Northwestern Fjord Day Trip

Your day begins with an early morning departure at 6 a.m. on our comfortable water taxi for a two to two-and-a-half-hour wildlife tour and transport to the Kenai Fjords National Park. The boat ride alone is an adventure as we traverse the vast beauty of the Gulf of Alaska. The day continues as we cross the submerged terminal moraine of Northwestern Glacier (a full 8.75 miles from the current face of the glacier!) and into Northwestern Lagoon, where the ocean depths shoot from over 400 feet on the outside to 24 feet at the crossing, and then down to 600 feet on the other side of the moraine! Enjoy opportunities to view black bears, coastal birds, and a host of marine mammals over the whole course of your trip — not just on the sea kayaking portion!

We land ~ 8 – 9:30 a.m. in the heart of the Kenai Fjords National Park on one of many beautiful pristine beaches. Your guide talks you through your kayak and gear on the way, providing paddling advice and raising situational awareness, which should allow for a quick start once unloaded.

Then it’s time to start paddling, where a rugged coastline folds into five sizeable glaciers for a full-day excursion. You and your group explore the park, moving from place to place from circumnavigating Striation Island to crossing in front of tidewater glaciers, this journey ranges from 8 to 15-miles, depending on the group’s speed and intentions. Trips travel at the pace of your group, so whether you’d like to cover as much ground as possible or rest on a beach with your journal or camera, we work to accommodate you!

The water taxi boat picks you up in the late afternoon, 4 – 6:30 p.m., depending on the day, and the crew loads your kayaks and gear. The return trip explores the Kenai Fjords all the way back to Seward, keeping an eye out for the many whales migrating and feeding through our area. We aim to be at Miller’s Landing by 6 – 9 p.m., depending on how exciting our sightseeing options are on the way home.

We do reserve the right to be flexible — marine weather and logistics can delay things or require an earlier pick-up. Keep in mind they are boats, not trains, and we have to heed the demands of the ocean from time to time.

The image above was compiled from NOAA historical chart databases to illustrate that since 1932, the face of Northwestern Glacier has retreated over 9 miles in the last 85 years. The Northwestern Fjord area wasn’t even charted until the 2002 NOAA charts were released, with the space simply reading, “The upper part of Harris Bay is usually filled with floating ice.” This is a really incredible place, folks.

The Tidewater Glaciers in Northwestern are more vertical than the tidewater glaciers in Aialik. While Aialik is expansive and gorgeous as well, the glaciers are massive and slowly lope up valleys. In Northwestern, the glaciers shoot straight up the cliff sides to the Harding Icefield. We see alpine calving, avalanches, and a lot of very raw, recently exposed rock.

The lush rainforests that bridle the glaciers in Aialik Bay are nowhere to be found here, not having had the time to encroach on the rapid recession of Northwestern’s giants. Here you will see amazing geological formations, stunning pink granite from oxidization, scarring in the sides of the bedrock from glacier ice, rock slides and towering cliffs sides filled with nesting sea birds.

Northwestern can only be accessed by foot, helicopter, plane or boat. We utilize our own 36-foot landing craft that can carry up to 24 passengers. It exceeds the 5-star safety rating and has music, a heated cabin, windows for viewing the landscape or wildlife, and comfortable seating. On the way to the park, we generally stop for wildlife such as puffins, sea lions and otters. If we see orcas or other whales, we generally stop to view them.

The water taxi ride generally takes 1.5 to 2 hours depending on weather, tides, and if we see any wildlife. While the water is usually calm, it can sometimes get bumpy if weather comes in. We always do our best to make the ride comfortable, but we can’t control the weather!

• A $10 cancellation fee is imposed for all reservations canceled.
• Cancellations must be received by email only to [email protected] The cancellation notice date is the date the email was received at [email protected] Phone cancellations will not be accepted.
• Cancellations received by email 30 days prior to the first day of the reservation are charged a $10 cancellation fee and you will receive a refund of 90% of the total amount of the reservation.
• Cancellations received by email 15 to 29 days prior to the first day of the reservation are charged a $10 cancellation charge and you will receive a 75% refund of the total amount of the reservation.
• Cancellations received by email 14 days to zero days prior to arrival are charged a $10 cancellation fee and you will receive a 50% refund only if we are able to rebook your camping, cabin, fishing, kayaking, water taxi, shuttle, lunch, or activity. If we are not able to rebook your reservation, then no refunds will be issued and you will also be charged a $10 cancellation fee to your credit card.
• In some situations, a raincheck worth 75% of your reservation may be issued at the discretion of Miller’s Landing management instead of the applicable cancellation charge. If this option appeals to you, please suggest this at the time of cancellation. Rainchecks are good for one year and may be used for activities, camping, or lodging owned by Miller’s Landing or towards the cost of hats, T-shirts, gifts, etc. sold in the Miller’s Landing store or items sold online. For items purchased online, the customer is expected to pay for the cost of postage. Rainchecks may NOT be transferred to another person.
• A 100% refund will be issued for any activity that was canceled due to weather by Miller’s Landing. Miller’s Landing reserves the right to determine weather cancellations. Rain does not constitute a cancellation.

Please note: Miller’s Landing encourages only guaranteed prepaid reservations. Unlike many other states, Alaska has a very short tourist season, which can make it difficult for us to rebook when we have cancellations without ample notice.

If you are booking a charter and lodging and your charter, water taxi, or kayaking is canceled due to weather, you are still responsible for the lodging or camping reservations and the normal cancellation policy applies. All of our activities are possible during rain, so rain does not constitute a cancellation.  Miller’s Landing is not responsible for vehicle break downs, personal emergencies, flight delays, health issues or other unforeseen hardships. We will try very hard to work with you, but the cancellation policy will need to be applied if we cannot issue a raincheck or find an alternative solution that appeals to both parties.

Please understand that Miller’s Landing also incurs a hefty financial merchant fee from our bank for the cost of charging your credit card and again for the cost of refunding it, and there is also a cost involved for the time involved in processing and refunding your reservation in employee costs. Our goal when taking your reservation is to have a solid, guaranteed prepaid reservation. We strongly discourage the practice of making reservations without having an airline ticket or making tentative reservations. Thank you for your understanding.

Please let us know about any medical or dietary restrictions before the trip!

Before the trip, your food is prepped by your guide in a clean and well-maintained kitchen operated by Barrio. A coffee shop located inside Millers Landing’s office. They have a clean, certified, and modern kitchen. All food plans are double checked or are planned by multiple people to ensure satisfaction.

Barrio does not only prepare food for our kayaking trips but makes delicious beverages, breakfast and lunch for our customers, and caters to weddings as well as special events such as birthdays! Our guides as well as Barrio’s staff takes all measures to maintain a clean and well-run kitchen so you can enjoy Alaska and your meals.

In the backcountry, your guide will prepare meals using a whisper lite stove. We chose these because the fuel canisters are re-fillable reducing waste, and they are reliable and maintainable. Your guide will not only cook you fresh and warm meals but will have hot water for coffee, hot cocoa, or tea.

Our Guides are all experienced in kayaking and in outdoor leadership before joining our team. They often come from all different backgrounds; from being ski instructors, snowmobile guides, backpacking guides, or passionate outdoor enthusiasts. Which we believe helps build a strong diverse team with many skills who are all able to thrive and learn from each other. Everyone is trained for two weeks to refine their skills together and learn all they need to know to safely guide our clients. We instruct and certify our guides as ACA L2 kayakers, practice cold water rescue techniques, spend 6 amazing but gruelling days in the backcountry as a team, and require that all guides have an up-to-date Wilderness First Responder Certification.

Check it out here: Kayak Guide Training Summer 2022 | Miller’s Landing (millerslandingak.com)

Spend a summer outdoors and in the Stunning Kenai Fjords National Park and Resurrection Bay, teaching, guiding, and enjoying all the amazing experiences Alaska have to offer. Miller’s Landing is a family-run business that started operations shortly after Kenai Fjords National Park was established in 1980 and the tourism industry began to form in Seward. We work hard to provide every guest with a memorable experience, with a focus on safety, education, stewardship, and fostering a supportive and inclusive work environment.

We begin our hiring process in the winter, between December and January, and suggest you apply in December. Our training begins May 1st and the season runs until September 15th. We ask that guides are able to attend training and can stay until at least mid-August.

Learn more about our requirements and the hiring process here: Kayak Instructor / Guide | Miller’s Landing in Seward Alaska (millerslandingak.com)