The Ultima Thule

Journeys in America’s Northernmost Lands: a web anthology of the Alaskan Arctic

The Final Stretch: Our Last Days in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

July 24th, 2009

The Final Stretch: Our Last Days in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

| July 24, 2009

To make it to the airstrip, we had to reford the Aichilik- though this time below the confluence with the Leffingwell Fork with higher water. We planned to make it to the landing strip a day early. My digestive track was upset- to say the least- so we determined if we arrived a day early [...]

The Leffingwell Fork

| July 24, 2009

The first order of business the next morning- morning relating only to the time we had breakfast and started moving, not hours on the clock- was to ford the Aichilik. From there we would ascend the saddle crossing over the range to the Leffingwell Fork. Though we had been hiking on the Aichilik for the [...]