Local chapter member Charlie Morris likes adventure, so much so that he floats the Last Frontier...DIY-style. Today we share the wrapped-up edition including logistics behind gear and meals in a guide of how Charlie prepares for a self-guided Alaskan wilderness float. This guide is provided in PDF so you can easily print it as a checklist should you want to follow in his wake…er… footsteps!
The basic trip logistics are provided below
Fly to Anchorage - Spend the night at the Holiday Inn. Pick up alcohol to take to Bethel
Fly to Bethel - Renfro’s (Air taxi) will pick us up. We will go to the hangar and repack our stuff in dry bags for the float plane trip the next day.
You MUST have paid Renfro all due prior to arrival OR pay in cash. They will not take a credit card, Venmo, or any other electronic form of payment. Up to this point you have been paying for ONLY the air taxi. We will be renting other equipment from Renfro, raft, shotgun, chairs, cots, etc. Again, you will either have prepaid for everything or pay cash in Bethel
There is a grocery store in Bethel. You will pick up some supplies, tortillas, and other food items, and toilet paper
Have dinner in Bethel. There is a good pizza place that has beer. You will pay for your room when we get there. The B&B will take a credit card.
Fly to the river - We will most likely be taking a Beaver de Havilland. We will pack as if there are two flights taking 3 passengers + a raft and gear. You need to be on the plane with your gear. It is about 1 hr flight to the river.
The first group will be putting the raft together and packing while the plane goes back for the second group.
When the second group arrives we’ll put the second raft together and load it with gear.
Depending on when we arrive will depend on how far we go down the river.
FISH & FLOAT for the next week or so... that’s why you came :-)
Take out at a small Inuit village - You will need $50.00 cash each to have the natives take us and our stuff to the airstrip
Renfro’s will pick us up at the airstrip - This will not be a float plane and I’m not sure how
many trips, maybe one maybe two.
Repack camping equipment back in the Rubbermaid containers. You can either check the
Rubbermaid container or mail it back home
Spend the night in Bethel. There is a good pizza restaurant with beer
Fly from Bethel to Anchorage and you're on your own