Bull River (Packraft)

Driving through Broad Pass on the Parks Highway, it is isn’t obvious that great packrafting is just three miles away--without any bushwhacking. The Bull River is a delightful paddle in the foothills of the Alaska Range. It has a scenic and brushless hike in, fun Class II-III whitewater, and sweeping views of the Alaska Range and Talkeetnas. If there’s a perfect packraft day trip, this might be it.

Topographically, Broad Pass is a fascinating area. It divides Yukon basin rivers from those that flow south into Cook Inlet. You’d think that this continental divide would occur in line with the Alaska Range, but it doesn’t. The Nenana River flows south from glaciers in the Alaska Range, then does a U turn and heads north, cutting through the mountains between Cantwell and Healy. This northward diversion means that south-flowing tributaries are smaller than the might be otherwise, including Bull River and other tributaries of the Chulitna.

From a car, Broad Pass looks like a collection of small lakes and meadows, similar to the continental divide between the Copper and Matanuska Rivers. In fact, a collection of swift rivers descend from Broad Pass, including the Bull River.  It flows southeast toward the Parks Highway from the massif that includes Denali. Then the Bull River turns south by southwest, before joining the West Fork of the Chulitna River. This elbow is a logical place to put in for a packraft day trip.

The put in is located almost exactly three miles west of the spot where the Parks Highway crosses the Middle Fork of the Chulitna River. Just north of this bridge are a couple of large roadside pull offs. Park in the first one on the left, and follow the clear ATV double track west. This track crosses multiple small creeks and several marshy meadows, climbing gradually to a small knoll that overlooks the Bull River. The ATV track becomes indistinct around this knoll, but it is a short walk down to the river. It is very pleasant to walk to the Bull River, as the low vegetation provides constant views of the Alaska Range and Talkeetnas. There are gravel bars by the river that provide a convenient location to blow up packrafts. Brad Meikeljohn’s post on packrafting.org has more details about walk in logistics.

Not too far below the put-in, the Bull River drops into a small gorge with well-defined, pool/drop style rapids. They are a welcome change from the less interesting gravel bar riffles that paddlers find on many glacial rivers. These rapids are Class II at low to medium water levels, and would be Class III when higher water is confined in the narrow canyon. The river water is mostly clear, and the vegetation looks like other Alaska Range rivers. If you’ve paddled in Denali National Park and enjoyed it, Bull River has similar scenery but is much easier to visit.

Around the time that canyon walls drop away from the river, a very obvious jeep road intersects the river at a ford. This is the Bull Colorado Road, and is one option for walking back to the Parks Highway. However, since it appears to be about five miles, it probably makes more sense to float the next ten miles down to a takeout that is closer.

Soon after the Bull Colorado Road ford, the Bull River enters the West Fork of the Chulitna, a significantly larger river. The West Fork is milk chocolate colored, with huge gravel bars. It is completely different from the Bull River’s intimate canyon, and the low gravel bars open up views to the mountains. The West Fork flows extremely quickly, and in an hour or less most paddlers will be swept into a five mile or so canyon with colorful walls and highly varied rock formations. There are no major rapids on the West Fork, but the currents are very strong and could flip a distracted paddler, particularly on the river’s eddy lines.

After the end of the canyon, look for the East Fork of the Chulitna (another fine packraft trip) to enter from the left. Pull out on the fairly large gravel bar on river left, directly downstream of the confluence, and walk uphill on the obvious ATV track back to the Parks Highway. This takeout is approximately 18 miles south of the put in, so paddlers should leave a car or bike for the shuttle while driving up to the put in. You can locate this parking area because it is a well-used gravel parking area one mile south of the Parks Highway bridge that crosses Honolulu Creek.

Packrafting the Bull River this way includes an easy three mile walk in, approximately 20 miles of paddling, and an easy one mile walk out. For most people, that’s a full day trip in a stunning alpine environment with miles of enjoyable whitewater. It is surprising that more people don’t paddle the Bull River, because it has all the elements of a classic packraft day trip.