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Alaska Unleashed is an amped-up multisport adventure small ship cruise in Southeast Alaska for the extreme adventurer. Unbound by time and rigid schedules, your boat, the Wilderness Adventurer, lets Alaskan adventure be its guide on this 8-day voyage. Explore Alaska’s serene reaches, hike into wildlife-rich forests, and kayak in dramatic fjords. After feeling the burn from a day of activities, relax back on board in the on-deck hot tub.

With only 36 like-minded adventurers aboard the Wilderness Adventurer, your explorations are amplified as you have more freedom and time with the expedition team, who guide you into some of Alaska’s most scenic and untouched places. Guest speakers, glaciers, unparalleled whales and wildlife, weather, and tides make each week different from the one before.

Day 1 - Ketchikan, Alaska — Embarkation

Welcome aboard! Meet your Captain and crew, and get acquainted with your new shipmates as you head for the Misty Fjords National Monument.

Accommodations: Wilderness Adventurer
Included Meals: dinner

Day 2 - Misty Fjords National Monument

Today’s explorations are entirely water-based with extensive kayaking in the heart of spectacular Misty Fjords National Monument. Paddle quietly in the farthest reaches of this unsung gem at the southernmost point of Alaska’s Inside Passage. A scenic backdrop of glacial valleys and sheer walls are home to brown and black bears, mountain goats, and seabirds.

Accommodations: Wilderness Adventurer
Included Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 3 - Behm Canal / Revillagigedo Island

It's bear country, and today we’ll anchor in the backcountry for low-elevation hiking and intertidal walks to explore sea life along shore and bald eagles dotting the trees. During pristine kayaking in the remote bays that wind through the Tongass National Forest, you’ve got good odds of seeing speedy Dall’s porpoise. There are also opportunities for flightseeing or sport fishing tours (for an extra charge).

Accommodations: Wilderness Adventurer
Included Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 4 - Thomas Bay / Baird Glacier

Change gears today for glacier-hiking and exploration. Walk carefully across the terminal moraine through boot-sucking mud until you stand atop the mile-wide Baird Glacier. Explore the vast expanse of this “river of ice.” Learn about the forces that create glaciers and their earth-shaping impact. Other activities on tap for today include kayaking, paddleboarding, and snorkeling.

Accommodations: Wilderness Adventurer
Included Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 5 - Rainforest Trails / Glacier-fed Rivers

Among the most striking landscapes in all of Southeast Alaska is Thomas Bay. Spend two days of extensive backcountry exploration on foot and by kayak. Options today include the steep and rugged Cascade Creek trail (waterproof hiking boots and gaiters are a must), which terminates at Swan Lake, an alpine lake formed by glaciers over the course of hundreds of thousands of years. This established trail — with difficult stretches marked by tree roots, large rocks, and possible fallen trees — gains 1,200 feet in 5 miles.

Another option is the 5-mile (one way) low-elevation hike to the glacially fed and rarely visited Patterson Lake. Hike in with your companions, and then launch a kayak into Patterson River for spectacular kayaking to the face of Patterson Glacier before hiking back to the trailhead. Elevation gain on this trail is less than 750 feet. Group sizes on each option are limited to ten guests; activities are weather dependent.

Accommodations: Wilderness Adventurer
Included Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 6 - Windham Bay / Stephen’s Passage / Frederick Sound

Wilderness and wildlife and you — civilization has disappeared altogether. Break out in small groups to explore on foot for some non-technical hiking in a temperate rainforest along Windham Bay. Expedition guides bring the forest alive as they interpret the plants and animals that call the forest “home.” Cruising through famed Stephen’s Passage and Frederick Sound, take in some relaxation and wildlife watching: whales, sea lions, puffins, and whatever else nature has in store.

Accommodations: Wilderness Adventurer
Included Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 7 - Tracy Arm / Ford’s Terror Wilderness

Paddle till your heart’s content. Winding fjords with sheer granite walls, hundreds of cascading waterfalls, and some of the largest icebergs in all of Alaska lie within this federally recognized Wilderness Area. With your boat serving as basecamp, you can opt for shorter kayak and standup paddleboard outings, or a full-day kayak excursion. The day is yours to explore this Wilderness area, and conditions permitting, there’ll be a chance to kayak among icebergs in the fjord. This evening, join the Captain in a farewell toast and reminisce about your Alaskan journey over a sumptuous dinner.

Accommodations: Wilderness Adventurer
Included Meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner

Day 8 - Juneau – Disembark

Enjoy a farewell breakfast before disembarking this morning. Transfer directly to the airport or begin your add-on overnight stay or extended land tour.

Accommodations: n/a
Included Meals: breakfast



Itinerary Notes: We may occasionally alter itineraries for safety or to take advantage of weather, wildlife, and unplanned discoveries. The ability to be spontaneous makes this style of small ship expedition travel unique.

Included: All onboard meals; roundtrip transfers and baggage handling between airport/boat; entry fees to national parks/preserves; most from-the-boat adventure activities and equipment; hot tub, sauna, yoga, and a complimentary massage.

Exclusions: Airfare to and from your home city; discretionary gratuities to vessel’s crew, typically 5-10% of fare; travel insurance and insurance of any kind; optional excursions and land tours; wine, beer and liquor; massage; $175 per person in port fees and taxes; excess baggage charges; items of a personal nature.

Arrival & Departure: This trip begins and in Ketchikan, Alaska, and ends in Juneau, Alaska, or reverse. Plan to arrive at the airport (JNU or KTN) on Day 1 no later than 2:30pm. Please do not schedule your return flights until after 11:30pm on Day 8.

Payment & Cancellation: A deposit of $1200 per person is required to secure a 2013 reservation. For 2014 and beyond, the deposit is $750 per person. A Reservation Form, which includes a release of liability, must be completed and signed by all travelers. The balance of the trip price is due 90 days before the departure date. Guests who must cancel their trip for any reason must do so in writing. Cancellations are subject to the following per-person fees, based on number of days prior to departure:
91 days or more - 50% of initial deposit
90 to 61 days - Forfeiture of full deposit
60 to 46 days - 50% of gross fare
45 to 31 days - 75% of gross fare
30 to 0 days - 100% of gross fare

Terms & Conditions: This trip is subject to AdventureSmith Explorations Terms and Conditions. Please read this information carefully and call us if you have any questions. A packing list and extensive pre-departure and travel insurance information is sent upon confirmation.

Travel Insurance: We highly recommend our travelers protect their investment with travel insurance. Please note that you must purchase your travel insurance policy within 14 days of booking your trip for it to cover pre-existing medical conditions. Click the link below for a selection of policies from our partners at Travelex.



Qualifications: Alaska Unleashed will be enjoyed by anyone with a love for nature and the outdoors. Travelers should be prepared for a high level of activity. There will be all-day bushwacking, all day-kayak trips, extensive hiking and other activities.

Guest Lecturers: Alaska Unleashed features the following guest lecturers.

July 13, 2013 - John and Jan Straley
Longtime Sitka, Alaska residents. John and Jan Straley have a world of Alaska experience under their belts and according to John, he moved to Sitka in 1977 and has no plans of leaving. Novelist John has worked as a secretary, horseshoer, wilderness guide, trail crew foreman, millworker, machinist, and private investigator. His first book, The Woman Who Married a Bear, was published in 1993 and won the Shamus Award for the Best First Mystery of that year. His third book, The Music of What Happens, won the 1997 Spotted Owl Award for Best Northwest Mystery. Jan Straley is a marine biologist well-known for her extensive studies of humpback whales since 1979. In 2000, she began a study of killer whale predation upon Steller sea lions and in 2003 expanded her research focus to study sperm whale interactions with the longline fisheries. Jan is assistant Professor of Biology at the University of Alaska Southeast and affiliate faculty at University of Alaska Fairbanks, School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences.

August 10, 2013 - Joe Upton
Joe Upton began his Alaska adventures with a fishing job in 1965. A 70-year-old mate took Joe under his wing and showed him the tricks of the trade - using the chart and the tide book and telling salmon apart - the skills of an Alaska commercial fisherman. But more than anything else, the sage old man filled Upton with the Lore of The North: stories of the people that lived and worked on the coast. After working as a commercial king crab, herring, halibut, and salmon fisherman and fish buyer for 20 years, Upton started a publishing company to share some of the drama he had seen and stories he had heard over the years. His many books and illustrated maps have shared the wonder of The North with Alaska visitors since 1993. In 2009 Upton teamed up with Alaska commercial fisherman and filmmaker Dan Kowalski to produce The Alaska Story Project, a collection of videos about places up and down the Alaska and British Columbia coasts.


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