OLLI TRAVEL -- Around Alaska and Beyond
SUMMER EXCURSIONS 2012
June 1 – 7 . . . . . . . . Katmai National Park
June 28 – July 2 . . . Fly Fishing Field School
July 2 – 6 . . . . . . . . Denali with Your Grandchild
July 18 – 25 . . . . . . Copper River Float Trip
August 6 – 9 . . . . . . Prudhoe Bay & Dalton Highway
November 13 – 18 . Haines Bald Eagle Festival
Centennial Celebration: Katmai National Park
June 1 – 7, 2012 Activity Level: Moderate
Begin with dinner on June 1; end after breakfast on June 7.
June 6th is the 100th anniversary of the eruption of Novarupta, the most powerful volcanic eruption of the 20th Century. Visit the Valley of 10,000 Smokes, a landscape created by the eruption. Learn about the earliest appearance of Native people in the area and visit an excavated pit house that dates back 9,000 years. While not guaranteed, there is a high probability that you will see some giant Katmai bears in the wild. Coordinator Johanna Bouker, whose father co-founded Brooks Camp more than 60 years ago, has hosted countless outdoor enthusiasts here over the last 20 years. Stay at Brooks Lodge, situated on the shore of Naknek Lake and enjoy scenic beauty and gourmet meals. Accommodations are in small cabins shared by four people. Each cabin has bunk beds (upper and lower), sink, shower, and toilet.
Cost of $1,225 ($1,200 if paying by check) includes 6 nights lodging (quad occupancy), all meals, lectures, field trips, and gratuities. Double occupancy is available for an additional $365/person. Transportation from Fairbanks is not included. $100 deposit; remainder due April 1.
NEW! Interior Alaskan Fly Fishing and Fly Tying Field School
June 28 – July 2, 2012 Activity Level: Moderate
Begin at 3 pm on June 28; end at 4 pm on July 2.
Fly fishing is equal parts meditation, art, and science. Join expert fly fishermen Shann Jones and Scott Murdock for a hands-on exploration of the fly tackle, fly tying materials, fly fishing in regional water, and the science that makes it all possible. Short indoor lectures will be accompanied by stream-side instruction and hands-on fly tying sessions. Depending on weather and water conditions, you will be fishing on Delta-Clearwater River, Tangle Lakes, Tangle River, and/or other waters in between. Learn how to use a fly rod to place a fly with pinpoint accuracy, and learn where the fish live and how best to catch them. From the end of a line study the interplay of water hydraulics, stream ecology, entomology, and their combined effects on fish habitat. From the end of the bobbin, experience the creative art of fly design. Accommodations and meals at Black Rapids Lodge.
Cost of $1,380 ($1,345 if paying by check) includes 4 nights lodging (double occupancy), all meals, guide fees, and all field supplies. Transportation from Fairbanks is not included. $100 deposit; remainder due April 1.
NEW! Denali with Your Grandchild!
July 2 – 6, 2012 Activity Level: Moderate
Begin with dinner on July 2; end with breakfast on July 6.
Bring your grandchild to Denali National Park and enjoy an exploration of the subarctic with expert resident naturalists. Walk the Savage River Trail and take plaster track casts along the river’s edge. Learn how wolf tracking is done using radio telemetry. Use wild plants to make homemade ice cream. Search for wildlife and enjoy outstanding scenery on a day-long trip to Eielson Visitor Center. Optional activities such as a raft trip can be planned for the final day – before you head home. The program is coordinated by the Denali Education Center. Rooms and meals are at their quiet wooded campus on the banks of the Nenana River. Accommodations are in two-room cabins, each with two bedrooms and one bath. Rooms shared by grandparents and grandkids. Recommended age of grandchildren is 8 – 12. The program includes walking up to 3 miles on gravel and dirt trails, with the possibility of more challenging hikes for grandkids.
Cost of $945/adult and $795/child ($925 and $775 if paying by check) includes 4 nights accommodations, all meals, educational activities, transportation into and around the park, and gratuities. Transportation from Fairbanks is not included. Deposit of $150/person is needed before March 1; remainder due May 1.
MEMORIES from 2011
Yukon Island and Homer, June 2011
Copper River Float Trip
July 18 - 25, 2012 Activity Level: Active
Begin in Chitina late afternoon, July 18; end in Chitina on July 25.
Take a wilderness raft trip down the Copper River from Chitina to Cordova, and along the way learn more about the human and natural history of the region. Spend the first night in Chitina with dinner and a local native history presentation. In the morning set off at a leisurely pace down the river. Days will be interspersed with short hikes, great food, presentations and discussions. Take out at the Million Dollar Bridge or at Flag Point and drive into Cordova. Spend the night in Cordova, then take the ferry back to Valdez and van shuttle back to Chitina. Program arranged by Copper Oar, based in McCarthy. Tents, dry bags, and rafting equipment are provided. The rafts are “oar boats,” run by expert guides, but available for you to try.
Cost of $1,970 ($1,925 if paying by check) includes rafts and equipment, guides, transportation from Cordova to Chitina, hotel accommodations in Chitina and Cordova, and meals from dinner the first evening through breakfast the last day. Transportation from Fairbanks is not included. $100 deposit; remainder due May 1.
Prudhoe Bay and Dalton Highway
August 6 – 9, 2012 Activity Level: Easy
Leave on the morning of August 6; return evening of August 9.
Fly from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay; then take a 3-day drive down the scenic Dalton Highway (Haul Road). Tour the oil fields and stand on the shores of Arctic Ocean. Spend the first night in Deadhorse. The next day drive south across the Arctic Coastal Plain to the University of Alaska Fairbanks Toolik Field Station, where several research projects are underway. Spend the night at Toolik, then continue over the Continental Divide at Atigun Pass to Coldfoot. Spend the night there, enjoy a lecture from a Gates of the Arctic National Park Ranger, and visit the former gold rush town of Wiseman. Continue the drive south across the Arctic Circle and Yukon River back to Fairbanks. Accommodations in Deadhorse and Coldfoot are in rustic hotels (shared bathrooms), and in Toolik, in Quonset huts with beds and platform floors. For the Toolik stay, participants need to bring sleeping bags and towels.
Cost of $1120/person ($1095 if paying by check) includes air transportation from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay, van transportation back to Fairbanks, guided ground tours, 3 nights accommodations, meals at Toolik, and gratuities. Meals at Deadhorse and Coldfoot are not included. $100 deposit; remainder due June 1.
NEW! Alaska Bald Eagle Festival, Haines, Alaska
November 13 – 18, 2012 Activity Level: Easy
Celebrate the largest gathering of bald eagles in the world! At this time of year up to 4,000 eagles can be found feeding on a unique late run of salmon in the Alaska Bald Eagle Reserve. Enjoy guided eagle viewing (every day if you wish!): travel by bus 21 miles up the Chilkat River to the “Eagle Council Grounds” north of Haines. In Haines there are hourly presentations by naturalists and others at the Alaska Bald Eagle Foundation Natural History Museum. Evenings feature a variety of entertainment: two festival dinners, a chocolate extravaganza, and live music. Optional (extra cost) activities include a 2-day photography workshop, a 2-day scrapbooking workshop, and a day-long Klukwan cultural tour. Individuals will be free to schedule their days according to their own interests. Accommodations are in a centrally located Haines motel.
Cost of $565 ($550 if paying by check) includes bus transportation to eagle viewing, over 15 presentations, 5 nights lodging (double occupancy), continental breakfasts, welcome banquet, Saturday night catered dinner, and evening entertainment. Transportation from Fairbanks is not included. $100 deposit; remainder due September 1.