Mountain-lined shores and crystal clear aqua-blue water make Atlin Lake one of the most beautiful lakes in North America. Kayak with the support of a mothership!
Duration: 5 Days
Grading:EASYMax Group Size: 8
Type:SMALL GROUPPrices from: £1434
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Tour Overview
Our custom 34-foot support vessel "The Yukon Rose" allows us to reach the spectacular scenery of Atlin Lake, British Columbia in style and increased safety. Kayak as much or as little as you wish and know that you will still get to a warm and comfortable camp each night, regardless of the weather, or your energy level. "The Yukon Rose" will be there to assist you or give you a lift to camp. Our wilderness camps include the increased comfort of large standing-room tents, raised sleeping cots, sit-down washroom, and bug and rain shelter aboard our vessel.
Atlin Lake is a freshwater sea kayaking paradise in northern British Columbia only a two-hours drive from Whitehorse, Yukon. Surrounded by snow-capped mountains and glaciers, your adventure unfolds. First by kayak we paddle among glacial-blue waters, islands and bays, and then we have an option to day-hike into the toe of the LLewellyn Glacier. After our glacier-viewing day-trip we continue touring around this spectacular freshwater kayaking terrain.
What's Included: •Transportation from Whitehorse to Atlin Lake on Day 1 •Transportation to Whitehorse from Atlin Lake on Day 6 •Meals starting lunch Day 1, ending lunch Day 6 •Eating utensils, bowls, and mug, and group kitchen equipment •Tents, sea kayaks, paddles, personal flotation device •Services of a CFA guide and Vessel Captain •Support of our "mothership" support vessel throughout the trip •All necessary safety equipment
Mountain-lined shores and crystal clear aqua-blue water make Atlin Lake one of the most beautiful lakes in North America. It is the largest natural lake in British Columbia and covers an area of 780 km2 (301 mile2 ). Atlin Lake is also the headwaters of the Yukon River. For centuries the Tlingit First Nations People came to the Atlin Lake area from the Taku River region of the coast because of the rich bounty offered by Atlin Lake. The Tlingit name for Atlin Lake is “Atlah”, which means “Big Water”.
The stunning beauty of Atlin Lake drew people to this area in the 1920’s, and for this same reason, still attracts people to this area today. The area is often referred to as “Little Switzerland”. The rugged and jagged snow-peaked mountains of the Coast Mountain Range surround the western shore of the Lake. Atlin Provincial Park and the Atlin Recreation Area were developed to protect the magnificent terrain at the south end of the Lake. Teresa Island is the largest island in Atlin Lake but has a much more exciting claim-to-fame. Birch Mountain, located on Teresa Island and rising to a height of 2060 m (6758 ft), gives the island the distinction of being the tallest fresh-water island in the world. With its height of 2060 m (6758 ft), Teresa Island’s highest point looms an impressive 1393 m (4570 ft) above the surface of Atlin Lake.
One of the most impressive features of the park is its abundance of ice and snow. Over one third of the park’s land is covered by glacier. The Llewellyn glacier, which is accessible by a short hike from the south end of the lake, is just “the tip of the iceberg”. The Llewellyn Glacier flows from the larger Juneau Ice Fields. The Juneau Ice Field is the 5th largest in North America. It covers a land size of 3885 sq. km’s (1500 sq. m’s) with estimated snow and ice depth’s of 245 to 1371 meters (800 to 4500ft). Even though the ice field is around 3000 yrs old the ice within it is relatively young as it is perpetually renewed from the snowfall at the upper elevations. The ice spreads around the jagged mountain peaks and sends its offspring, in the form of glaciers, winding down valleys and hanging off sheer cliff faces, melting as they reach the lower valleys and feeding the numerous rivers that have their headwaters as the base of the ice field.
Atlin Lake supports a large diversity of wildlife. Caribou, moose, black bear, grizzly bear, stone sheep, mule deer, mountain goats, lynx, bald eagles and owls may be seen. Atlin Lake is also a fisher’s dream destination. Some have been lucky enough to catch four or five fish per hour. Lake trout, grayling, whitefish and burbot are the common fish in the lake. You can try your luck from shore, by boat, or try the art of fly-fishing.
Activities
We are more than willing to modify an itinerary to fit your needs. We can:
•Add time to the trip for greater leisure, fishing opportunities, photography etc. •Some trips can be safely shortened in length of time, assuming clients are willing to expend more effort paddling, hiking or cycling as required by the itinerary. •Some routes can be shortened in terms of distance. •Combine this trip with other Yukon attractions and or wilderness activities. View Yukon-Wide Slideshow •Book your hotel rooms (at a discount) for the night before and after you Cabin Fever Adventures vacation and add this to your bill.
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Tour Highlights
Itinerary
Day 0: Whitehorse, Yukon
Hopefully you enjoyed your travels and have arrived safely in Whitehorse, the Yukon’s capital city, nestled among the wilderness.
Please arrive in Whitehorse in time for an orientation meeting at 8:30 pm the night before our departure. Guests are responsible for accommodation and meals while in Whitehorse. Whitehorse is a splendid little city and we recommend booking some additional time at either the beginning or the end of your trip to see Whitehorse.
Please Note: Often our guests choose to come to the Yukon several days early, or to depart several days after their wilderness vacation. Therefore we don't include accommodation in Whitehorse in order to provide flexibility for our guests. If you prefer, we can easily arrange your hotel accommodations in Whitehorse and add these details to your itinerary.
Day 1: ( L, D) Scenic Cruise, Sloko Island
Cabin Fever Adventures staff will pick you up from your hotels starting at 7:00 am. Participants need to have finished their breakfast by this time. Any final details will be dealt with and we will depart Whitehorse by 8:00 am. Our route will see us driving southeast along the Alaska Highway and then south on the Atlin Road through the Southern Lakes District of the Yukon, known for its large wilderness mountain-clad lakes and deep, clean waters. We should arrive in Atlin British Columbia by late morning. We will have some time to walk around and explore this highly scenic village. If you are interested in fishing in Atlin Lake you will need to purchase a British Columbia fishing license before leaving Atlin. You guides will show you where they are sold. Next we will climb aboard "The Yukon Rose" , loaded with our caming gear and kayaks and begin a sight-seeing tour towards the southern reaches of Atlin Lake. As we travel we will have vistas of Teresa Island, the world's tallest fresh-water island, rising more than 1393 m (4570 ft) above the surface of Atlin Lake. We will set up a comfortable camp in the area of Sloko Island and go for an evening paddle arround this stunning island of rock, pine and deep glaicial-blue water.
Day 2: (B, L, D) Copper Island & Torres Channel
Today we will awake to the mountain grandeur of Atlin Lake. Afer a delcious breakfast, we will load the kayaks aboard "The Yukon Rose", and take a short shuttle across the open expance of the lake and launch our kayaks in the sheltered openng to "Second Narrows": a convoluted strip of water surrounded by the cliffs and rocky hill tops of Copper Island, winding its way through rock and pine outcrops to connect the main body of Atlin Lake, with Torres Channel, the western-most arm of the lake. By late afternoon we will have reached the southern terminus of Torres Channel, an area known as Willison Bay. Willson Bay, along with LLwewellyn Inlet, has the most glacially coloured water in Atlin Lake and is surrounded by stunning mountain scenery of perpetually snow-capped peaks. Here, in Willison Bay, "The Yukon Rose" awaits to return us to our camp for another fine wilderness meal and endless conversation about the haunting beauty we have seen this day!
Day 3: (B, L, D) Llewellyn Inlet & Glacier Hike
Today we awake to yet another day of exploration. Heading west from Sloko Island on "The Yukon Rose", we will enter the steep-sided Llewellyn Inlet, with its numerous small waterfalls cascading in from the mountain sides. Here we will launch our kayaks, or if your arms are still tired from the previous day's paddle, you are welcome to stay aboard and see the impressive views of LLewellyn Inlet from the protected cabin aboard our suport vessel. At the head of the inlet we will make landfall and commence to hike towards the Llewellyn Glacier. After 15 minutes we will come upon an impressive vista overlooking the glacier. At this point we can either return to "The Yukon Rose" and enjoy the remainder of the day relaxing, or commence on a six-hour round-trip hike to the toe of the glacier where we will get an up-close view of the glacier’s terminal edge. Here it actively calves small icebergs into Glacial Lake Llewellyn. Supportive hiking shoes are required for the hike and participants will definitely get wet feet as we ford several glacial streams before reaching the glacier’s face. Once the intrepid hikers have returned we will have a short 45-minute voyage back to our base-camp for a delicious meal that hopefully includes some freshly caught trout from the lake.
Day 4: (B, L, D) Sloko Inlet
Today we will explore, with the suppport of "The Yukon Rose", the inlets and hidden bays of Sloko Inlet, the southern most terminus of Atlin Lake and come to rest once again on the scenic and beautiful Sloko Island by day’s end. We will round out our day with a celabratory feast, commemorating our time on this magical lake.
Day 5: (B, L) Bastion Island
After an early breakfast we will pack our gear aboard "The Yukon Rose" and commence our final paddle, this time heading north towards the highly scenic Bastion Island. There in a sheltered cove, we will rendezvous with our vessel and enjoy our final wilderness lunch, before loading the kayaks one last time and cruising 2-3 hours back to Atlin. After a final look around Atlin we will drive 2.5 hours back to Whitehorse to arrive by 7-8 pm.
All our tourism experiences include an organic food menu, and include carbon offsets for the emissions related to travel during this experience. Our company contributes 1% of our gross revenue to environmental charities and works effectively with local indigenous peoples to increase their involvement in tourism. We strive to stay current and utilize all environmentally friendly products that we can, and attempt to do our best to source our equipment from companies that demonstrate social justice business models.
Our Trusted Partner's Responsible and Sustainable Travel Policy
At Cabin Fever Adventures we don’t believe we can protect the planet by simply saying that we love wilderness and that we strive to protect wild places. Of course we love the wilderness, but the bigger question is does the day-to-day operation of our company demonstrate this commitment? At Cabin Fever Adventures we strive to be the Yukon’s industry leader in promoting a earth-friendly business model. We actively engage our company in the preservation of not only the wilderness here in the Yukon, but consider our company an economic vehicle to affect positive change around the planet.
Our Earth-Friendly initiatives are based on the following simple beliefs:
•One person’s happiness can not be build at the cost of another's •One person can change the world by doing things differently, daily •The needs of the earth’s natural systems are the basis for all sound economic decisions when judged over the long-term.
Based on the above stated beliefs, we have instituted the following business practices into the operations of Cabin Fever Adventures.
We Provide an Organic and Fair Trade Food Menu
•Our food menu is as close to 100% organic as possible and we support several Fair Trade organizations through our food purchases as well. To learn more about organic food products please visit our food distributors website www.horizondistributors.com •To learn more about Fair Trade products and benefits please visit www.transfairusa.org
We are a Member of One Percent for the Planet
•One Percent for the Planet is an organization of member companies who donate at least 1 % of their gross revenues to non-profit environmental protection agencies. We are proud to have made this commitment and hope you will check out their site. We Support-Best Practice Local and or Canadian Businesses Partnerships •We support businesses in the following order of priority when it comes to sourcing gear for our company. First we support companies that we feel are conducting best practices for eco-justice and earth-friendly business practices. Next, we support companies that are local to the Yukon, and thirdly we support Canadian manufactured products because as a voter we can at least work towards changes in our own country.
We Challenge the Status Quo Consumer Attitudes Through our Purchasing Decisions
•We maintain our gear very well and believe in using the entire life-span of a product through proper maintenance and repairs. CFA does not get rid of perfectly good gear to satiate the consumer demand to be outfttted in gear that appears to be brand-new. We can not pretend to be true environmental advocates if our concern for the environment is Yukon-specific rather that global in perspective. Unnecessary consumerism is the fundamental lifestyle problem which has placed human existence out of balance with the planet. We need to start operating within our needs, rather than our wants. When a piece of gear no longer does its job properly or will create a significant consequence if it fails in the backcountry than it is first repaired, and if it can not be properly repaired than it is replaced, but not before. We have become skilled in gear repair, and even make some one-of-a-kind items ourselves. We attempt to source gear for our company from like-minded companies who are making significant steps to reduce their global environmental impact.
We Support Agencies Dedicated to Protecting Wild Places and to Improving Transportation Technologies Vital to Tourism
•We donate to the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) and green technologies NGO’S. For more information on the work of CPAWS please visit www.cpaws.org •We donate to the Pembina Foundation. www.pembinafoundation.org The Pembina Foundation for Environmental Research and Education supports innovative environmental research and education initiatives that help people reduce their energy footprint.
We Practice Leave No Trace Camping Practices
•The owner of Cabin Fever Adventures is a certified Master Trainer for The Leave No Trace Centre for Outdoor Ethics. We travel as lightly upon the land as we can so as to leave for the enjoyment of future generations the landscape we hold dear today. To learn more about the principles of LNT backcountry travel please visit www.lnt.org
Day-to-Day Operation of our Physical Plant
We operate Cabin Fever Adventures from our wilderness base-camp and are pursuing numerous efforts to minimize our environmental footprint.
•We personally live a lower-than-average impact lifestyle at our cabin in the wilderness. We live with our family of three in a 480 square foot home (44.6 m2 ) that is also our office for CFA. We function on an average of 15 gallons (56.78 L) of water per day for our entire family, including laundry, cleaning, drinking etc. Our water consumption at home is about one-twentieth the national average for Canada. •We operate an almost paper-less office and we conduct near-paperless interactions with our clients. You will notice that we offer all our information digitally and encourage our customers to embrace communication that avoids the need for paper. •We will soon be investing in a solar energy system for our base camp. •We believe in making our equipment last as long as possible and invest in skills and equipment which allow us to utilize local building materials and waste materials, to operate and or repair our equipment. •We remove our solid human waste from the environment on our busier river routes and dispose of it in sanitation dumps •Our largest environmental impact is our use of fossil fuels for transportation. This is why we actively donate to foundations supporting advances in renewable energy, such as the Pembina Foundation and have chosen to carbon offset all of our tourism products. •We utilize green cleaning dish soaps, cleaning products, and laundry detergents.
About our Trusted Partner
Cabin Fever Adventures offers a variety of wilderness vacations in the Yukon, Southeast Alaska and Northern British Columbia. We operate by the doctrines of ecotourism and are industry leaders in decreasing our environmental impact, not just in the wilderness areas we travel through, but globally through our ethical business decisions. We offer an organic food menu, purchase carbon offsets for our transportation emissions and donate to grassroots environmental protection agencies. If you would like to see the stunning beauty of the Northwest while treading lightly on the planet, then Cabin Fever Adventures is for you. There is only one future and it is shared!
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