Alaska

Day Before

All guests need to arrive and stay in Anchorage (at your own expense) today, so that you’re ready to catch the seaplane flight to the lodge tomorrow morning.

Day 1: Arrival

This morning you’ll make your own way to the seaplane terminal, then fly from Anchorage to your hosts’ remote mountain lodge. You’ll arrive at about 11am and receive a warm welcome from the entire friendly team. After a formal safety briefing, there’s time to settle into your room and unpack, then you’ll be given a tour of the historic lodge and property.

At about 1pm, everyone will gather in the cookhouse for a sit-down lunch, and when the tables are cleared, out come the maps so you can get a sense of where you’ll be riding in the week ahead. Then it’s time to meet the horses! You’ll be matched with your mount and ride to the top of Lookout Hill, 600 feet above the lodge, where you’ll be rewarded with incredible views of the Cathedral Spires (a huge, jagged cluster of near-vertical peaks in the Kichatna Mountains) and the Ptarmigan Valley. Riding down the other side of Lookout Hill, you’ll forge your own trail through dense brush, getting familiar with what your ‘all-terrain vehicle’ can do! Down on the flats, you’ll pass the airstrip and perhaps see a fox den or two before reaching the lodge.

After unsaddling the horses and turning them out, you’ve got some down time, and plenty of ways to spend it. There are canoes, paddle boards, kayaks, zodiac boats, shooting sports, archery, lawn games and volleyball, plus the option to simply nap, read a book, snap some photos, sip some wine, or observe the daily cocktail hour before dinner at 7pm.

Finally, you’ll head to Buckey’s cabin for an on-site museum tour. Buckey has been a guide here since 1964 and has more than a few good stories to tell! At this time of year, it’s light for almost 24 hours a day, but you’ll likely be ready for bed by now!

Day 2: Halfway Lake

After breakfast at 9am (no alarms dictate the pace here!), you’ll get packed for the 5-night journey ahead. This first pack takes some time, as the team ensure the horses are loaded up evenly and fairly and that everything is 100% prepared. Still, when the sun doesn’t set, there’s no need to hurry! After lunch at the lodge, it’s an easy 3 to 4 hour ride up the Ptarmigan Valley to the cabin at Halfway Lake, with some off-trail excursions if the opportunity arises.

At around 250 square feet, tonight’s cabin is quite small, but comfortable, nonetheless. Its strategic location offers 360-degree views for up to 5 miles around. After settling in, if the weather is good, you might ride over to Happy River, veering off the trail if photo opportunities beckon!

Your hosts will cook a hearty dinner at the cabin, dished up with some more crazy back country stories, then you’ll slip on your eye mask, snuggle into your sleeping bag and get some shut-eye.

Day 3: Marsh Strip

Waking up to the smell of coffee, or perhaps the sizzle of bacon and eggs, you’ll enjoy a relaxed breakfast before breaking camp and riding to Marsh Strip cabin (weather permitting). On the way to Sheep Lake cabin (your lunch stop), you will cross the Happy River 15 to 20 times! Around every single corner is another postcard-perfect view – it never gets old.

The 4-hour afternoon ride to Marsh Strip involves a little more brush and scrub for the surefooted horses to push through, some swampy areas (hence the name ‘Marsh Strip’!) and a few more crossings of the silvery Happy River.

Tonight’s cabin sits above a dry riverbed (yes, they actually exist in Alaska) about 25 miles from the main lodge and 145 miles from the nearest town. There are great views across the expansive Ptarmigan Valley below, and there’s the option to ride into the valleys behind the cabin for potential wildlife sightings. The front deck will hold a strong lure, though, with its beautiful outlook and the promise of cold drinks and hot food!

Day 4: Sheep Lake

Today you’ll ride back over new tracks to Sheep Lake, which will be your base for the next two nights. If you wish to ride some more in the afternoon, there are plenty of options, and with such long daylight hours, there is no rush.

Back at the cabin in the evening, you’ll sit back with a drink and watch the shadows slowly shift across the valley. Dinner will be cooked either on the grill outside or on the stove inside, depending on what the weather and the cooks have in store.

Day 5: Goodman's Pass

This morning, you’ll make the most of the cabin’s gorgeous views, then saddle up and ride to Goodman Pass. It’s about a 6-hour ride in total, and at your lunch stop, the guides will facilitate a spot of glassing (spotting wildlife from a distance through binoculars). This is your best chance (though not guaranteed) of seeing some of the fascinating creatures that inhabit this remote area. Plus, the horses get a rest too.

Returning to Sheep Lake cabin, you’ll enjoy another night of great off-grid cooking and conversation.

Day 6: Rainy Pass

Loading your gear back onto the horses, you’ll set off towards Rainy Pass, riding up into the higher alpine zone and through some of the most picturesque scenery of the whole trip.

At the top of Rainy Pass, you’ll take some happy snaps framed by the stark, wild peaks of the Alaska Range, and explore on foot or on horseback before heading down to Rainy Pass Lake, where tonight’s cabin awaits.

Before dinner, there’s ample time to fish for dolly varden trout in the lake (you’ll need to apply for a fishing permit ahead of time), take a hike to explore this new ecosystem, or just relax on the deck with binoculars or a good book.

Surrounded by rolling mountains, with the lake shimmering beneath the moody sky right at your feet, this is a landscape you won’t forget in a hurry. It’s your last night out in the wilderness, so be sure to make the most of the serenity!

Day 7: Rainy Pass Lake

After breakfast at Rainy Pass Lake, you’ll pack your gear one last time for the 8 hour ride back to the lodge. No doubt there’ll be plenty of wildlife-spotting, river-crossing, bush-bashing detours!

Arriving back at the main lodge, you’ll turn the horses out with a grateful pat (and maybe a tear or two!) before reuniting with your extra luggage, basking in a hot shower, and regrouping by the lake for appetisers. Your final dinner will be a big celebration complete with a video presentation of your trip (courtesy of your hosts), some raucous games of horseshoes out on the lawn, and a generous supply of beer, wine and cocktails.

Day 8: Depart

This morning, you’ll enjoy one final unhurried breakfast in the beautiful Alaskan wilderness, say goodbye to your incredible hosts, then board the seaplane for the scenic flight back to Anchorage.

Globetrotting strongly recommends booking accommodation in Anchorage that evening, rather than flying straight home, as in bad weather, the seaplane flight may be delayed until the next day, so having a one-night buffer before your departing flight home from Anchorage is vital.