve to the western edge of the DeLong Mountains. We fly over the Arctic Divide to the North Slope, landing on a gravel bar beside the river in the Utukok Foothills. This flight takes about 1.5 hours. We set up camp and explore the area.
Days 2-10	We establish a rhythm of hiking and paddling. The Western Arctic caribou migration is underway, and we are likely to see thousands of animals while we?re here. Young calves, just born, cling tenaciously to their mothers? heels, even while swimming across the river. We hike cross-country over the tundra, following ancient wildlife migration routes. The terrain is uneven. We may wade streams, and climb ridges. In places, we feel like we're walking on a groomed golf course. In other places, we curse the boggy unstable tussocks. Tussocks, which are clumps of one to two-foot-high clumps of arctic sedges or grasses, rise mushroom-like across the land, making for challenging hiking at times. The presence of 24-hour daylight allows us to create a schedule of waking and sleeping that suits our surroundings. Evening light suffuses the landscape in deep golden light, and we like to be out and about then. On the river, we use 2-person canoes, which are stable and easy to paddle. The Utukok offers no particular obstacles, save the wind, which is common in this part of Alaska.
Day 10	Pick-up on Utukok River. Overnight in Kotzebue.
Day 11	If pilot has been unable to pick up the group, we fly back to Kotzebue today, and fly to Anchorage.
Included in trip costs
All transportation beyond Coldfoot All meals in the field Group cooking, camping, medical and safety equipment (We bring such items as a kitchen shelter, emergency radio/phone, bear repellent spray, water filter and first aid kit) Expert leadership
Not included in trip costs
Transportation to Coldfoot Lodging in Coldfoot or Wiseman "Weather delay" lodging before or after trip Extra meals you might choose to purchase in a town or village while we are awaiting air transport Sleeping bag and pad, and personal equipment Excess baggage charges Please plan to bring your own personal medications, toiletries, etc.
Call or E-mail us for the complete packet on this expedition.