Wrangell-St Elias National Park Backpacking Adventure
Wrangell -St Elias National Park Backpacking Adventure
6 full days backpacking in the Alaskan Backcountry, plus 2 days to explore the small town of McCarthy bookending our bushwhacking adventure.
July 17-28, 2025
This trip is all about exploring the high country in the Wolverine Mountain area in Wrangell-St Elias National Park. Similar to Unruly Women backpacking trips in MN, this backpacking retreat will allow be a combination of backpacking and base camping allowing for flexibility and the ability to experience both hard work, exploration and the convenience of basecamping.
Unruly Women backpacking retreats differ from other guiding services by focusing our mindset around skill building, self empowerment through challenging experiences, and through immersing ourselves in nature to nurture mindfulness and strengthen our intuition so that we learn to better listen to our intuition and trust ourselves. This is much more than just a guided backpacking experience- it’s a space that will allow you to unearth the inner you, the wildest you, the most authentic you that ever you-d. Coming away from this adventure you'll feel confident, empowered and pretty badass ;)Trek Alaska has decades of experience guiding in Alaska, they even wrote the book 'Falcon Guides : Hiking Alaska's Wrangell St Elias National Park' and as a guiding company they align well with Unruly Women’s mission. 
More about this adventure
This will be a small group of 6 people total - 4 open spots!
Backpacking experience is highly recommended
We will be bushwhacking through Alaskan High Country
There will be gorgeous campsites, ridge walking, waterfalls, caves, rock arches, wildlife, fossils and more!
A 70 L backpack is required to have sufficient space for personal and shared gear and you will be sent a list of personal gear required (clothing, boots, personal items)
Group gear listed that will be provided : backcountry guide, backcountry tents, dining tarp, cook stove, fuel canisters, fuel, cooking gear, group first aid kit, emergency satellite phone, all food and snacks for the backpacking trek, bear resistant food storage canisters, water treatment kit
The exact start and end dates and time are subject to change depending on transportation (as we’re still figuring out a few necessary details)
Leading you on this adventure will be our guide Quill, an experienced Alaskan guide from Trek Alaska and Monica from Unruly Women.
This trip is limited to 4 people, please click the link below if you are interested in learning more about this trip. Please notify me ASAP to secure your spot if interested!
🏳️🌈 A reminder that all Unruly Women events - - especially this one! - - are open to anyone who is female identifying and feels belonging in femme spaces or non-binary. Trans, non-binary and two-spirit people have always existed throughout history and across many cultures. Here at Unruly Women, we believe that that trans women are women, and that trans and gender-nonconforming people belong everywhere, especially in outdoor spaces. 🏳️⚧️
EVERY BODY BELONGS OUTDOORS Meet Your Guides!
Quill (they/them) Wilderness Guide
[Photo taken in McCarthy, Alaska!!!]
Growing up on the shores of Lake Superior Gitchigumi, Quill has always had a love for playing outside. They have spent the past 7 summers working as a backcountry guide at a wilderness adventure camp and sharing outdoor experiences with youth including canoe trips in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area and backpacking trips around the lower 48 and in the Alaska Brooks Range.
Quill has worked for the Utah Conservation Corps learning about the different plants and invasive species in the Moab area, and has spent time learning how to care for, train, and race sled dogs in Willow, Alaska - - getting to experience how amazing and powerful these tiny beings are!
While working as a wilderness guide, Quill has come to realize a passion for facilitating connection amongst groups of people and allowing space for folks to interact with the outdoors in their own unique ways. Creating an environment where people feel welcomed and included in the outdoors, is important to Quill, while also discovering the past and present stories of where we travel is paramount to developing respect, responsibility, and allyship to these wild places and to each other.
Monica (she/her) Guide
Monica is the founder, event + retreat curator, guide + outdoor recreation educator for Unruly Women an organization that values inclusivity and accessibility with a mission to cultivate community and empower all female identifying, femme and non-binary persons to reclaim their voice by unearthing their inner wild, outdoors.
She curates and guides retreats for backpacking on the Superior Hiking Trail and mountain biking throughout the Midwest, Shared Identity volunteer events with the SHTA, collaborates with small businesses and organizations in the community to host public events to bring community together and create a sense of belonging in the outdoor space, for everyone.
Monica is a certified mountain biking coach, wilderness first responder, published freelance writer and entrepreneur who quit her job to fulfill her dream of helping to create safe spaces outdoors for everybody through empowering adventures. She knows deeply that the more time we engage in nature, learn the skills and safety for sustainable outdoor recreation, the more likely we are to respect nature and help protect it for future generations to come.
You can read more about Monica’s outdoor experience by clicking here.