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Alaska,
America's last frontier, offers adventure-spirited rafters more
miles of wilderness waterways and more varied environs than any
other state or province. Form the gently flowing wilderness rivers
of the Brooks Range in the tundra regions north of the Arctic Circle
to the gentle—and sometimes not-so-gentle—waters beneath
towering mountains in south-central and southeast Alaska, there are
dozens of river trips from which to choose. Outfitters provide
one-hour, half-day, one-day, multiday and even multiweek river
adventures.
Portions
of twenty-five Alaska rivers are protected from development by the
National Wild and Scenic Rivers system. In addition, many of the
state’s more frequently rafter rivers are either all or partially
included within the boundaries of national parks or wildlife
reserves, such as Glacier Bay, Wrangell-St. Elias, Kenai, Denali,
Gates of the Arctic, Kobuk Valley, Noatak, and Arctic Wildlife.
Continuous
daylight during the short summer rafting season provides limitless
opportunities to photograph the breathtaking scenery of the Alaska
wilderness and wildlife that includes caribou, moose, bears, deer,
waterfowl, and birds of prey.
Alaska’s
favorite multiday wilderness rafting trips, including:
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Alsek
and Tatshenshini rivers from northwest Canada to Glacier Bay
National Park in southeastern Alaska are two of the most memorable
wilderness rafting trips available anywhere.
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Chitina
and Copper rivers and their Kennecott and Nizina tributaries in the
spectacular Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, offer spectacular
mountain vistas, close up views of glaciers, and tours of early
state mining camps.
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The
Talkeetna, from its Glacier to the mighty Susitna, provides Class
III-IV+ whitewater, placid waters, and outstanding mountain scenery
northeast of Anchorage.
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The
Brooks Range, which spans northern Alaska from the Canadian border
to the Chukchi Sea, offers a wide selection of wilderness rafting
adventures in three fairly distinctive environments, i.e., the
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (east), Gates of the Arctic National
Park (Central), and the Noatak and Kobuk Valley national parks in
the west.
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Fortymile
River provides an interesting float trip through the early century
gold country of eastern Alaska.
The
professional outfitters of Alaska offer several half-day and one-day
rafting trips for residents and visitors wanting a shorter
introduction to whitewater:
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The
Mendenhall River raft trip near Juneau, with unique close-up viewing
of the spectacular Mendenhall Glacier and its tower mountain peaks,
is Alaska's most popular.
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The
Chilkat River provides a marvelous scenic float trip through the
Bald Eagle Preserve near Haines.
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Lowe
River, just east of Valdez, has popular one-hour raft trips through
Keystone Canyon.
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The
Tonsina offers a long, swift, and exciting Class III-IV whitewater
trip through with majestic mountain scenery just west of
Wrangell-St. Elias National Park.
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Sheridan
River near Wrangell-St. Elias National Park provides a unique
one-day rafting experience where guests paddle among giant blue
icebergs, view magnificent mountain vistas, and enjoy exciting
whitewaters.
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The
Kenai River features exciting Class I-II+ rapids through the Kenai
National Wildlife Refuge just two hours south of Anchorage.
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Sixmile
Creek, on the northern Kenai Peninsula, is Alaska’s most
frequently-run Class V guided whitewater trip.
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Matanuska
River, northeast of Anchorage, offers both a scenic float trips and
the challenging Class III-IV+ Lionshead rafting adventure.
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The
Nenana River provides half-day, one-day, and multiday rafting
opportunities near Denali National Park.
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