Guided trip: Hike Bella Coola’s alpine
In the late 1980s, 41-year-old Chris Czajkowski hiked into the mountains above the Bella Coola valley, discovered an idyllic alpine playground, and fell in love. She spent the next 22 years here, building three cabins and a network of hiking trails collectively called Nuk Tessli. Czajkowski welcomed guests to her fly-in only wilderness until last year, when her health forced her to move to town. But she passed the keys to her paradise along to Wildearth Adventures, which is now offering eight-day hiking trips here. The cabins are still only accessible by floatplane, which lands on the lake at their doorstep. The hiking trails head off in every direction, and they all provide primo views of the craggy summits on the east side of the Coast Range—peaks that stood in for the Himalaya in the movies K2 and Seven Years in Tibet. Besides the mountains, you may also see wolves, cougars, moose and black bears. Leading the way through it all is author and photographer Philip Stone. Though it’s not a photography clinic, Stone will happily make suggestions for capturing the Coast Range scenery, wildflowers and wildlife.
When: Various departures
Cost: $2,395
Company: Wildearth Adventures
