I stumbled across a video the other day that further convinced me that I need to move Gates of the Arctic National Park higher on my to-do list. In it, two septuagenarians set off on a three-week canoe trip down the Noatak River, a river the park staff tells us "drains the largest mountain-ringed river basin in America that is still virtually unaffected by human activities."

The video, produced by The Muir Project, follows two old friends who have been exploring the wilds for roughly four decades. Along with raising a proverbial glass to friendship, the video opens a panoramic window on one of the least-visited, and wildest, parks in the system. Fewer than 12,000 people explored Gates of Arctic last year, and no doubt part of the lack of visitation stems from typically needing a bush pilot to fly you into the park to kick off your adventure.

See the video: https://vimeo.com/137989266

But as glorious as this video is in its celebration of both friendship and the wilds, the magnet that the Noatak River is has created a problem with concentrated visitation. The National Park Service has raised concern over impacts, stating that "lakes at the various put-in and take-out points are receiving heavy camping use (Twelvemile Slough, Portage Lake, Nelson Walker Lake, Pingo Lake and Lake Matcharak). Vegetation around the lakes is being destroyed and the impact is detracting from the area's wild character."

With hopes of minimizing, if not reducing, the impacts, park staff has been urging paddlers to "move directly to the river to camp." After arriving at their put-in, river runners are urged to "(C)amp on river gravel bars. Use existing trails between lakes and the river. Do not build fires on the tundra."

But the Noatak is not the only river to run in the park. There are six rivers tied to this 7.5-million-acre park. If forested landscapes are important, choose the Kobuk River, as it flows through “one of largest continuous forested areas in the Park and Preserve.”

But not everything at Gates of Arctic revolves around paddling. There are more than 13,000 square miles to explore, many on foot. Experience in backcountry hiking and navigating are required if you're hoping to explore this park's vastness. There are no established trails, you might encounter bogs, and while jagged peaks and mountain passes are inviting and can lead to amazing views, you're on your own there.

Birding is popular in the park, which has counted more than 140 species that include raptors, songbirds, and aquatic birds. Visit the park in late August and early September and you have a chance of spotting caribou herds as they head south before winter hits.

The National Park Service has dubbed this park "Alaska's Ultimate Wilderness," and its overview of Gates of Arctic conveys why.

Few landmarks bear names on topographic maps here. The park name came from wilderness advocate Robert Marshall, who traveled the North Fork Koyukuk country frequently from 1929 to 1939. Marshall called two peaks, Frigid Crags and Boreal Mountain, the gates from Alaska's central Brooks Range into the far north Arctic. Wind, water, temperature, and glacial and tectonic actions sculpted wildly varied landscapes in this east-west trending part of the Rocky Mountains. Southerly foothills step into waves of mountains rising to elevations of 4,000 feet that culminate in limestone or granite peaks over 7,000 feet in elevation. Then the ranks reverse at the Arctic Divide: Tundra stretches to the Arctic Ocean. Six national wild rivers - Alatna, John, Kobuk, Noatak, North Fork Koyukuk, and Tinayguk - and other waterways cross the park. many people seek remote wilderness and solitude here. A primary goal of park management is to protect these opportunities.

People have been a part of the ecosystem here for over 13,000 years. Nomadic hunters and gatherers traveled between the mountains' forested southern slopes and the Arctic Coast. Now their descendants depend on and use park and preserve resources. A Nunamiut Inupiat village, Anaktuvuk Pass, lies inside the park. Winter is long, and summer is active. Plants and animals move through life cycles quickly before winter sets in.

From November to March, most activity ceases while -20ºF to -50ºF temperatures persist. The dry interior climate sees little snow, but what falls stays to wrap land and rivers in ice and silence. As the low-riding sun starts its warming ascent in March, dogsledders come out. Backpackers and river runners arrive in mid-June, as the rivers become free of ice. No trails or visitor services exist in the park. You must be self-sufficient.

To get more of a sense of this rugged park, you might want to pick up a copy of Joe Wilkins' book, "Gates Of The Arctic National Park: Twelve Years Of Wilderness Exploration." Better yet, track down a copy of Bob Marshall's book, "Alaskan Wilderness." That's what Andrew Skurka relied on back in 2010 when he spent six months walking, paddling, and skiing around Alaska. That nearly 4,700-mile, six-month-long odyssey took him through a showcase of national parks: Gates of the Arctic, Glacier Bay, Denali, Wrangell-St. Elias, Kobuk Valley, and Klondike Gold Rush in the United States, Vuntut and Ivvavik in Canada.

"Bob Marshall’s observations are like almost identical to what I came across," Mr. Skurka told the Traveler back in 2011. "The rivers were still running the same way that they used to, seeing a lot of wildlife, the natives up there, their lives have certainly changed, but they’re still up there, they’re still primarily based on subsistence living, at least for the bulk of their food stores, and the landscape up there hasn’t changed that much."

If you're looking for a place to really get away from it all, one that will test your survival skills, Gates of the Arctic would be a good choice.

Traveler's choice for: Wilderness experience, paddling adventures.