5/5/2023 0 Comments Endless sky ultima thule![]() “How do you fancy a hike up the mountain just behind the lodge tomorrow, weather permitting?” asks Paul, with ruddy cheeks and twinkling eyes during dinner. In the Alaskan wilderness, flying is just like learning how to ride a bike. The gigantic stove and sofa, plus all the other materials used to build the present luxury lodge were flown here in the Twin Otter. When there is no more wine or beer, one of the family simply hops into a Super Cub and flies out to get it. The special kind you often see on National Geographic Channel in series like Alaska’s Toughest Pilots. No ordinary pilots, but fearless and highly skilled bush pilots. Just like granddad John, who is now retired and lives in Anchorage, the family members are all pilots. Nowadays it is mainly son Paul, his wife Donna and their daughters Ellie, Logan, son Jay and son-in-law Ben who run the lodge. Brown and black bears wander past the lodge, at night you can hear a pin drop, and the fresh air smells like freshly sharped pencils. ![]() Just like Carry, most guests come here during the summer months to escape the world and be close to nature. Instead, he took the cans, changed his hair look and wearing a typical Carry expression, walked over to the trekkers and said ‘Here’s your diesel, folks!’ I’ll never forget their faces,” he laughs. When we arrived, I wanted to get out with the two jerry cans but he stopped me. One day I had to make an emergency flight to carry diesel to some stranded trekkers and Carry came along with me. “Did you know that lots of Hollywood celebs like coming to Ultima Thule Lodge because they can be absolutely sure that no paparazzi can get up here? They would never survive the wilderness,” Paul smirks. ![]() Elias National Park was established, the Claus’ were allowed to keep their piece of land and small outpost, one of the very few in this vast expanse of 53,000 square kilometres protected wilderness. They loved to camp out in the wild, to enjoy nature, fish, hunt and be away from it all. Together with his wife Eleanor, John built a modest wood cabin and a landing strip close to the river. At that time, there was no question of a national park. No roads, no cars and almost no people, just lots of bears, mosquitos and us.Paul’s father, John Claus, learned to fly in the 1950s and bought a piece of land deep in the wilderness, close to the Chitina River under the then Homestead Act. One of the largest protected pieces of earth on this planet. Elias National Park, stretching from Canada’s Yukon Territory to the Pacific Ocean. Ultima Thule Lodge is located some 150 kilometres away, in the Wrangell-St. We bundle into the Twin Otter and leave civilization as we know it behind us. Our taxi has arrived, with at the wheel, Paul Claus, a second generation aviator and adventurer and owner of Ultima Thule Lodge where we are about to stay for the next three days. ![]() A few minutes later, a shiny red DHC-3 Otter lands right in front of us on the gravel. In the distance, a red dot appears, following the Chitina River. I am staring up at a cloudy sky, standing next to my car. Chitina is a four-hour, scenic drive from the city of Anchorage and it actually feels like it’s the end of the world. ![]() The only other reason why travellers come here is to salmon fish in the fast flowing clear rivers. I am in tiny Chitina, population 150 people. “Park alongside the log cabin and wait, but stay away from the stretch of ground beside the car park.” were the instructions in the email. It’s the end of June and the sun never sets in the evening. My rendezvous with the wilderness is somewhere in a forgotten corner of Alaska, around six in the evening. The best way to explore a vast and almost inaccessible national park in Alaska is to hop on a bush plane and fly along. ![]()
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