Interior Alaska
River Resources
...because you never run the same river twice!
EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
- International Scale of River Difficulty (river classifications - e.g. "class IIII")
- The Packraft Handbook by Alaska's very own, Luc Mehl
- A must-have for packrafters of all skill levels!
- The Alaska Packraft Guidebook by another of Alaska's very own, Jule Harle
- Fantastic resource for Alaska packrafters
RIVER LEVELS
ONLINE PADDLING COMMUNITIES
- Alaksa Packrafting (Facebook)
- Fairbanks Packrafters (Facebook)
- Fairbanks Slaydies - Paddling & Rafting (Facebook; women+'s group)
- Fairbanks Paddlers (Facebook)
- Alaska Whitewater (Facebook)
- Alaska Women Paddle (Facebook)
- Where's the Whitewater At? Interior Alaska (Facebook)
- ALASKA Whitewater Buy/Sell/Trade (Facebook)
FAIRBANKS PACKRAFT + GEAR RENTALS
RIVER FORUMS + LIsts
- Fairbanks Paddlers list of Alaska Rivers
- Alaska River Forums by Jule Harle
- Detailed trip reports + river descriptions
- Southcentral Alaska Packrafting Guide by Luc Mehl
- Detailed river descriptions
- Packraft Forum by the American Packrafting Association
- American Whitewater list of Alaska Rivers
INTERIOR ALASKA RIVERS
Note: This list is a starting point—not a comprehensive guide—to Interior Alaska rivers. Rivers are constantly changing, and any classifications or details shared on this page may not be accurate at the time of your paddling trip. Arctic Alaska Packrafting Instruction + crew, Maggie Harings, and authors of other resources shared on this page are in no way liable for the information on this page. Finally, some rivers were intentionally excluded to protect sensitive areas and preserve Alaska’s wild character. We don’t believe in gatekeeping, but we do value responsible recreation—and the magic of discovering places on your own.
- Class I
- Nenana River (Reindeer Hills)
- Chatanika River
- Can have few class I+/II- features
- A nice early season float with a few surf waves
- Chena River
- Can have a few class I+ features
- Beware of lots of wood, including sweepers, striainers and river-wide logjams
- Class II
- Nenana River (upper)
- Tangle Lakes - Delta River
- Classification assumes you portage the class III-IV via trail
- Notorious for wrapped canoes in rapids following porages
- Brushkana Creek
- Class II+ highwater
- Windy Creek (Cantwell area)
- Class III- highwater
- Class III
- Jack River
- Nenana River (middle)
- Delta River (Black Rapids)
- Bull River
- Class IV highwater
- Class IV
- Nenana River (canyon)