Where the Nizina Glacier melts and forms an enormous iceberg filled lake, the beginning of your journey through beautifully braided rivers, thick forests, and tall cliffs begins. This ultimate Alaskan adventure is made complete by a mix of flying, floating, and hiking through truly incredible features of the park!
Intern Hailey Gomez remembers the highlight of her first season at St. Elias Alpine Guides – a river trip like no other!
As an intern for the company—and it being my very first season working in McCarthy—I was over the moon to find out I’d be going on the Nizina River trip. I had minimal rafting experience, especially in Alaska, so I was excited to learn the ropes and spend a week out on the river.
Coming from more of a backpacking background where every ounce counts, I was a bit baffled when I was told to run home and pack more clothes. A few extra outfits later, I was packed and ready to embark the next day.
With the van fully loaded, the two other guides—Jeff and Josh—and I headed to the airstrip, where we weighed our gear and began loading the plane. All 1,899 pounds of it fit into two De Havilland Beaver flights, and within a couple of hours, we were all at Nizina Lake. We spent the rest of the day shuttling our gear from the strip to the lake, which was a 1/4-mile walk each way.
Once we had the boats assembled and loaded, Jeff and Josh went off in search of drinkable running water from an iceberg. While they filled our water jugs, I was tasked with lassoing an iceberg and pulling it to shore so we could chop it up for ice in our coolers. That task sounded absolutely absurd to me—but I managed to lasso three icebergs while they were gone!
After completing my iceberg mission, I sat by the water’s edge and enjoyed a cold root beer while soaking in the spectacular views. Once the ice and water chores were complete, we rowed around the lake to find a campsite for the night. We set up camp, made dinner, and headed to bed.
Overnight, water levels in the lake rose drastically, and we woke up to a flooded kitchen. We quickly moved camp to higher ground. Jeff and Josh returned to the airstrip to pick up our clients while I stayed behind to watch over camp. After meeting Gale and Patrick, we served a beautiful sandwich spread for lunch, and I got to practice my plating skills—presentation is key!
After lunch, the group went for a row around the lake to explore some of the icebergs and ice caves that Nizina Lake has to offer. I stayed back to watch camp and enjoyed reading in the sun. Once they returned, it was my turn for a solo adventure. I rowed alongside massive icebergs and visited several stunning blue ice caves.
By the time I got back, it was already time to start cooking dinner. We opened the meal with a caprese appetizer on bread that Josh had baked from scratch before the trip, followed by a salmon entrée with a side salad, and for desert: pineapple upside-down cake that was still warm from the Dutch oven! After dinner, we sat by the fire and took in the amazing views. We enjoyed a jam session and some blueberry wine. A mild drizzle didn’t dampen the mood – instead, it created a double rainbow above the mountains!
The next day, we rowed across Nizina Lake, navigating through countless icebergs—some massive, some small. My job was to climb onto the bigger ones and help pull the raft through tight squeezes. For the smaller bergs, I’d screw in an ice anchor, and we’d tow them out of the way with our boat. Definitely a fun challenge!
Once across, we pulled the boats ashore and hiked to Doubtful Creek. When we returned, Jeff and Josh had prepared a charcuterie board lunch. From there, we officially started our journey down the Nizina River. The first stretch had some of the biggest rapids of the trip, which made for an exciting—and slightly nerve-racking—start.
We caught an eddy a bit further downriver and hiked to a massive waterfall. It was a muddy trek, but being that close to the falls was totally worth it. Later, we found a gravel bar with stunning views and set up camp. While eating dinner, I spotted a mama moose and her calf walking in the distance.
On day three, we kicked off the morning with a breakfast skillet—probably my favorite meal of the trip. Afterward, Gale, Patrick, and I went on a short bushwhack to explore the West Fork River. We found cool metamorphic rocks and some sedimentary ones with shell fossils. The area was prime bear territory—we saw lots of fresh bear scat and tracks, along with moose prints from the night before.
Josh and Jeff had another great lunch ready when we returned.
That afternoon’s section of river had lots of shallow braids, making for a gorgeous but bumpy ride. The Mile-High Cliffs lived up to their name, towering above us and showcasing spectacular rock layer folds. We found another open river bar to camp for the night and enjoyed cowboy caviar, tacos, and fresh churros for dinner.
The next morning, we set off again and passed the remains of the Nizina Bridge. Much of it had washed out in a flood, leaving only the middle trusses intact—it was wild to float past such a cool piece of history!
Later, we entered the Nizina Canyon—one of my favorite stretches. I was too busy holding on to take any pictures, but the tall gray limestone walls, covered in greenery, created a dramatic contrast to the wide-open views earlier in the day. We enjoyed a stunning campsite just past the canyon. The rolling waves in the eddy sounded like the ocean. Since it was our last night on the river, we went all out: tri-tip steak, garden salad, and homemade challah.
The next morning, we had pancakes for breakfast before floating the final stretch to the airstrip at the confluence with the Chitina River. Once the boats were unrigged and everything was ready to fly out, we feasted on one last sandwich spread. The Beaver flew in to scoop us up, and we headed back to McCarthy, flying over half of our 5-day route. The stunning aerial views were the perfect end to an epic trip!
written by: Hailey Gomez
updated 08/2025
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