The Arctic Orienteering Club is excited to announce the third Arctic Orienteering Festival! Please Join us for 3 days of spectacular Alaska orienteering and experience the long summer days in a land of rugged beauty!
About
The Arctic Orienteering Club is the premier (well only) orienteering club in Alaska. Located in Anchorage Alaska, we host about 20 events per year, that often see upwards of 100 participants per event. Find out more about us on our website https://oalaska.org.
Our goals for the Alaska Orienteering Festival are
- Have as much fun as we did last year!
- Gain more experience hosting a National Ranking Event.
- Introduce orienteers from outside Alaska to our excellent orienteering venues.
General Info
Overview
The first event is on Thursday evening (June 25, 2026) in Anchorage. It’s a sprint on the University of Alaska Anchorage campus and surrounding parkland which provides a mix of urban and forrested terrain. We typically offer options for a short course and a long course at our sprints. Think great spectating and exciting competitor interaction!
The Saturday (June 27, 2026) event will be at Mirror Lake about 24 miles north of Anchorage. This classic forest event with White, Yellow, Orange, Brown, Green, Red, and Blue courses features mostly open birch and spruce forest with lots of low ferns for ground cover. We will be applying to OUSA to sanction this as a National Ranking Event (NRE).
The final event on (June 28, 2026) will be a long/extra long classic in a spectacular alpine venue. Use your medium to advanced navigation skills as you traverse the foothills, tundra, and ridges of the Chugach Mountains that overlook the city of Anchorage and the upper arm of the Cook Inlet. This is what Alaska orienteering is all about!
Cost
| Regular (thru June 18) |
Late (after June 18) |
|
|---|---|---|
| June 25 – UAA Sprint | $15 | $25 |
| June 27 – Mirror Lake NRE | $50 | $60 |
| June 28 – Chugach Mountains | $15 | $25 |
Arctic Orienteering Club season pass holders have the cost of regular registration covered by their pass. As always, children under 18 will not be charged an entry fee.
Electronic punch finger stick rental will be $5/day.
Start Times
We will not be assigning start times before the events. You can start as soon as there is an opening on your course (maintaining a minimum 2 minute interval).
Punching
All courses will use the SportIdent punching system. For Thursday and Staturday’s events, we will be operating in beacon mode, so contactless punching will be supported, as well as standard punching. Standard (non-contactless) SportIdent cards (finger sticks) will be available for rent at the venue.
Weather
The weather in Alaska can be fantastic for orienteering. Even when sunny, it is rarely too hot for running in steep alpine terrain. However, the weather can also be fickle and sometimes downright nasty. Despite the conditions at the start of your race, you should be prepared for the weather to turn cold, wet, and windy while you are on the course. Hypothermia is always a concern in the alpine country of Alaska, and you need to be prepared for it.
Water
We will provide a limited amount of water at the start/finish area. There will be no treated water out on the course. Due to the generally cooler, wetter conditions in Alaska, most orienteers here do not need water during a race; however, you need to judge your own needs and bring water if you may need it on the course. We also encourage everyone to bring their own water in case we run out.
Wildlife
The good news is that there is a lot of cool wildlife in Alaska, and the chance of seeing something while here is high. More good news is that we do not have any snakes and other venomous terrors like scorpions. However, we do have an abundance of large furry mammals. Moose and bear encounters are possible on all of our courses; however, these animals prefer to be left alone and will typically leave you alone. The alpine country provides good visibility, so you are unlikely to surprise anyone, and you and the animal can give each other a wide berth. In the wooded areas, it is good to make noise and carry bear spray. We will have bear and moose awareness literature available at the start/finish area. There is also plenty of good information available online, and you are encouraged to do your homework and come prepared.
The other significant “wildlife” we contend with in Alaska is the mosquito (aka the state bird). The nuisance factor can range from 0 to unbearable (“I got eaten alive every time I slowed down to read my map”). Fortunately, the location and the time of year should make for a low mosquito factor, but this can’t be guaranteed. We will have a limited amount of insect repellent (we call it “bug dope”) at the start/finish area, but we recommend that you bring your own and carry some with you. If you sweat a lot you may need to re-apply.
Vegetation
The vegetation at our venues in Alaska can be challenging. Our maps use dark green to indicate heavy vegetation that is very difficult to travel through such as thick alders, painful devil’s club (see below), and dense mountain hemlock. However even our more “runnable” terrain has thicker vegetation underfoot.
Alaska has no poison ivy or poison oak, but some meadows and fields do have cow parsnip (aka hog weed), which can cause a rash when the toxin is activated by the sun after exposure to the skin. It is easy to spot and easy to avoid. It is harmless if a broken stem doesn’t contact bare skin. While not hazardous, devil’s club is the other noteworthy plant to avoid as the stems and undersides of the large leafs are very prickly. You are more likely to encounter these plants at the Mirror Lake and Chugach Mountains venues.
Schedule
Events will take place on Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday from June 25, 2026 to June 28, 2026. See the event program for details
Logistics
Useful information for visitors coming from out of state:
Getting Here
We recommend flying into the Anchorage International Airport and renting a car. The distance from the airport and the weekend venue is about 85 miles. The Wednesday venues will be in or near Anchorage. It’s best to book early as hotel and rental car availability can be limited in the summer months.
Where to Stay
There are numerous lodging options in Anchorage to choose from, but book early as the summer months can be very popular.
Event Program
Details are subject to change.
Thursday, June 25th
Sprint at University of Alaska Anchorage
The University of Alaska Anchorage campus and surrounding parkland provides a mix of urban and forrested terrain. We plan to offer options for a short course and a long course. We will have more details when we get closer to the event.
Saturday, June 27th
Classics at Mirror Lake
The venue at Mirror Lake (Google maps) has a great mix of interesting terrain and some of our more runnable vegetation. Many thanks to the Native Village of Eklutna for use of their lands. We plan to offer white, yellow, orange, brown, red, and blue courses. We will have more details when we get closer to the event.
We are updating the map at this venue, and we are applying to OUSA for sanctioning as a National Ranking Event (NRE).
Sunday, June 28th
Mountain-O in the Chugach State Park
An extra-long classic event in an open alpine venue with lots of contour lines. This event will provide an extra physical challenge that will be rewarded by spectacular views of the Chugach Mountains, the city of Anchorage, and Cook Inlet. We plan to offer options for a short course and a long course. We will have more details when we get closer to the event.
Photos from club event in the Chugach Mountains August 2025
Registration
Registration with EventReg is encouraged, but on site registration will also be available. When registering with EventReg, the E-Punch Number is the number on your ePunch finger stick. If you do not have an finger stick, you will need to select the rental option during registration. Preregistration guarantees that we will have a map available for the courses you select. We will only have a limited number of extra maps for those that choose to register on site. You can use event reg to change your course selection up until 2 days before the event.
Attention Arctic Orienteering Club:
- EventReg, considers your club affiliation to be “ARCTIC” not “AOC”.
- This year, the festival events are covered by the season pass. Enter the coupon code “PASS2026” to get the discount code when you register.
- If you use EventReg you will need to complete another online waiver in the registration process.
See who is coming.
Merchandise
We plan on offering an online store to purchase festival merchandise.
Results
Live results will be available on SportIdent. We will also upload results to LiveLox, Attackpoint, and the Artic Orienteering website as soon as possible after an event is finished.