Our Extraordinary, Life-Changing Trip to Katmai and Lake Clark National Parks!

Details

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RIGHT OFF THE BAT, PLEASE KNOW: It is not necessary to participate in the entire trip. It is possible to participate in either park segment of the trip singly. However, this possibility must be discussed in full with the trip participants and agreed to by Michelle Mozell who has the sole/unilateral right to make this decision.

***

As many of you are aware, eight years ago, I began a renewed journey to backpack again.

I began with Yosemite, then, every California National Park.

Then, the entire West.

This quickly morphed into my desire to backpack/kayak all sixty-three National Parks in the United States.

By the end of 2024, I backpacked/kayaked/boat-camped/car-camped/visited all fifty-one US National Parks in the “Lower 48,” plus the National Parks of Hawai’i and the Virgin Islands*.

To do so, I designed and led twenty-four carefully-planned trips, most of which appeared right here on Meetup.

But, then, what was next?

The EIGHT ALASKA NATIONAL PARKS, of course.

To get this accomplished, I planned THREE trips to backpack or kayak all eight parks.

Our FIRST trip, in May, was an extraordinary adventure to the first of Alaska's eight National Parks, Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve. On this fifteen-day expedition, we cruised via ferry for four days through the breathtaking Inside Passage, arriving in charming and quirky Juneau for a three-day exploration. Then, we ventured into Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve, where we enjoyed five days immersed in its raw, unspoiled, and unforgettable beauty. Included was an all-day catamaran tour to the base of the 250-foot, blue-hued Margerie and Grand Pacific Glaciers. The highlight of the voyage is a guided three-day, two-night kayaking and tent-camping journey into Glacier Bay’s resplendent Beardslee Islands.

Our SECOND trip, in July and August, was labeled here within Meetup, "Our Extraordinary, Life-Changing, 17-Day Trip to FIVE Alaska National Parks," wherein we traveled throughout central Alaska by car, airline, bush-plane, boat taxi, kayak, shuttles, and four-wheeler to be fully immersed within the five breathtaking "central" Alaska National Parks:

Denali National Park & Preserve
Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve
Kenai Fjords National Park
Kobuk Valley National Park
Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve

Our THIRD trip, is this one: a trip to beautiful Lake Clark and bear-full Katmai National Parks in September.

Therefore, today, I'm excited to invite you to join us in this THIRD of three extraordinary adventures to Alaska, our nation's magnificent "Last Frontier."

*****

HERE IS OUR ITINERARY:

DAY ONE, September 12, 2025: Fly from Sacramento International Airport to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport via Alaska Airlines. Arrive Anchorage. Shuttle to our hotel (TBD). Check in. Meet up. Explore Anchorage. Dinner together. Evening at our hotel.

DAY TWO, September 13, 2025: Awaken early. Breakfast at the hotel. Shuttle/Uber to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport to board our Alaska Airlines flight (Flight 2175 at 11:02) to King Salmon Airport in King Salmon. Arrive. Shuttle to Katmai Air to board our 1:30 to 2:00 flight to Brooks Camp in Katmai National Park (KNP). Set up our first night’s stay in the Brooks Camp Campground. Set up our extra two-man tent. Explore KNP. Go look for bears at one of the many viewing platforms. Stay safe from bear encounters. Dinner at the Brooks Lodge Restaurant**. Return to the campground. Watch for the Northern Lights, the Aurora Borealis. Spend the evening in wild, wonderful, and bear-full KNP.

DAY THREE, September 14, 2025: Awaken when we wish. Prepare and enjoy our breakfast either in camp or at the Brooks Lodge Restaurant. Explore, explore, explore more bears in the park. Dine within the Brooks Falls facilities**. Enjoy the morning within the Brooks Camp Developed Area. Explore more KNP. Go look for more bears at one of the many viewing platforms. Stay safe from bear encounters. Dinner at the Brooks Lodge Restaurant*. Return to the campground. Ready for our backpacking evening tomorrow night. Watch for the Northern Lights, the Aurora Borealis. Spend another wonderful evening under the billion-star sky of KNP.

DAY FOUR, September 15, 2025: Awaken early. Have breakfast early either in camp or at the Brooks Lodge Restaurant**. Store our non-backpacking gear inside the extra two-man tent brought for this purpose. Then, walk to the staging area for our tour shuttle to the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes (“VTS”) by 8:00 am. Depart at 9:00 am to tour the heart of KNP via the road to VTS. Enjoy the 2.5 hour guided tour of VTS inside the steaming and bubbling site with a park ranger guide. Leave the tour and our guide to set up camp within the VTS. Set up our electric bear fence***. Carefully explore the area. Have dinner together along the River carefully aware of the possible presence of bears. Return to our campsite. Start a campfire, if permissible. Enjoy the darkening Alaska evening deep within the near-Arctic outback. Spend our evening snuggled warmly in our tents.

DAY FIVE, September 16, 2025: Awaken early. Have breakfast deep in the Arctic wilderness. Pack up camp. Hike up to Three Forks Overlook. Hike up the Ukak Falls Trail. Have lunch. Hike back to camp to ready for our return shuttle to Brooks campground at 2:30 pm. Set up our tents. Go look for more bears at one of the many viewing platforms. Stay safe from bear encounters. Dinner at the Brooks Lodge Restaurant**. Return to the campground. Ready for our return to Anchorage the next day. Watch, once again, for the Northern Lights. Have dinner together at either the restaurant or in our campground’s meal area. Spend our last evening together under the endlessly starry Alaskan sky.

DAY SIX, September 17, 2025: Awaken. Breakfast together. Pack up and shuttle to board our 9:30 to 10:00 Katmai Air flight to King Salmon Airport in King Salmon. Shuttle/Uber to board our Alaska Airlines return flight (Flight 2176 at 12:53) to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport in Anchorage. Purchase two nice bottles of wine. Shuttle to our hotel (TBD). Check in. Dinner in Anchorage or our hotel. Evening in our hotel.

DAY SEVEN, September 18, 2025: Awaken early. Breakfast at our hotel. Shuttle/Uber to Merrill Field airport. Meet up with my brother. Board our 3:00 pm Lake Clark Air flight to Port Alsworth Airport in Port Alsworth in Lake Clark National Park and Preserve. Shuttle to our stay at Aerie on Lake Clark. Have a drink and dinner with its owner. Spend the evening at the bed and breakfast.

DAY EIGHT, September 19, 2025: Awaken and have breakfast at the bed and breakfast. Ready for backpacking and our overnight in the wilderness. Secure our suitcases with the bed and breakfast staff. Explore Port Alsworth and the Lake Clark Visitor Center. With our gear, hike along the Tanalian Falls Trail to Tanalian Falls. Hike to the falls. Have lunch.

Then, either****:

a) Continue our hike along the Kontrashinuba Lake Trail to our Kontrashinuba Lake campsite along its shoreline. Set up our tents and electric fence****. Explore the area always alert for the presence of bears. If we are prepared and licensed, fish in the lake’s pristine waters for Arctic Char and Lake Trout. Have dinner along the shoreline. Settle down within our tents deep within the Alaska outback under the expansive near-Arctic sky.

or

b) Return to Port Alsworth and hike to the boat launch to begin our ride to Tommy Island with Dennis Fowler of Sailing Lake Clark. Set up camp within our electric fence enclosure*****. Explore the island. Prepare dinner outside our enclosure along the shoreline. Look for wildlife. Settle into our campsite as the sun begins to wane. Enjoy the broad Alaskan evening sky as I settle in safely on a deeply forested island centered well within Lake Clark. Watch for shooting stars and a possible Northern Lights. (I will assuredly be very thankful that I am able to begin my very last evening of backpacking/kayaking/boating/camping every American National Park in North America.)

DAY NINE, September 20, 2025: Awaken early. Have breakfast along the shoreline. Pack up camp.

Then, either:

a) Hike back to Port Alsworth on the Tanalian Falls Trail.

or

b) Ready for our return boat trip with Dennis Fowler. Boat back to Port Alsworth.

Walk to Aerie on Lake Clark. Settle in for our second night there. Ready our dinner with the owner. Chill our bottle of wine. Enjoy our last evening in the park on her back patio watching the beautiful Alaska horizon. asleep very thankful for being able to live this amazing life!

DAY TEN, September 21, 2025: Awaken early and have breakfast. Ready for our return flight. Arrive at 8:30 am at Port Alsworth Airport to board our 9:00 am Lake Clark Air flight to Merrill Field airport in Anchorage. Uber to Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport. Board our flights home. Michelle’s Alaska Airlines flight home to Sacramento International Airport is scheduled at 2:37 pm.

* Please read the "About Us" section on our "Backpackers of the American West" Meetup page for a fuller description of my National Park visits.

** It is my understanding that Brooks Camp Campground campers are permitted to use the Brooks Lodge facilities, including the showers and the dining area.

*** We may use an electric bear fence while at the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes; however, the National Park Rangers and concessioners suggest that none will be necessary.

**** We will either camp along Kontrashinuba Lake or on Tommy Island. Daily, last-minute circumstances will dictate which option is chosen.

***** We WILL use an electric bear fence at either location (unless an unforeseen event negates this planning).

PLEASE KEEP IN MIND:

1. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE, PLEASE PRESS THE “ATTEND” BUTTON BY 8/22/25, THEN: CALL ME AT 602-292-0753 TO DISCUSS.
2. Of course, you may call me at any time prior to pressing the "Attend" button and before 8/22/25 at 602 292-0753 to discuss the trip fully.
3. Please know that PRESSING THE "ATTEND" BUTTON DOES NOT GUARANTEE PARTICIPATION. ONLY A CONFIRMATION OF PARTICIPATION BY MICHELLE MOZELL. Therefore, for possible participation, you must first discuss this trip with Michelle Mozell at 602-292-0753.
4. It is not necessary to participate in the entire trip. It is possible to participate in either park segment of the trip singly. However, this possibility must be discussed in full with the trip participants and agreed to by Michelle Mozell who has the sole/unilateral right to make this decision.
5. The minimum of participants is TWO; the maximum is FOUR.
6. You are responsible for all individual transportation to, from, and within our scheduled itinerary AND any individual transportation you separately secure within our scheduled itinerary. NO individual transportation is provided. We will discuss this THOROUGHLY.
7. THIS WILL BE A VERY PRICEY TRIP. TOTAL COST TO YOU IS TBD. Many costs will be shared by participants equally. Many costs will be borne by each participant singly. As we progress, these costs will become known. Periodic payments/deposits based upon this progression will be required.
8. IMPORTANT: Due to this trip’s difficulty in securing certain essential reservations, as a confirmed participant on this trip, we each shall agree that, from time to time, some payments/deposits shall be required that are, by their very nature, non-refundable. These deposits shall be fully discussed in detail before each deposit is due.
9. For most evenings that do not include backpacking or camping, overnight accommodations have been pre-booked, but not yet paid for, including hotels, vacation rentals, and hostels. For a few evenings, as of this posting, accommodation choices are yet to be made. Pricing for these accommodations varies widely. Therefore, it is our desire to include all participants in the final booking process before confirming. It is also our desire to share, as equitably as possible, the cost of the confirmed overnight accommodations among our trip's participants. As each night's stay is confirmed, I will seek to update our itinerary with active hyperlinks to each venue's website.
10. NO meals are provided, except breakfast, if offered by the hotels. The hotels are, as of this posting, TBD. THEREFORE, YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL OTHER MEALS FOR THE ENTIRETY OF THE TRIP.
11. NO BACKCOUNTRY FOOD, WATER, SNACKS, OR SUPPLIES ARE PROVIDED. THEREFORE, BRING SUFFICIENT FOOD, WATER, EQUIPMENT, AND SUPPLIES FOR ALL BACKPACKING, HIKING, AND TOURING ADVENTURES.
12. There is NO INTERNET CONNECTION in most of Alaska, especially in the backcountry of the National Parks. Be prepared to be out of COMMUNICATION FOR MUCH OF THE TRIP. BRING A SATELLITE PHONE AND/OR A PERSONAL LOCATOR BEACON(PLB)/SATELLITE MESSENGER (such as a Garmin InReach or a SPOT).
13. NO “trip cancellation/interruption/travel insurance” or “emergency evacuation insurance” are provided. No health insurance is provided. YOU ARE STRONGLY ADVISED TO PURCHASE ALL INSURANCES, ESPECIALLY "EMERGENCY EVACUATION INSURANCE," THAT YOU DEEM NECESSARY AND APPROPRIATE BEFORE YOU GO. Call me to discuss!
14. There is NO GUARANTEE whatsoever that we will see bears, especially catching salmon in Brooks Falls. However, the probability of doing so always remains high.
15. All reservations are final confirmation dependent and may change at any time. THERE ARE NO GUARANTEES THAT ANY RESERVATION IS FULLY SECURE.
16. Bring your National Park Pass to enter the parks.
17. BRING YOUR PASSPORT and/or all other necessary forms of identification.
18. PARTICIPATION IN THIS MEETUP AFFIRMS THAT YOU HAVE READ, UNDERSTOOD, AND AGREED TO THE FULL LEGAL DISCLAIMER AND RELEASE OF LIABILITY on Meetup’s Backpackers of the American West's website: (see: Meetup's Backpackers of the American West Rules and Regulations).
19. MICHELLE MOZELL RESERVES THE SOLE/UNILATERAL RIGHT TO CANCEL, ALTER, OR MODIFY THE TRIP ITINERARY AS SHE DEEMS NECESSARY AT ANY TIME FOR ANY REASON WHATSOEVER.
20. Photo citation: "iStock."