How do our family members reach Exp AK during our trip?

We’ll provide you with an In Town Point of Contact Person for the duration of your trip.

That person will be able to message Expeditions Alaska via satellite comm device during your trip, but understand such things are not like your cell phone. We don’t carry them around ‘turned on’ during a backcountry trip. Your guide may check the device nightly, but this is NOT a commitment to that.

The best way to approach this situation is simple. Tell your people “no news is good news”. Tell your loved ones you’ll be back in reach on the final day of your trip, and for them NOT to worry or concern themselves about anything until at least 24 hours AFTER that date.

Your guide will carry both a sat phone and an emergency satellite communication device. If there’s an emergency in the field and we need to evacuate anyone we have safety procedures to deal with that. The purpose of these devices is for us to reach “out”, NOT for family members and friends to reach “in”.

If there’s an emergency at home during your trip, your family can contact the listed In Town Point of Contact person and that person will make every effort to reach the group. Please do NOT hassle that person with anything that is not absolutely critical emergency.

This one is kind of a big deal, so let me repeat this. Do NOT hassle that person with anything that is not absolutely critical emergency.

Disorganized things can go awry fast. The BEST thing your family member can do is reach out to our contact person, and leave it in their hands. Your family member should NOT follow up calling the air taxi, or Carl, or the Park Service/FWS, etc, etc, etc.

Doing so simply compounds issues.

Chances are strong that regardless of what emergency happens at home, you’re in the field and not going to be able to do anything about it, and that includes leave the field. So please, this contact person’s info is for EMERGENCY CONTACT ONLY.

And I mean ONLY.

One last note on this. If it’s longer than 3 weeks until your trip starts, please don’t ask “can I get that person’s info?” The answer is no.

We will forward that info/post it in time for you for your trip. Be patient and wait. That’s not something that needs to be resolved until close to your departure date.

Thank you.