Gates of the Arctic Is the Most Peaceful U.S. National Park — How to Visit
"Named in the narrative as the flight-seeing and air-taxi service that would take the author into the Brooks Range, the outfitter coordinates bush-plane access into remote tundra and river landings. The text emphasizes logistics and the weather-driven nature of operations: "Weather delays are common here, so there are no set flight times. There's just a range of dates the outfitters recommend being in town, and they ask that you periodically check in until the weather is favorable." Travelers should expect flexible timing, periodic check-ins while in gateway towns, and small-group flights (the author joined five other travelers and a pilot at the hangar). The skies clearing prompts departure: "The skies had cleared. It was time to go." - Emily Hart
Isaac H.
Google
Excellent tour service for Gates of the Arctic and Kobuk Valley. Landen was our pilot and was both professional and personable. Flying from Fairbanks is about an 8 hour day with stops on the ground for photos at both parks.
b h
Google
Find another way to fly to Gates and Kobuk if you can. You may not as there are not many choices or maybe no other choices. This outfit is unprofessional and will not tell you the truth. We ended up figuring out for ourselves they were not going to fly out of Fairbanks one week and moved where we stayed. After we moved they admitted they were not going to fly out of Fairbanks that week. Wasted a lot of time when a good customer-friendly approach would have saved us time by admitting what was booked wasn't going to work. They are more worried about keeping the money than having happy customers. We had much better experiences with two other competitor.
Adrienne P
Google
We had a great experience flying with Golden Eagle Outfitters and our pilot Jesse. Our trip to Kobuk Valley and Gates of the Arctic met all of our expectations. Jesse reached out to us the day before to let us know a time and place to meet for our trip. He included a pickup in Fairbanks so we didn’t have to make the drive to Delta Junction. We landed in both parks for pictures, but the highlight of the trip was flying through the mountains of Gates of the Arctic. The views were incredible! We absolutely loved our trip and recommend flying with these guys!
John N.
Google
We used them for a caribou hunt and had a great experience. We felt safe flying with them despite the windy and rainy conditions. Jesse is an incredible pilot. Jared is also an incredible pilot but not the most social individual. I'd give them five stars but their was some frustration and unnecessary added stress due to Jared's poor, brief, responses to questions and simple email responses. I get it, he is a pilot and not a receptionist but having a receptionist sure would make a lot of us customers happier and better prepared.
All in all, great trip and we will use them again!
Luke B.
Google
We took a trip with them June 30th to Gates of the Arctic and Kobuk Valley national park. Our pilot was very knowledgable and made us feel very safe! We would definitely recommend booking through them if you're in Kotzebue and looking to go on any sort of flightseeing tour!
Benjamin L.
Google
Golden Eagle Outfitters is a top-notch operation. I am a professional climber and I rely on their service several times a year to pursue my goals in the mountains. We fly with pilot Jesse, he is a kind, confident, and knowledgeable pilot. Not only does he handle the heck out of his aircraft but he knows a lot about the land and wildlife. Given the remote nature of the land, you want a pilot of his nature. Anything less and you’re in for potential trouble. I trust this service with my life regularly as we fly into extremely serious mountain terrain for climbing expeditions. Jesse always handles this with swift, timely, and confidence-inspiring flying.
In fact, my climbing partner and I trust Jesse so much that we often say to eachother or others, “if he’s flying, I’m riding!!!!”
Randy
Google
My family booked a trip of a lifetime and the trip was cancelled due to a government shutdown. When a refund was requested, they refused. $5000 is a lot of money and this business owner, as I can see from other reviews has down the same thing to others. How can you justify keeping peoples hard earned money and providing nothing? Please let others know as we are trying to save others from losing such a large amount of money. I pray that this owner would have done the right thing. Just awful!
Cathryn R.
Google
Our family spent the day with Jared from Golden Eagle Outfitters July 24, 2019. What an incredible day! Jared and Joe were both completely professional and super accommodating every step of the way. Jared showed us so many beautiful places and gave us so much great information about every area we went to (Kobuk Valley National Park, Gates of the Arctic National Park and Noatak Valley National Preserve). Fun, spectacular, amazing, and not to be missed! Spend a day with Golden Eagle Outfitters, you will love it and remember it for a lifetime!