Packrafting in Stabbursdalen National Park

Stabbursdalen National Park is one of Norway's most remote and inaccessible national parks. The diverse landscape varies from mountain-desert-like areas to lush birch forests, from vast plateaus to narrow, canyon-like valleys.

On this expedition tour we travel with packrafts through the entire park, from south-west to north-east along the Stabbursdalen river. The river offers a great variety of challenges, from calm lakes to unnavigable but beautiful waterfalls. The inflatable, lightweight packraft is a perfect way of travelling down this river: stable and easy to manoeuvre, even for beginners. You learn from your experienced guide how to manoeuvre your packraft, and you gain valuable experience of camping in the wilderness. The highlights of this trip are the landscape, the variety of the river, and collecting food from the land. Other trips with packrafts on request.

Season, terrain and weather

In the second half of August the infamous Finnmark mosquitoes are gone, leaving the land open and free for people to enjoy the remainder of the Arctic summer in peace. This is the richest time of year in the Arctic: berries are ripe, mushrooms are ready to be picked, and trout, Arctic char and other freshwater fish are plentiful in the thousands of lakes and rivers scattered across the tundra.

In Stabbursdalen National Park you can find iconic animals like golden eagles, lynx, wolverines, brown bears, moose and, in some years, even the rare and elusive snowy owl; the endangered lesser white-fronted goose nests here. The park is not only wild and untouched nature — it is also the summer pasture and calving ground for Sámi reindeer herds. The small geological formations in the park are mostly from the last ice age, but the history of the 1 000-metre mountains dates back more than 600 million years. There are many vulnerable species, both plants and animals, in the park, and we emphasise making this a very low-impact expedition.

How we travel

Packrafting gives a totally new form of access to the wilderness — some would say it is the perfect way of travelling in the months when the snow does not cover the ground. Packrafts are inflatable rafts that pack down as small as a one-man tent and weigh as little as 2.5 kg. They are easy to carry, inflate, paddle and float.

As we travel down the Stabbursdalen river from inland Finnmark to the Arctic coast in the Porsanger Fjord, you witness a beautiful landscape varying from vast mountain plateaus to narrow valleys, snow-clad peaks and green hillsides. The river offers a variety of challenges, from calm lakes to white-water rapids and unnavigable waterfalls. It starts out nice, calm and quiet, giving you time to get comfortable with your packraft and the manoeuvring; as we travel further downstream the obstacles get more challenging, giving you a nice progression in skills and thrills. But don't worry — our packrafts are easy to handle on land, and taking them out of the water to walk around an obstacle is no hassle at all. Along the way there is also time for fishing, small excursions away from the river, picking berries and other edible plants, taking a bath, or any other activities you find interesting.

Comfort, food and safety

Safety is always our number one priority. Our guides embody that, with years of experience, training and knowledge of the river. The maximum guest-to-guide ratio on this trip is 4:1. All participants wear life jackets. Each trip carries at least one emergency communication device, always carried by the guides in separate waterproof containers, and an extensive first-aid kit.

Who can join

This packrafting trip is suitable for any adventurous person, whether you are an experienced paddler or a first-timer. Your guide is well experienced, knowledgeable, welcoming and a great teacher, and gives you all the necessary instruction. You learn how to paddle and handle the packraft both on and off the river; to "read" and "run" the river in safety and confidence; and to pack your backpack and camp comfortably in the wilderness.

Day by day plan

Day 1

Arrival in Alta. Your guide meets you at Alta airport and takes you to a local guesthouse or cabin, where you stay the first night. You are served dinner, and your guide goes through the programme for the trip and the other details of the expedition — and through your personal outdoor equipment, to make sure everybody has everything they need and that the equipment meets the standards the Arctic environment requires. Finally everything is packed, ready for the expedition.

Day 2

After breakfast there is time for some last-minute shopping before we travel to the mountains where the trip starts. We start off softly on the first day, with packrafting on lakes and some hiking before we find our camp spot.

Days 3–7

After breakfast by the shores of the upper Stabbursdalen lake we re-inflate our packrafts and paddle across the upper and lower lakes before we start on the river. This gives you plenty of time to familiarise yourself with the convenient, lightweight, stable and easily manoeuvrable packrafts. On our way down the river we are in and out of the water several times, giving a nice combination of "resting" on the river and stretching your legs walking past the rougher sections.

We camp in tents along the river — but feel free to sleep next to the campfire under the open sky if you like. The river is rich in brown trout, so if you would like to catch your own food, you are welcome to.

Day 8

We arrive at the coast, at Stabbursneset in the Porsanger Fjord. We stay overnight in a cabin, where warm showers, soft beds and our last dinner together await us.

Day 9

Breakfast and journey home.

The price includes

• All meals from dinner on day 1 to breakfast on day 9
• Lodging in Alta and at Stabbursnes
• Some equipment — see the equipment list

Not included

• Travel to Alta and from Stabbursnes
• Personal equipment — please check the equipment list
• Travel insurance
• Alcoholic beverages
• Fishing licence — can be bought before leaving Alta