Kennicott Wilderness Guides
If you've ever wanted to experience true grandeur, look no further, the mountain kingdom of North America awaits your discovery! Here you'll find endless wilderness, peaks unnamed and unclimbed, clear mountain streams, undisturbed wildlife, and ultimate solitude.
Wrangell St. Elias National Park is the largest National Park in America and also one of the least visited National Parks! We can introduce you to this pristine area whether you're a first time hiker, a seasoned backpacker seeking a rugged adventure, or a mountaineer hoping to climb a remote peak. Our guides have spent years hiking and climbing in these mountains and take pride in our intimate knowledge of the wilderness we call home.
Our trips range in length from a 5-hour walk on the glacier behind our office to a 17-day expedition on the highest peak in the Wrangell mountains. Explore a glacier, learn to ice climb, fly into a remote valley for a backpacking adventure, enroll in one of our mountaineering courses, or climb to the top of one of Alaska's giant mountains!
We are one of the few guide services in Alaska that can offer winter tours as well. Waterfall ice climbing, backcountry skiing and snowboarding, ski touring, and endless mountaineering opportunities exist during Alaska's winter months. If you're a winter enthusiast, come see why we stick around Alaska when the snow begins to fly!
We pride ourselves on our custom tours, low client to guide ratios, personalized service, and locally grown guides. A trip with Kennicott Wilderness Guides won't leave you feeling "lost in the crowd." We can also work with you to organize package deals that make your vacation planning much easier. Let us show you the wilderness experience of a lifetime!
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| Group Sizes |
At least 1 person
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| Durations |
At least 1 day
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| Required Skill Level |
Open to All
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| Required Equipment |
Included
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| Targeted Activities |
Camping, Hiking, Ice Climbing, Mountaineering, Skiing |
| Our Certificatons |
All of our guides have a minimum of Wilderness First Responder medical training. Our roster also includes guides with certifications such as EMT IV, Avalanche I, II, and III, and American Mountain Guides Association. |
Group Types |
Private |
Groups |
Kids/Youth |
Elderly |
Workshops/Seminars |
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Mountain Skills & Disciplines |
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Hiking |
Mountaineering |
Canyoneering |
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Backpacking |
High Altitude |
Caving |
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Camping |
Traversing |
Coasteering |
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Rock Climbing |
Aid Climbing |
Big Walling |
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Ice Climbing |
Free Climbing |
Ropes & Knots |
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Bouldering |
Solo Climbing |
Belaying |
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Indoor Climbing |
Lead Climbing |
Rappeling |
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Traditional Climbing |
Top Roping |
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Avalanche Awareness |
Outdoor Survival |
First Aid |
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Environmental Awareness |
Navigation |
Search & Rescue |
Additional: Yoga seminars, winter activities including waterfall ice climbing, ski touring, backcountry skiing and snowboarding.
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FEATURED DAY HIKES:
Root Glacier Tour
From our office it's a 2 mile stroll to the white ice of the glacier. Once there we'll strap on our crampons (metal spikes for your shoes) and show you around the other-worldly moonscape that awaits. We'll show you how to use your crampons correctly to safely view the blue-pools, deep holes, and cascading waterfalls that make up the glacier's convoluted surface. When we get back you'll wonder how the hours could pass so quickly!
Fireweed Mountain
A ridgewalker's paradise...combine easy access, mellow grassy meadows, craggy upper heights, and the biggest views of Mount Blackburn and the Chitina Valley and you've got Fireweed Mountain! This series of summits, all connected by ridges, is a premier peak scramble that gives a unique bird's eye view of Kennicott and McCarthy from across the valley. You'll earn these views; the way up is more of a 'route' then a trail and over the course of the day we'll gain about 5,500 vertical feet, so be ready for a workout....one you'll never forget!
Full-Day Ice Climb
Your guides show and explain to you the basic safety measures involved with climbing ice; checking your harness, using your crampons and ice axes properly, and other important aspects of safe climbing. Confidence in them, and trust in your gear makes your day more enjoyable. Spending a full day on the glacier gives clients an opportunity to become familiar with their equipment, learn the fundamentals of climbing ice, build confidence, and kick some butt. Hanging out on a wall of vertical ice, or being lowered into the guts of the glacier, can be simultaneously empowering, exhilarating, terrifying, and fun.
FEATURED BACKPACKING TRIPS:
Twaharpies Traverse
This is a trip that you'll be talking about for a long, long time. It begins in a tiny Supercub aircraft that takes us to a small landing strip on the tundra of upper Canyon Creek. The scenery and solitude here are both absolute. As we meander up the valley the peaks seem to get higher and the various gorges carved out by the creek's tributaries give clues to the valley's name. After a sweaty but non-technical climb to a 6,500 foot pass, we'll stop and soak in the view and scramble to the top of a nearby peak on the ridge if time allows. The descent from here is the tricky part as it follows a direct line down a steep snow gulley; but not to worry, no previous climbing experience is necessary! We'll bring along the rope and other necessary gear, and teach you the appropriate techniques you'll need to get down safely. As if that thrill isn't enough, the feeling you get when you step out onto the Twaharpies Glacier and take in the surrounding giants will floor you. From here we'll hike down the valley to the Glacier Creek airstrip. This is one of the trademark traverses in Wrangell - St. Elias National Park!
Donoho Lakes - The Backyard Wilderness
The Donoho Lakes region - easily spotted from Kennicott as the tree-filled 'oasis' amongst the grandiose Root and Kennicott Glaciers is a place with many charms, the first of which may be that it is right in our backyard! After we cross the Root Glacier and set foot back onto solid ground, we make our way through the network of lakes, brush, berries, and boulders that characterize this area. Don't be surprised if you spot some cranes on the lake, or bears happily munching on the bountiful berry crop. With the enormity of the glaciers, the stately profile of Donoho peak looming overhead, and the tranquility of the water, we're sure that you'll see how lucky we feel to have this spellbinding wilderness experience nearby.
FEATURED MOUNTAINEERING TRIPS:
Iceberg Lake Mountaineering
This is one of our favorite places to go due to access and the variety of terrain to climb in the area. Iceberg lake is located on the fringe of the Bagley Ice Field and offers a variety of day climbs ranging from 2,000 to 4,000 thousand feet long of knife-edged ridges, snow and ice slopes, granite faces, and lots of glacier travel. The access in this area is as good as it gets. The bush plane drops us of in an alpine valley and it is a short hike to base camp were we set up the tents at the toe of the glacier amongst wild flowers and towering peaks above us. This is an excellent area for all levels of climbers, whether first-timers or those out there looking for a rewarding challenge!
Mount Blackburn - 16,390 ft
This trip up the tallest peak in the Wrangell Mountains is for experienced climbers who want the challenge of a true Alaskan Giant! We tackle Blackburn’s North Ridge, using all the skills and techniques necessary to climb a mountain of this caliber. From the landing strip on the Nabesna Glacier we move camps up the mountain till we establish a high camp around 13,000 ft. Given good weather and proper acclimatization, a summit bid is attempted from here.
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| Meals |
All Meals
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| Local Transport |
Optional
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| Insurance |
Included
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| Additional |
All of our backcountry trips include food and round trip airfare from McCarthy to the remote landing strips. Transportation around the local community of Kennicott / McCarthy is also included. |
| Nearby Attractions |
Our office is located on Main Street Kennicott, a historical copper mine that was abandoned in 1938. People come from all over the world to experience the amazing historical treasures here. Once a bustling company town, Kennicott is now a ghost town of dilapidated buildings and rusted mining equipment. The nearby town of McCarthy was once a supply town for the mining operation. It is still a focal point for local services and entertainment, and serves as a jumping-off point for accessing the surrounding wilderness. This is the "real Alaska", a place with a small-town feel you won't get other places. |
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