SELF GUIDED RAFT TRIP DOWN THE TALACHULITNA

August 26, 2022

Talachulitna 37 mile Helo-Raft Trip

Day 1:

We used “Remote Alaska Air” to fly us in to the Tal from Anchorage Airport to our river “put in” on the upper  Talachulitna  River and Talachulitna Creek. 

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We were outfitted and had 7 paddlers using 4 Pioneer Extreme rafts. These are our favorite arctic rafts due to their payload capacity, reliability and maneuvering. 

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One raft was set up with an oar frame  for a solo and the other 3 rafts were set up to paddle in pairs.

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Using the Remote Alaska Air helicopter was the way to go. We had used the pilot named Jason on many other high arctic rivers and had used him for years.  

The pilot literally landed us in our campsite we had picked on Tal Creek. A side benefit of using the Helo was that It also allowed us to survey the river and Tal creek condition in a low-level altitude as we flew to the proposed drop off.

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We camped just around mile 36. We were originally going all the way up to Chicken Creek towards Judd Lake but after surveying the upper Tal creek we decided that 

camp somewhere around the river / creek confluence. 

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Jason the pilot put us down on a great gravel bar, river right with plenty of fish and firewood.

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Silvers and Rainbows were there. 

We used Bright Streamer and swinging the flies.

A few of the crew used single hook lures with really bright colors and the barb crimped down.

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Using the team ZOLEO satellite text transmitter we were able to get highly detailed local weather forecast updates from Judd Lake and Skwentna. 

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The water in the upper Tal and Tal creek itself has more turbidity in the water than anything below Hell’s Gate. Be prepared to clean your water filters a bit more,  but don’t give up. Below Hell’s Gate the water is crystal clear. 

Eric our lead fly fishing expert made us smoked ribs for dinner and a great Pinot Grigio for chasers ( LOL). 

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Day 2:

A great morning of fishing and we were going to paddle just above the Cabin community at mile 20 to mile 22. 

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We were going to stay about mile 24 to avoid listening to their jet boats. ( Tips from prior paddlers). This portion of the upper Tal is the only 10 mile stretch on the entire Tal River or Tal Creek where you will see small outboard jet boats on the river.  

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From river mile 36 to 24 it is so pretty with views of the mountains. It still has the wilderness feeling and we met 3 fish guides in their boats. We had plenty of Bald Eagles escorting us. Our river speed in these Upper Tal Class 1 sections averaged 2.6 mph and paddling was needed only for course correction. There are a lot of nice campsites between mile 36 and 24. 

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We caught some Rainbows  and Grayling in between paddling the upper Tal.  The Silvers were at the end of their spawn and working hard towards Tal Creek. 

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We decided to push on and paddle to Friday Creek for our second night on the river. 

That’s a 17 mile day,  but that meant back to total remote wilderness, no guide boats, total solitude and we knew the river was doing 5-6 mph from Hells Gate to the Skwentna in really nice Class 1-3 sections. 

We arrived at the mouth of Hell’ Gate at about 4 pm.

A light rain was coming down. We scouted the left-side of the Gate. 

We had studied the Gate before and flew it on a recon with Remote Alaska Air.

We knew that normally you want to stay hard- left.

(Always scout any large rapid for changes ) on this Class 2-4 rapid. 

Hell’Gate takes on a variety of conditions . 

In July it can be a Class 2-3 and other times it can vary.  Don’t ever run Hell’s Gate without scouting it. 

We were at end of summer high water flow, so the “Gate” was a solid class 5. 

It had plenty of gnarly strainers and sweepers. 

After scouting it on the well known left-side portage trail, we decided that it was safer to switch river sides back up stream of the Gate and scout on foot river-right bluffs. 

This may sound counterproductive but the river was so high it was much easier to scout out a new way around the Gate. 

We found a new route to portage the rafts on river right. This allowed us to skip the high water conditions. The portage was about 300 feet and since not a regular portage it  took us 4 hours.  ( lots of gear)

OMG the portage was well worth it because what we found ahead was mind blowing for rafters and fly fishing.

It was some of the prettiest Alaska river scenery I have ever seen.

We have paddled many Alaska remote rivers including north slope icons like the Wulik, Firth, John, Kug, Gates of Arctic and Kongakut. 

That said, the Tal has it all. 

Amazing scenery, Blue Ribbon fishing, lots of wildlife, eagles , bears, beavers , fox and more.

Once we cleared the Gate it took us a about 30 minutes to paddle  to Friday Creek.  (61.71409, -151.45708). The Tal water was now crystal clear and moving at about 5 mph. Ripe conditions for excellent fishing. 

Friday Creek is a must stop, must camp location. Plenty of firewood, room for a lot of tents and most of all Fish. Rainbows, Salmon and Grayling abound. 

An evening storm moved in and we had a Pad Thai dinner at 11 pm. 

Listening to the sound of the rain on the tents all night was wonderful. Our ZOLEO weather report let us know that the next day was going to be beautiful. Sunny and clear skies. We use the ZOLEO over the InReach because it has better weather, texts faster and 8 times more length of text messages. 

Day 3:

Today was a “zero day” ( Off Day ) and we spent the day hiking and fishing all day. The Silver Salmon and Rainbows were hitting hard. Hiking around Friday Creek is a great itinerary. 

In the future, if the Gate is at high-flow and one doesn’t want to portage. Friday creek is a great start destination to get flown in direct by Remote Alaska Air. They will even take you right from Anchorage International and provide all your gear.

We relaxed this day. Dinner was a Korean Fusion meal of MomoFuku, salads and dessert. 

Day 4:

We pushed off at about 11 am after a giant breakfast around the campfire. 

Deep Creek confluence is a few miles down stream. N 61.73548° W 151.46120° We outfit each raft with a Cobra waterproof floating VHF marine radio and a satellite phone or ZOLEO. This way each group of 2 paddlers in a raft can fish and explore at their leisure for the day and talk to the other rafts where ever they are on the float. 

There are some fun Class 3+ rapids here at high- flow. They are class 2+ at regular flow. N 61.78361° W 151.42214°

Fishing is great along every Eddy. 

Take your time paddling through here for the next two or three days. 

The sheer beauty and wildness of the Tal canyons from Friday Creek down river to the Skwentna is 10X that of the upper Tal from Judd to Hell’s Gate.

Everything below the Hell’s Gate is enhanced. The fishing, the wildlife, and the river is crystal clear. All this section of the Tal is a rafter’s dream. 

It was about 5.4 miles down to Thursday Creek from Friday creek. ( River  left) Thursday Creek at the Tal was filled with rainbows. N 61.79508° W 151.41381°

At high-flow there is only room for two tents at Thursday Creek. There are plenty of great campsites between all the major confluences.

This day was spent in class 2-3 rapids that were just so much fun. 

We finished the day a few miles down the river from Thursday Creek , on river left. 

Next to Friday Creek,  this campsite below Thursday Creek we found  is the second best on the entire Tal.

 N 61.80563° W 151.38709° 

The campsite is 7.10 miles up-river from the Tal Adventures Lodge which was our final stop. The Lodge is one mile up from the Skwentna. 

Everyone loved the campsite. A lot of firewood, great rainbow fishing and perfection.  So many bald eagles fishing along side of us. 

On this last river night we made Billy’s favorite pizza. Four slices of hot pepperoni, beers and salad.

Day 5:

We slept in, knowing the river flows perfect here and it would be an easy 7 mile paddle and fishing to the Tal Adventures Lodge. 

Breakfast was bacon quesadillas and a lot of coffee.

This section of the Talichulitna river is epic and classic Alaska wilderness. We fished the whole way down to the Tal Adventures Lodge. 

We exited on a gravel bar in front of the lodge which is on river right one mile above the Skwentna. 

Jason was in the area with his Remote Alaska Air helicopter and offered to bring our gear the short hop up to the River Front lodge. 

Tal Adventures Lodge has an amazing 270 degree view of the river. We dried  off in their lodge, sat by a warm fire and their staff pampered us with lunch, beer and wine. For dinner we had caribou and it was excellent.

Day 6:

We woke up and had a Giant hot breakfast in the lodge and enjoyed the riverfront access. You can fish right at the lodge and they are so helpful. Later in the day,  Jason took us in the helicopter up to the glaciers. Back for dinner. The staff made the best barbecued ribs I had ever tasted. 

Day 7: 

We flew back to Anchorage International from the lodge. Amazing to just get dropped off there and not have to worry about  car rentals and such. 

Final thoughts:

The staff at Tal Adventures Lodge are kind and treat you as part of their family.  They were open minded and offered so many tips and provided much needed river gear for us. 

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Having paddled 11 high Arctic rivers in ANWAR and Gates of The Arctic, I put the Talichulitna river in the top. Hardly known by paddlers outside of the local area. 

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The Tal is one of the best kept secrets in Alaska. There are so many varieties of trips one could have. Fishing is best from Hell’s Gate to the Skwentna. 

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For a great 4 day self guided trip, have Jason at Remote Alaska Air drop you off via helicopter at Friday Creek and float with his rafts back down to the lodge. 

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For a 2 day trip do the same thing but get dropped at Thursday Creek. 

If you want a long trip get dropped off at Tal Creek either at the Forks or at Judd. 

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Just remember, the fishing and scenery just gets better and better every mile you float down. On the upper Tal, the folks were nice that we met in the guide jet boats and super polite. 

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Having access to the Tal Adventures lodge and the Remote Alaska Air allows you to be supplied with all the gear and also finish off the trip from your cabin with some sight seeing up to the glaciers and back to Anchorage Airport. 

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To keep this pure fishery solid. Catch and release and use flies or single hook lures, crimp the barb.  You will hear bear stories. Yes, there are occasional blacks and grizzlies on the river. This is Alaska and they are a big part of it. We found them to be no problem whatsoever. 

Tim