Employment Opportunities

Thank you for your interest in employment with Within the Wild Adventure Company. Following is a description of our company in general, a description of what life is like “in camp”, what to expect from us for the summer season and a listing of positions. Please read over this information carefully, along with the job description for the position you are applying for. If you have additional questions please contact Carl or Kirsten. Contact us at employment@withinthewild.com

We are accepting applications now for the 2009/2010 winter season at Winterlake Lodge

We are looking for:

Dog Handlers, chef, massage therapist, housekeeper

2010 Summer Positions

Some of these positions may be filled with returning staff members, who have a priority in hiring.

Anchorage-Based Office

• Office administrator
• Expeditor

Redoubt Bay Lodge

• Manager, House
• Manager, guide
• Chef (2 positions)
• Housekeeper
• Dishwasher
• Naturalist Guide (5 positions)

Winterlake Lodge

• Front House Manager
• Chef
• Pastry Chef (filled)
• Wilderness Guide (3 positions)
• Housekeeper
• Dishwasher
• Massage therapist
• Yoga instructor

Lodge Manager - Responsible for training, overseeing, and daily operations of a staff of 6-8 people. This position has potential to work into a year-round permanent position. Requires management and leadership experience, preferably in Alaska or in a remote environment. The manager should have a working knowledge of fly and spin fishing and should be comfortable living in a wilderness setting. Job duties entail adhering to budgets for the lodge and overseeing maintenance and operations of lodge infrastructure. If a year-round option is selected, off-season activities may include lodge promotional activities. Must be good with people, demonstrate leadership skills, and be impeccably honest and trustworthy.

Naturalist/Wilderness Guides - Our Naturalist guides interact with guests and assist them in various adventure activities - bear viewing and natural history touring at Redoubt Bay Lodge - and hiking, heli hiking and sportfishing at Winterlake Lodge. All our guides are expected to be CPR-First Aid trained, competent in outdoor skills, demonstrate good people skills, and exhibit leadership abilities. All our employees are expected to contribute to some of the chores of daily life at camp.

Chef - At Within The Wild Adventure Company, we believe in quality in all things we do and this is especially true in our kitchens. We prepare our foods from scratch, we use local Alaska products when possible, grow gardens and serve innovative and exciting cuisine to both our guests and to our staff. Chefs in our kitchens work closely together as a team to create seasonal menus that are possibly some of the most innovative cuisine in Alaska. Please apply to us only if you are passionate and enthusiastic about your food.

Housekeepers - Our housekeepers work to clean guest cabins, serve meals, clean the main lodge and help with dishes. We spend time working in the garden as well.

Massage Therapist - Our massage therapist is responsible for our wellness program, offering guests massage therapy and classes.

What Our Work Week is Like

Because of the limited number of days (essentially 90 work days)  in our summer season, all Within The Wild Adventure Company employees can expect to work a 10 to 12-hour day, 6 days per week. With one day off per week, it is possible to leave some camp settings for your day off. Often, many people remain in camp for the duration of their contract. If you choose to fly out, there is a nominal fee for employee travel.

All lodge-based employees are offered a monthly salary that’s calculated on an hourly wage in compliance with the State of Alaska’s wage and hour requirements to include a 10-hour workday.

What we really need is a commited team member who can fully focus on the lodge and work at hand. This is not a good job for someone who wants to tour Alaska or have a great deal of private time.

What Camp Life is Like

For those who have never lived in a rustic environment before, camp life can be a transition. There is limited employee housing at all camps and employees are required to share a room with one other staff member of the same sex. There is the occasional compelling exception to offer an employee a private room. At Winterlake Lodge, some employees are housed in “weatherport” structures, which are rigid wall tents situated on platforms. Some employees are required to spend extended time on remote float trips and out camp adventures.

As with any small community, the lodges require rules and regulations so that we can remain organized and professional. An employee manual is located at each lodge site. All Within The Wild Adventure Company employees who begin the season with us will undergo a complete orientation. Employees that join us into the season will be given an orientation by their direct supervisor. We try to make lodge life as comfortable, easy-going, and fun as we can. Some rules are strict and will be absolutely enforced, as with our no-drug policies. We do not center our social activities around alcohol. We enjoy challenging ourselves both mentally and physically to explore new areas of the backcountry and to learn new skills. We are passionate collectors of music and particularly enjoy bluegrass.

We try to create off-time social opportunities amongst ourselves in camp. Some individual and team sports activities, such as volleyball, have been popular. On employee days off, we try to offer experiences (such as going on a helicopter ride, bear-viewing or going along on a flight-see to Mt. McKinley) that will enhance your Alaskan summer experience. Employees take meals together at regularly scheduled meal times. The lodge chefs prepare food for the staff as well as the guests.

It is very important that employees remain with us for the duration of their contracted period, as it is critical to our success to employ a full staff for the entire season. If you are a student and need to return to school before the season ends, or you find that you may have other obligations, we require you to discuss them prior to accepting a position with us. We desire to say farewell and send our seasonal employees into the autumn season with good memories and the satisfaction of knowing that they have fulfilled their commitment and have pride in a job well done.

Employment Opportunities

Each summer season, Within The Wild Adventure Company hires approximately 30 people to work in various positions. This includes one of our two lodges, our out-camp adventure program, or our Anchorage-based office. A complete listing of job opportunities is listed above. During the winter months, we have positions as caretakers at the lodge properties. Winterlake Lodge and Redoubt Bay Lodge caretakers are involved as weather service reporters. We offer two Anchorage-based positions. We do have a core group of our staff in year-round positions, but the vast majority of employees are seasonal. Depending on individual situations, our seasonal staff often returns for more than one season, sometimes working with us for many years. As Within The Wild Adventure Company grows, we are hoping to be able to offer more permanent year-round positions.

Please contact us with your resume at employment@withinthewild.com