Daily Itinerary

Day 1
Welcome to Canada! You have arrived in the West Kootenay region of BC. Full of spectacular scenery, great hiking and biking trails as well as charming towns, this area of BC is a little more remote that other popular areas of the province. After your long journey, tonight you need to get some rest and be ready for the drive to Kaslo tomorrow and then on to Wild Bear Ranch.

Day 2
After Breakfast drive through some of the most stunning scenery to reach the quaint mountain village of Kaslo, nestled in a valley surrounded by a lush forest and Kootenay Lake. Stop for lunch and a look around before heading to Wild Bear Lodge and your check in appointment.

Days 3 to 6
Wild Bear Lodge is a small luxury lodge on the banks of a remote river in British Columbia’s Selkirk Mountains which offers fully guided wildlife-viewing and wilderness holidays. You stay in a charming cabin with a wood-burning stove and sundeck. There are only six cabins dotted along the river. For five days you’ll relax and enjoy the peaceful surrounds, take leisurely walks through the rain forest and watch bears and other wildlife in their natural habitats. You’ll savour delicious meals including lunch on a remote beach or island, and a BBQ dinner over the campfire. May and June are the best months for viewing bears at Wild Bear Lodge.

Day 7
After Breakfast you will reluctantly leave this pristine wilderness. Drive back to Castlegar Airport and fly off to the big smoke in Vancouver. The BC capital is full of sidewalk cafes, cool restaurants, unique shopping, and leafy parks, Yaletown is the perfect spot to head for dinner.

Days 8 to 9
Discover Vancouver at your leisure today. Set against the harbour, this is such a pretty city. You have an included 1 Day Hop-on-Hop-off Pass. There are over 20 stops you can make from this open-air bus. Don’t miss spending some time in the historic area of Gastown.

On the second day there is an option to visit Butchart Gardens on the Island of Victoria. For those that wish to remain in the city there is no shortage of sites and experiences to keep you happy. You could experience the Vancouver Flyover or the Capilano Suspension Bridge.

Day 10
Spend a good part of the day in Vancouver before you leave for Whitehorse in the Yukon Territories. A final wander through Yale Town and Gas Town, stopping for a delicious authentic Canadian Poutine will hit the spot.

Day 11
Your Yukon and Alaska adventure truly begins today with a motor coach service from the White Pass Depot, along the scenic South Klondike Highway to Fraser BC, where you connect with the narrow gauge White Pass and Yukon Railway. You will arrive in Skagway around 1pm, with plenty of time left for a wander around town.

Day 12
Jump aboard your Ferry for the day ride to Juneau. Arrive in Juneau around 4.30 pm and check into your hotel. This afternoon explore this unique capital city. It’s the only state capital that can be reached by airplane or boat only – there is no road access! Cruise ships jostle with float planes and local fishing boats. The waterfront is vibrant and buzzing, and the town is an exciting place to spend an afternoon.

Day 13
Get up close and personal with the Mendenhall Glacier. Be one of the few to canoe across the glacier-fed lake in the middle of the Tongass National Forest. This vast forest is the largest in the United States. Your professional guide will navigate you across the lake, under the steep cliffs, to the face of the Mendenhall Glacier. You will see the beautiful blue ice and feel the katabatic winds rolling directly off the glacier. A half-mile wide glacier with ice up to 1,800 feet deep, it's no surprise that Mendenhall is the most visited glacier in all of Alaska.

Days 14 to 15
Early this morning you’ll board your day ferry to Gustavus, gateway to Glacier Bay National Park. The next 2 nights are spent at the fabulous Glacier Bay Lodge, the only accommodation actually inside the National Park. Prepare to experience some of the most impressive and majestic scenery at one of the most pristine wilderness areas left in the world! On your arrival afternoon you could take a quick and easy stroll around the Forest Loop Trail or stretch your legs out a bit more and hike the Bartlett River Trail.

On your second day we have included a Glacier Bay cruise. Marvel at the tide-wide glaciers, catch glimpses of whales, sea lions, otters, bears and sometimes even wolves.

Day 16
On the day of your departure from Gustavus, you have plenty of time to take an exhilarating kayaking tour. Sharing the water with humpback whales and 2000 pound sea lions can be a little nerve-racking but makes for a once in a lifetime experience! Maybe a Glacier flyover would be more your style? Your flight back to Juneau leaves late in the afternoon.

Days 17 to 18
Take a mid morning flight from Juneau to Anchorage. On arrival in the state capital, collect your rental vehicle for the drive to Talkeetna. En route be sure to stop in at the Native Heritage Centre and the Iditarod Race Headquarters at Wasilla. When you arrive in Talkeetna, settle in to your fabulous B&B and explore this quirky Alaskan town.

Days 17 to 18..continued
The next day is your free full day in Talkeetna. Why not enjoy a two hour River Float trip. Anyone wanting to be not so sedate can do Jet Boating, Flight seeing or even Tubing.

Day 19
Today travel via the Hatcher Pass, one of the Alaskan Scenic Drives, headed for the Matanuska Glacier. This Glacier is Alaska’s most accessible and anyone can take either a guided or unguided walk on the glacier. Leave Matanuska and stop in at Musk Ox Farm before continuing to Knick River Lodge. Musk Ox Farm is truly unique and maybe your only chance to get up close and personal with an Ice Age Mammal.

Arrive at Knick River Lodge in time for the tour briefing. Once that is done you get to take off on a trip of a lifetime!  Start this dogsled adventure with a helicopter flight along the Chugach Mountain Range and its several glaciers as we make our way to the giant Knik Glacier. Look down on the glacially fed Lake George with its massive icebergs rolling over in the glacial water. Unlike most glaciated areas the Chugach Mountains offer abundant wildlife like moose, Dall sheep and black bears.

Land on a high glacial snow field and enjoy a whole hour with Alaskan Husky sled dogs and their seasoned mushers. Meet the canine athletes that will pull your sled, listen to stories about running sled dog races across the Alaskan wilderness, and of course take pictures with your favorite pups! Take the dog team out for an exhilarating dogsled ride across the snow field amid towering peaks. You can stand on the runners and mush your own dog team if you want, or just sit on the sled and let the mushers run the team as you take in the ride.. Enjoy the scenic helicopter flight with bird’s eye views of blue melt pools and the crevasses as you make your way back to the lodge heli-base.

Day 20
Leave Knick River Lodge and drive to Girdwood. Either en route to or away from Girdwood you should visit the Alaskan Wildlife Conservation Centre and Begich Boggs. At Begich Boggs you will find state-of-the art exhibits with moving light patterns, sounds of a rushing stream, and cool blasts of air as you take video tours of life-sized dioramas or kayak trips on Prince William Sound. A theater with the award-winning film, "Retreat and Renewal: Stories from Alaska's Chugach National Forest," Interpretive specialists help you explore the glaciers, wildlife, climate, geography, and people of the Chugach National Forest and Prince William Sound. There is also the opportunity to take a close up look at Portage Glacier via a one-hour tour boat excursion on Portage Lake.  Offered by a commercial company through a special use permit with the Forest Service, Forest Service interpreters provide information about glaciers and their effects on life and the landscape.

Days 21 to 23
Homer, a small city on Kachemak Bay, on Alaska’s Kenai Peninsula. A focal point is the Homer Spit, a long strip of land with shops, art galleries, seafood restaurants and beaches. Fishing boats dock at its harbor. Galleries also cluster on Pioneer Avenue, near the Pratt Museum, which shows local art and artifacts, including a pioneer cabin.

The Alaska Islands and Oceans Visitor Center has wildlife exhibits. There are some extraordinary treats waiting for you at Homer. First up is a trip abroad the Danny J to Halibut Cove.To get to Halibut Cove you will first pass Gull Island. Gull Island is home to nine nesting species of birds.  Many, many other species may be found here during migration, and before and after nesting.  Binoculars and camera gear are a must!  In addition to the fabulous birds on Gull Island, Kachemak Bay is teeming with sea life - sea otters, seals, whales, porpoise and more!

On day two in Homer we recommend a fabulous Bald Mountain Air Float plane trip, Your float plane trip is over some of the most scenic country Alaska has to offer. Prepare for the awe-inspiring beauty awaiting you on this amazing adventure. If it's bears you want to see ...they guarantee it! It doesn't get better than this: a fabulous floatplane ride with eye-popping views; landing in a pristine Alaskan wilderness on a floatplane with an honest-to-goodness lifelong Alaskan bush pilot, followed by the best day of your life watching nature's most magnificent creatures, the Alaskan brown bear.

Day 24
Make an early start for Seward. Today you will sit back and enjoy your included boat cruise of the Kenai Fjord National Park. This is one of Alaska's best wildlife spectacles and some of its most beautiful fjords and glaciers. Humpback and killer whales, sea otters, harbor seals, sea lions, and puffins crowd the park's waters. Spend the night in Seward.

Day 25
Visit Seward SeaLife Centre before the final drive to Anchorage via Cooper Landing and the Turnagain Arm. Arrive in the capital with plenty of time to wander around downtown and maybe select a special restaurant for your farewell dinner. Any avid hikers or fishers might want to delay the arrival in the capital and instead spend some time at Russian River Falls.

Day 26
As you check out of your hotel this morning your “Pristine Canada and Alaska” Quest comes to an end. “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” Dr Seuss.