INSIDER TRAVEL REPORT

 

 

In November 2025, world-renowned adventure travel expert Intrepid Travel and outdoor retailer REI Co-Op announced they were teaming up to offer outdoor adventure travel for small groups looking for immersive experiences. 

 

They planned 80 curated trips designed to steer travelers away from overcrowded national parks and toward lesser-known locations so they might experience the beauty of the great outdoors. The trips are led by local experts, but all run by Intrepid. 

 

That is how I came to be on the seven- to nine-day Alaska Hike and Kayak press trip with seven strangers this past July. On this trip, designed for four to 11 people, we kayaked our way across Resurrection Bay, hiked Denali National Park, explored glaciers and took way too many photos of bald eagles, sea otters, puffins, seals, spruce trees and mushrooms. Alas, no bear sightings on this trip,.

 

Here are a few pointers for taking such a trip:

 

Tip No. 1: Expect the unexpected. It is Alaska. Weather and traffic and closings can be a factor at any time of year. The expert guides are prepared for anything, and a diversion to something unplanned could be your favorite part of the trip. Follow the rule of “those who are flexible will never get bent out of shape.” Our guide on this trip was an Intrepid Travel veteran, Bradley Mahnke, whose expert care of us and quirky personality made this trip as fun and magical for us as the destination itself.

 

Tip No. 2: This trip is appropriately rated as a 3 out of 5 on a fitness level scale to be enjoyed properly. No doubt someone at about a level 2 might do fine if they like to be outdoors and love walking. There was not one excursion that was over the top difficult. But it is not for the seriously unfit or someone with impaired mobility, or anyone who gets easily car sick as there are a few several-hour drives between destinations, although they are broken up with stops for points of interest.

 

Tip No. 3: Intrepid offers trips with four levels of comfort, several meals included and four price points—Basic, Original, Comfort and Premium. This Alaska Hike and Kayak was the second tier, Original. Accommodations were beyond adequate, quite comfortable, and at times adorably kitsch. But if luxury is what you want, you should look at the comfort or premium offerings.

 

Tip No. 4: The pre-travel information and packing guides are expertly tailored to the trip. I highly recommend a sleep mask as some of the shades/curtains on the trip do not block out the light, which does not truly dim until after midnight in summer. You’ll get the perfect amount of detail on what to pack, and what you might want to bring with you, such as hats and gloves, trekking poles and waterproof pants.

 

If you are not wearing appropriate footwear when arriving at the glacier walk, not to worry, boots are provided. The same goes for kayaking with spray skirt and waterproof jackets. But good hiking boots or trail running shoes are a must for the rest of the trip. Don’t pack anything you don’t mind getting wet or muddy.

 

Tip No. 5: If you are looking for a departure from a typical routine of staying in all-inclusive hotels or taking cruises, and you want to be immersed in a culture, meet other people, learn from local guides, this is the trip for you. In fact, we had to remind ourselves a couple of times that we were still in the U.S. You can forget you have not traveled to a foreign land on this other-worldly trip through South Central Alaska.

 

Here’s my daily log from the trip:

 

Arrival day at Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport 

 

If an Intrepid rep is not there to greet you, they arrange for an Uber or Lyft pass for you ahead of time. 

 

Guests stay at the Springhill Suites Anchorage Midtown and meet up for dinner at 49th State Brewing, a popular hangout. Dessert is outside in a large courtyard area at an ice cream truck. This is a fun way to meet others on your trip.

 

 

 

Day One: 

 

You can go to the large REI store to purchase any gear or clothing you have forgotten and then head to the Alaska Native Heritage Center. This is a 1.5-hour or so event where you walk a bit outside to enter replicas of native Alaskan huts and learn about how they lived, see many exhibitions and displays, and possibly take in a live music and dance demonstration.

 

There is time, the first day, to explore coffee shops and the waterfront area. One thing you will find out quickly is that Anchorage has some of the best baked goods and breweries on the US West Coast, such as the Firewood Rustic Bakery.

 

Day Two: 

 

After breakfast at the hotel, we left Anchorage and drove North along Parks Highway for about three hours, enjoying the scenery. We stopped in the tiny touristy town of Talkeetna, the inspiration for the ’90s TV show Northern Exposure, where we checked out the old-timey general store, spend some time in several gift shops (I highly recommend buying the Devil’s Club salve for sore muscles and mosquito bites), and enjoyed a quick lunch at a food truck (there is one just for spinach garlic bread that was a big hit).

 

We drove until we reached Denali National Park. Once there, we enjoyed a sled-dog demonstration in the park and a leisurely two-mile walk on the Horseshoe trail and checked in at the Denali Grizzly Bear Resort. This is a quaint, clean, summer camp-like motel with a small package store and food truck.

 

We dined again at the local 49th State Brewery, which has great areas to sit around outside by a firepit while waiting for a table, and it has an outdoor bar. 

 

The best part of the Resort might be sleeping with the sliding glass door cracked and hearing the rushing river all night, plus the late night and early morning train whistles. It is a step back in time in a good way.

 

Day Three: 

 

From the Grizzly Bear Resort, we headed back to Denali National Park for the Triple Lakes Hike and walked leisurely for about 10 miles on a mostly cleared dirt trail as we enjoyed beautiful views of spruce, mountains and wildflowers. Yes, there is a 1,000-foot elevation change, but it is only a moderately difficult hike with frequent breaks and lunch that you and your guide carries. 

 

 

 

 

Guides always carry bear spray, but we saw no large wildlife, after the day before exeriencing a rare Lynx sighting and a moose. 

 

We were out there for about six hours. That evening we enjoyed the food truck on the property, which was quite good Thai food. For anyone who wanted to go, there was a scientific-type briefing back at the Visitors Center, which is about a 10-minute drive.  

 

We spent a second night at the Grizzly Bear Resort.

 

Day Four: 

 

An early, 6 a.m. departure to drive to Palmer on the Glenn Highway to go glacier hiking at the Matanuska Glacier. Tour Operator Mica Guides provided us with leather boots and crampons and helmets. After a safety briefing and a five-minute bus ride to the glacier, we walked easily onto the glacier, which starts out quite flat and never gets too steep to be uncomfortable.

 

We enjoyed this for about three hours, though it felt shorter. This was enjoyable and didn’t require an ice axe or have tough, slippery slopes. But it is also a sobering experience to see firsthand how far the glaciers have retreated, which impacts entire ecosystems and wildlife.

 

That evening we stayed at Alaska’s Harvest B&B, which is in a couple’s charming home with bedrooms that almost all come with their own bathrooms. The owners leave you a tray of baked goods and fruit cups in your minifridge for the morning. The log cabin on the property also can be rented. It  has three bedrooms and 2.5 baths and, just like the main house, is outfitted with bear bedspreads, Alaskan artwork and taxidermy throughout.

 

 

 

 

Day Five: 

 

A scenic drive to Seward along the coast is as fun as getting there, with views all along Turnagain Arm of the water and train tracks. Our guide was always happy to give us information about the history of every region we visited.

 

Seward gives you an opportunity to enjoy great seafood and shopping in small boutiques. The Hotel Seward in the heart of town has been open since 1901. It features large, cozy rooms and is the perfect location to stroll to dinner or to see exhibits at the Alaska SeaLife Center, which is half aquarium, half interactive science center and expands your knowledge about Alaskan marine life.

 

We also took a ferry boat ride for a couple of hours. We saw harbor seals, eagles, puffin and other animals, and snow-capped mountains in the distance. The best dinner of the trip, in my opinion, was next door to the hotel at The Cookery where fresh oysters, local meats, produce from the Kenai Peninsula and fresh fish are served.

 

Day 6: 

 

Easily my favorite day of the trip. It’s hard to describe the breathtaking views during a four-hour kayak in Resurrection Bay. This is a calm cove with great opportunities to spot sea otters, eagles and even seals. Sunny Cove Kayaking led the way with two guides. There is a lot of paddling in tandem kayaks, but at a leisurely pace.

 

There are two stops to rest, including one at Tonisna Point to take a short walk to view a waterfall and then warm up with some hot soup, and another to have a boxed lunch that the guides provide on the “beach.” Those who take a 15-minute walk to a rustic bathroom will be rewarded when they find themselves surrounded by a magical forest of unusual trees covered in moss and lichen in this arctic rainforest. You might spot salmon as you cross over a foot bridge. 

 

We then paddled back along the coast enjoying the view of snow-capped mountains on the far side and spent a second night in the Hotel Seward.

 

Day 7: 

 

We left the Seward Hotel in the morning and took a nice leisurely two-mile stroll in Kenai Fjords National Park to see the Exit Glacier, passing signs with dates going back to the 1800s to show just how much the glacier has receded. We then traveled back to Anchorage on about a 2.5-hour drive along the coast, stopping for lunch. 

 

Flights out need to be booked leaving no earlier than 4 p.m. because you will be traveling back to Anchorage for much of the day. Most flights to the East Coast were either at the crack of dawn or evening redeyes, which works with the schedule. 

 

Or you can opt to stay another night in downtown Anchorage.

 

For more information, visit www.IntrepidTravel.com