The original farm house, built in 1935, now houses some of the most experienced, well-rounded staff in the business. It is also listed on the National Register of Historic Buildings.

Just before turning onto Farm Loop Road from the old Glenn Highway, you catch your first glimpse of the breathtaking glacially carved valleys that characterize Alaska’s vast landscape. You’ll find NOLS Alaska forty-two miles northeast of Anchorage in the heart of the lush Matanuska-Susitna Valley, with beautiful views to the Talkeetna and Chugach mountain ranges.

Downtown Palmer lies 10 short minutes away, a quiet town created as a planned agricultural colony in 1935. From then until 1971, when it became NOLS Alaska, our facility operated as a working dairy farm in the spaces where you and your course mates will now prepare for your expedition.

The Issue barn is where you’ll gear up, pack food and eat meals before your expedition.

The horseshoe-shaped Issue Barn, with its covered dining deck on one end, hammock and porch swing on the other, will be your first greeting when you arrive. It also houses a full kitchen, rations and equipment rooms and student staging areas. Separate buildings include a shower house, classroom building and staff house, the original 1935 farmhouse now listed on the National Register of Historic Buildings.

The 40-acre NOLS farm may feel huge, but you’ll find the atmosphere homey and friendly, with amazing food fresh from the organic garden. Thanks to the endless sunlight between late April and mid-August, you’ll see some unbelievably huge vegetables at the end of the season. And although you won’t do much stargazing, you’ll have plenty of time to enjoy Alaska’s wild beauty, including Dall sheep, moose, caribou, bears, wolves, and many species of birds while in the field.

If you’ve chosen sea kayaking as your mode of travel, your expedition may run out of Petersburg, a tiny fishing village tucked into the southeastern Alexander Archipelago near the Yukon border on the Frederick Sound.

Courses concentrating on backpacking in the Brooks Range will prepare in Fairbanks, one of the largest cities in Alaska and less than 150 miles from the Arctic Circle.

At NOLS Alaska, in Palmer, Petersburg or Fairbanks, the super-friendly staff will welcome you into a community that you become a part of…and a stunning wilderness you won’t want to leave.

Local Facts NOLS Alaska’s classrooms include wilderness from sea level to the top of Denali and from Southeast Alaska to the northernmost regions of Alaska. Over 1,000 pounds of lettuce were harvested and eaten by students and staff in Palmer during the summer of 2004! Many course areas are so remote that resupply is only possible by small bush planes for backpacking and mountaineering courses. A wind generator helps the Palmer facility with power during the winter.