Kachemak Bay
Protected coves · Remote stays
Guided sculling · Alaska
Row farther
into Alaska.
The water is waiting.
Small-group trips for experienced scullers who want real miles on the water and the chance to take in Alaska from the boat.
Portage Lake, Alaska
The idea
The row and the landscape.
One inseparable experience.
Rowing Alaska brings together two things I love: a good row and the chance to experience Alaska from the water. If you can handle a single and love to row, I want to share this with you.
The experience
A different kind of Alaska trip.
We’ll put in meaningful miles, but there will also be time to look up, explore, and take in where we are.
Who this is for
You need to be comfortable in a single scull on open water. Not racing-fit, not expedition-hardened—just a rower who knows what they’re doing and wants to do it somewhere extraordinary. If that’s you, let’s talk.
- Group
- Six or fewer rowers
- Boats
- Stable, open-water rowing shells
- Rowers
- Intermediate; comfortable in a single scull
- Conditions
- Plans shaped by weather and water
Where we row
Wild water.
Carefully chosen.
I choose routes for both the rowing and the place: protected water, worthwhile distance, extraordinary scenery, and access that makes the experience feel unmistakably Alaskan. Most locations are within a four-hour drive of Anchorage, with every trip shaped by the weather and water conditions. Trip locations can include areas such as Portage Lake, Eklutna Lake, Trail Lake, Kenai Lake, Kachemak Bay, and Resurrection Bay.
Eklutna Lake
Glacial water · Mountain miles
Portage Lake
Glacial water · Mountain views
Kachemak Bay
Coastal routes · Sheltered water2027 trips
One day or several.
Alaska is the point.
Custom trips
Your Alaska, Your Schedule
Have a specific lake in mind? A particular window of time? Let’s build a trip around your goals, your timeline, and the conditions that make rowing here extraordinary. Choose a single day or several, an out-and-back route or a multi-day journey. Camping is optional. The same sculling experience requirements apply.
On the water
Gear for the conditions.
Room to row.
Every rower wears a PFD and wetsuit skin provided by Rowing Alaska. I choose this gear with both safety and function in mind: we need to be able to row in it and have the right gear for the conditions we’re in. Weather and water conditions also shape when and where we go.
Samantha Smith · Founder
Built from a love of rowing
and Alaska.
I rowed sweep competitively at Fordham University. Our crews won four straight Atlantic 10 championships and three Dad Vail titles, and twice reached the final four at Women’s Henley in England. I was later inducted into the Fordham Athletics Hall of Fame. Then, for many years, I stepped away from the sport.
Just after college, a six-month internship at the Alaska SeaLife Center in Seward brought me to Alaska. Following this internship, I pursued other opportunities around the country working in animal husbandry, but after graduating from law school in 2006, I knew I wanted to come back to Alaska—and I did. I lived here for more than a decade before a career opportunity with SpaceX took me to Texas in 2018. Then in 2022, I accepted a position with Blue Origin as a Safety Range Officer with the New Shepard launch crew. This position is what brought me to Washington.
While in Washington, a colleague suggested I try sculling at the local boathouse, Renton Rowing Center (RRC). Here I discovered a different kind of love for rowing than I’d known in college, and kept rowing and competing until I moved back to Alaska in 2026. My last regatta with RRC was the 2026 USRowing Northwest Masters Championships where I finished 1st in the Mixed AA-B 4x and 3rd in the Mixed C 8+. Now I am in Alaska rowing with the Anchorage Rowing Association (ARA).
Alaska is my favorite place on earth: the scenery, the hikes, the wildlife, and the people. I started Rowing Alaska to bring two things I love together. My goal is to share this love with rowers from all backgrounds who want meaningful miles in a boat and time to experience the beauty of Alaska.
The fleet
Purpose-built for the water.
The fleet is primarily MAAS 24-foot and Aero open-water singles, with a MAAS double also available. Let me know if you’d prefer to row a double.
2027 trip inquiries
Let’s plan your row.
Contact me for trips and pricing. Tell me when you’d like to go, where you’d like to row, and a little about your sculling experience. I’ll talk with you directly about a single-day or multi-day trip that fits.
Email info@rowingalaska.com